New Delhi: It was a blue-and-white, two-tiered ‘Jungle Safari’ cake—the centerpiece of Poonam Gupta’s grandchild’s first birthday celebration. But it left the hosts embarrassed. Its frosting was damaged and the edges were crumbling. The fact that it cost a bomb—Rs 15,300—made it hard to swallow. In Gurugram, NCR’s Beverly Hills, it quickly became a topic of outrage dividing the city’s foodies into two camps—some are aghast, while others are defending the bakery, placing the blame on the delivery service.
Designer cakes are the new make or break of Gurugram parties. A lot is at stake for high-rise residents who often take pride in ordering from an exclusive baker that only a select few know about in the monied circles. And for the exclusive talented baker, engaging with this high-profile clientele is a high-pressure game. It’s not a piece of cake.
Food faceoffs should not come as a surprise. It is a result of an exorbitant investment. When people are ready to spend a hefty amount of money, they expect similar quality. Some opt for the sophisticated route with custom entremets and French croquembouches, while others choose elaborate, statement-making designs in fondant and buttercream. But when things go wrong, it quickly becomes a point of bitter standoff. A cake fail “ruins” the whole celebration.
And in this case, it was a full cream, themed cake served in Sector 48. It all began when Gupta posted a screenshot of her chat with G-Town’s popular baker, Divya Sreeji, in the Gurgaon Foodie group. The caption with a photo of the cake read: ‘The cake Divya Sreeji delivers after charging Rs 15,300.
One resident commented read, “Rs 15,000 for what? It’s a common design, nothing extraordinary.” Another said, “That amount sounds unrealistic.”
The Gurgaon Foodie is one-of-a-kind group with 93,000 members where the G-Towners, mostly upper-middle-class, exchange recipes, share food reviews, and discuss the latest culinary trends. They even review restaurants and plan food outings. It has also become a launchpad for aspiring bakers and chefs, promoting their creations, securing orders, and carving a niche in Gurugram’s exclusive, affluent food scene. The group has given birth to the likes of Divya Sreejis whose creations initially liked by a few, became popular through word-of-mouth, making them a significant name in the G-Town’s elite culinary world.
On Christmas Eve, the chatter in the group is about plum cakes and charcuterie boards.
Gupta quickly intervened, clarifying that it wasn’t about the price, but about “irresponsible service and bad behaviour.”
Meanwhile, Sreeji has carved a niche for herself in Gurugram’s elite circles and has grown her business for over a decade.
“I’ve been a baker for the last 15 years. I wouldn’t have lasted in Gurgaon if my services and quality were poor. I personally attend to my customers. Whenever a cake has been damaged due to the customer’s actions, we offer a new one or go the extra mile to make it right. However, in this case, we were informed too late, and our delivery partner said the receiver handled the cake irresponsibly,” said Sreeji, who started as a home baker and now owns a bakery at South Point.
Also read: Gurugram home chefs turned pecan into the new walnut—in halwa, chaat, thepla, and sushi
Costly cake affair
Sixty-year-old Gupta was eagerly waiting to celebrate her grandson’s first birthday. From booking the venue to attending the cake-tasting sessions and following up with the bakers—she was invested every step of the way.
It was a friend’s suggestion that led her to order a designer cake from Divya Sreeji, who was praised for being ‘good with her cakes.’ Having also read about her in the group, Gupta felt that it was the right choice. Gurugram’s affluent circles are laced with such suggestions by people who prefer exclusive lesser-known bakers over Theobramas, L’Opéras and Magnolias.
“We had been waiting for a grandchild, and I was very eager to celebrate the birthday. So, I ordered the cake three weeks in advance. My son had come from the US for the celebration, so we went to the bakery, decided on the flavour, and placed the order,” said Gupta.
Gupta, who calls herself a middle-class woman, said she had warned the baker that such a delicate cake could get spoiled if not handled carefully while delivering.
“But the baker just laughed it off, saying that they had been delivering cakes through BluSmart and that it was nothing new,” Gupta said.
Gupta’s grandson’s birthday was on 24 November. However, she posted about the cake on 23 December. In between, she said, she had written several messages to the baker seeking an apology, which went unanswered. Then she said she was forced to make her disappointment public.
Another baker, Sonica, who runs Healthy Bakers and is also popular for her high-end cakes in Gurugram said that cake delivery is the most important aspect of a designer cake.
“I have a personal delivery team of three people who have been trained to handle cakes which are designer and tiered. I don’t use Uber or any third party. You cannot trust a third party because they won’t take pain for your cake,” said Sonica, whose Instagram page also has posts on how to deliver a designer cake.
And she has a piece of advice: “Never transport cakes on a motorbike. Avoid placing cakes on car seats, as they are typically tilted rather than flat, which may cause the cake to slide to one side. Instead, always place the cake on the base of the front seat.”
Bad review means bad business
Two days before Christmas, on 23 December, a Google review caught Sreeji off guard. The baker was struggling to meet the festive demand—her busiest time of the year. She had received an order from Godrej for a 10 kg designer cake, another one from M3M and some 40 cupcakes for an event.
With 21,000 followers on Instagram, Sreeji’s De Cakery has featured in NDTV, Femina and Cosmopolitan and several other leading outlets. Her social media profile calls her an “award-winning” baker. She claims to have baked for former cricket star Kapil Dev and athlete PT Usha.
Gupta’s Google review talked not only about the crumbled cake but also how the cakery delayed the order and didn’t pick up the customers calls when they reached out for a resolution. For Sreeji, who has built her reputation through word-of-mouth, in housing societies such as DLFs, and even Magnolias and Aralias, such a review was a blow to her credibility. Her average rating on Google is 4.8 stars but it was Poonam Gupta who gave her one star with a stinging review calling it a “nerve-racking” experience.
The review brought instant action on the part of the baker.
Gupta got a call from the bakery offering either a 50 per cent refund on the cake or another cake on her grandson’s next birthday without any extra charge.
“In return, she wanted me to delete the Google review and that is what hit me. You are apologising but blaming my son for mishandling the cake and then offering me a bribe to delete the Google review,” said Gupta, who claims herself to be a baker.
Unhappy with the response, Gupta posted the photo in the Gurgaon Foodie group. And all hell broke loose.
Sreeji said that whenever they send cake to a client, they also send a note saying that they have kept the cake in the cab and the client should take out the cake themselves, so that the driver doesn’t touch it and it’s not spoiled.
“Had Gupta immediately informed us, we would have fixed the cake. Only the cream had come off, it was nothing big. But she chose to post it on social media and make the situation worse,” said Sreeji.
Another member posted saying that she had ordered a designer Harley Davidson cake from Sreeji for Rs 6,200 and what she received was top-notch.
“It was so good that I would have paid Rs 15,000 for such a cake,” read the post.
Sreeji who has been making cakes for the last 15 years says that criticism over the price of the cake is unfounded.
“What’s the fury about the money? Gurgaon residents can afford and pay Rs 15,000-20,000 for cakes. Money is not the matter.”
What’s it about, then? Marie Antoinette once asked a similar question during the French Revolution—before saying, “Let them eat cake.”
(Edited by Ratan Priya)
Why is this a news? 20k is nothing for a cake. People pay upto half a crore for cakes.