Picture this: It’s your birthday. You’ve had a lovely meal, your friends are singing, a glorious birthday cake appears…and then - BAM - the restaurant slaps you with a ‘cakeage’ charge just for slicing it. Welcome to the wild world of cake taxation, where joy comes with a side of extra fees - anywhere from £3.50 to a whopping £12.50 per head in London. 

It’s similar to the more commonly seen corkage charges at some BYOB restaurants where they charge a fee to uncork and serve wine or beer brought in by the customer but somehow the idea and even practice of cakeage is far more contentious than corkage. So contentious that even our own household is divided on it.

Hence I thought to put forward our arguments to perhaps bring a more balanced view to the cakeage controversy as both husband and I are so poles apart on it. 

Cakeage Controversy

Husband POV

First of all, let’s cut the fluff - this whole ‘extra cost’ thing? Utter poppycock. The restaurant was already open, the staff was already working, and let’s be honest, washing a few extra plates isn’t exactly an Olympic sport. What’s next, a ‘breathing fee’ for taking up air at the table?

I can understand if you were to apportion the costs exactly you could argue otherwise, but it’s an add-on that requires no investment by the restaurant. That said I know how difficult the food industry is with restaurant closures all over the place and can completely appreciate the temptation to charge, I just feel it will deter people which would only cost them more.

Secondly, the line of reasoning that there is a loss of sales because the cake replaces the dessert is weak at best. Most people at a birthday party will have the cake in addition to dessert, but more importantly, the restaurant wouldn’t be making any money at all if there wasn’t a birthday party which the cake is an inherent part of. If a bunch of people randomly came into a restaurant and wanted cake to be served to them and it wasn’t a birthday party then that’s a completely different matter. But since that would be really weird and this would never happen, who cares.

Now with these two points addressed I can actually get to the crux of my reasons to disagree with cakeage - it’s just miserable, plain and simple. While it may not be profiteering, who wants to make money like this. The world’s a dark enough place without making it that bit more miserable by charging someone on their birthday to slice and serve a bit of cake that cost the restaurant nothing. Cakeage fees, to me, represent a lack of compassion and kindness to your fellow persons which is more important than ever. And if there is a small but genuine cost to the restaurant, is that so bad for something so sincerely lovely as the celebration of a person? Is ‘giving’ such a bad thing? And it’s tight and I don’t like tight people. They’re annoying to be around.  

Wife POV

Look, I get that cakeage might feel like a buzzkill, but if I ran a restaurant? You bet your buttercream I’d charge for it. Why? Because I’d be the one dealing with the cake chaos. First, I have to take delivery of your precious cake, keep it safe from rogue waiters and fridge thieves, then roll it out at the right moment like a Michelin-starred magician. Oh, and let’s not forget the grand finale - serving it, clearing it, and washing all the plates while your guests Instagram the hell out of it. Sorry, but that level of birthday admin isn’t free.

And let’s not forget the photo shoot. In the Instagram era, no one just cuts a cake - they stage a multi-angle, filter-perfect, 30-minute production before even picking up the knife. By the time the candles are blown out, the restaurant staff has aged five years.

Other than the reasons above I’d also be potentially losing out on desserts ordered off our carefully made menu as the customers have brought their own cake in. Bills don't pay themselves!

It IS extra work (and considerably more than opening a few bottles with regards to corkage), and when a lot of birthdays are celebrated on weekends when restaurants are at their busiest (with multiple special occasions no doubt!), it adds on more pressure on the staff. So to do all the extra work involved in serving a birthday cake for free, the added responsibility, plus the possible expense of missing out on having desserts off the menu...I can’t say it’s unreasonable for restaurants to charge a cakeage fee at all.

Debating this with my husband, we can appreciate both sides of the cakeage coin but still have our overriding sentiments in place. As a cake business obviously we want our cakes served at birthdays in all restaurants and venues so hope the value placed on our cakes in terms of the memories they’ll make (and gorgeous photos to mark the event!) is far greater than the cakeage charges.

So, whose side are you on - Team ‘Cakeage is a Crime’ or Team ‘Restaurants Deserve Their Cut’? Would you pay a tenner a head for the privilege of eating your own cake, or would you take your celebration (and your business) elsewhere? Spill the cake crumbs in the comments - I need ammunition for my next debate with hubby!

Lots of love,

Reshmi xoxo