Peanut Butter
West Town Bakery & Diner
1916 W. Chicago Ave. and15 E. Ohio St., westtownbakery.com
$32 for six-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| Lovely and moist. It’s got a glorious thin layer of peanut butter.
|
Max: It smells good at the bottom.
|
Salted Caramel
Vanille
See vanillepatisserie.com for locations.
$37 for six-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| The ratio of icing to cake is huge. But the buttercream frosting is barely identifiable as salted caramel.
|
Hannah: It’s a light, fluffy, gentle cake. Cakes have emotions. I expected this to be more playful. Avi: I like gentle cakes. |
Vanilla
Mariano’s
See marianos.com for locations.
$13 for eight-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| There is a weird salt taste. It’s a little off-putting. And this frosting. It’s like a Smurf coughed something up and put it on a cake.
|
Avi: Pleh. I don’t like the frosting. Hannah: I smell Play-Doh. Is that just me? |
Rainbow
Bake
2246 W. North Ave., getbakedchicago.com
$35 for six-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| It looks amazing. Like a sugar bomb. Turns out it’s more buttery than sweet. But I like the crunch from the sprinkles.
|
Hannah: No. With the sprinkles it’s too crunchy. It’s too unbalanced. Max: Every color tastes the same. But I’d pick it for my birthday. |
Cookie Dough
Molly’s Cupcakes
2536 N. Clark St. and 419 E. Illinois St., mollyscupcakes.com
$32 for six-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| If you’re the kind of person who likes to lick the beaters when you make cookies, this is heaven.
|
Hannah: Putting cookie dough in a cake is ingenious. But it can get really trippy. It’s a fine line, you know. Avi: I love this cake, and I love myself! |
Red Velvet
Fabiana’s Bakery
5655 S. University Ave., fabianasbakery.com
$35 for six-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| This icing is perfect. Really spot-on. Is it cooked roux or cream cheese?
|
Max: The frosting doesn’t taste like cream cheese. Then again, I don’t eat cream cheese. Except on a bagel. Hannah: Great cake. Avi: It tastes like raspberries. |
Sheet
Jewel-Osco
See jewelosco.com for locations.
$35 for half a cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| Typical oversweet grocery store sheet cake. Wow, this is so moist someone should call a plumber. And I still eat every bite.
|
Max: It tasted better than my sheets.
|
Layer
Deerfields Bakery
See deerfieldsbakery.com for locations.
$21 for eight-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| The top looks like a bridal bouquet at a wedding I’d never be invited to. The vanilla layer overwhelms the chocolate.
|
Max: If I was at a birthday party, I’d only eat a quarter of a piece.
|
Snickerdoodle
Sweet Mandy B’s
1208 W. Webster Ave., sweetmandybs.com
$26 for six-inch round cake
| The Critic | The Kids |
|---|---|
| Ooh, three layers. And it’s really nuanced, just a whisper of cinnamon.
|
Hannah: I’d want this at my birthday party. But it’s so boring to look at. Max: Who cares what it looks like? You eat it. |
