That time of the year is here again, your child’s birthday. And, besides pondering on how the last 12 months flew by, you have another celebration to plan. A monumental moment for your Little One is having “Happy Birthday” sung and blowing out the candles on a cake, so as long as you can get that part right, everything else should be smooth sailing. To keep it easy, why not have the birthday cake made and delivered, keeping in mind these helpful pointers.

Vegan Vanilla Birthday Cake from The Cake Merchant

There is a time and a place to ask vital questions about a cake you are going to have delivered – and it isn’t at the delivery point five minutes before you are supposed to have the cake in your hands! To keep special occasions from suffering last-minute cake disasters and to keep things sweet for everybody involved, here are some questions you should think about asking before you get a cake delivered.

Dietary Restrictions?
Right from the beginning if you have dietary requirements or restrictions, you should make sure your cake-maker understands exactly what that means. Whether that is gluten-free, dairy-free, using only organic ingredients, all-raw ingredients or limited sugar, it is advisable to have a face to face discussion about it. Speaking from experience, mistakes and accidents happen. If I had a dollar for every waiter who insisted they understood what a vegan diet is, but then brought me out a dish with animal products in my ordered meal to eat, I’d have a million dollars.

Kid Approved Healthier Birthday Cake by Chocolate Covered Katie

Can I get a preview of the cake?
While you can’t see your cake and eat it too, try to get the best preview you can of the cake as soon as the cake has been made and delivery is confirmed. This will save last-minute hassle, alterations, or even disasters like incorrect “Happy Brithday” inscriptions- this happens by the way! For special cakes, your baker should have already given you a sketch of the planned cake in advance? However, to be super organized ask to have a photo sent over as well. In this day and age, and with smart phones, it is a small thing to ask.

Make sure the spelling on the cake is right

When was it baked?
Obviously, you are going to want to have the freshest cake you can, but at the same time, it is common practice to have a cake delivered the night before a big event to minimise hassles on the special day. Ask how soon before delivery the cake was baked to make sure your young guests don’t end up eating stale cake. Alternatively, and dependent on ingredients that will be used to make your child’s birthday cake, you can request that the birthday cake is made a certain time frame out of the actual cake cutting ceremony. For example, cakes with eggs are not going to have as long as a shelf-life as a vegan cake not made with eggs.

Vegan Strawberry Cake from My Vegan Cookbook

When is it going to be delivered, realistically?
For our Australian readers, Cake delivery Sydney wide and in other cities in Australia can be a major hassle when traffic gets in the way – and since a delicate touch is required, cake delivery can be a tricky business even without traffic! Actually, no matter where you live in the world, your baker will need to take into account factors including rush hour and whether the driver is familiar with the delivery area before he can give you a realistic window for when it can be dropped off.

Who can I call in case of emergency?
An emergency contact number is an essential thing to have when a lack of cake will ruin the occasion – and while non-delivery is the biggest emergency, there are plenty of other hazards that can arise, so it can be worth your while checking whether an emergency cake repair kit will be on hand.

How much is this all going to cost?
You would be surprised how often bakers prepare a cake and schedule a delivery while question of cost and payment are still up in the air. To make sure no last-minute sourness over price and payment – including extras like delivery or alteration charges – surfaces when you already have too much on your plate, make sure the bill is settled long before your child’s cake is set to be delivered.

Vegan Rainbow Surprise Cake by Speed Bump Kitchen

What about assembly?
The bigger and more intricate the cake, the more details there are going to be to look after, and this is especially so with custom designed children’s birthday cakes. Avoid, at all costs your child having a meltdown on their special day, by not losing the Lego guy from your Son’s cake, or not losing the sprinkles off your daughter’s pony cake!
As the cake experts say, structuring is key and a badly structured cake is unlikely to get to the party in one piece anyway, but some cakes do require assembly at the scene. Find out if yours is one of them and if some assembly is required, make sure the deliverer won’t require tools and/or space that you are unable to provide.

With these pointers and by being prepared, you can free up some time to focus on other important things, like not looking frazzled when your guests walk through the door!

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