Baby Cakes by Renee, Summer Hill

There's little doubt that cupcakes are so in right now. One patty pan cake topped with a thick swirl of icing provides simultaneous worship of an idealised childhood, the dainty dessert, and the simple homemade girly aesthetic.

Dainty dessert becomes miniscule mouthful at Baby Cakes by Renee in the inner west's Summer Hill.

About a dozen different baby cakes greet us in this cake shop /cafe. The cakes are baby-sized indeed.

Hazelnut baby cakes

Giant ones on the bottom shelf aren't quite so pretty though.

Giant baby cakes $20.00

After some serious deliberation (we have trouble working out the difference between babycakes and gourmet cakes--the gourmet cakes are the ones squashed onto a plate at the back of the bottom shelf with more elaborate decorations), we eventually come away with six flavours in pairs (unfortunately preceded by some disconcerting eye-rolling and muttered sarcasm by the teenage weekend staff).

One dozen baby cakes $10.00

The cupcakes are all delightfully moist, the frosting sweet but not sickly.

Choc mint mudcake, mocha mud and strawberry mudcake

The hazelnut baby cake has a frosting similar in taste to Nutella, and I probably enjoyed this the most, along with the madeira and the strawberry mudcake.

Hazelnut baby cakes and caramel mud cakes

And although I always say I should just make my own and ice them myself, sometimes you just can't resist a flashback to a six-year-old's bliss.

Strawberry mudcake, mocha mud and madeira baby cakes

Baby Cakes by Renee
Shop 3, 50 Carlton Crescent, Summer Hill, Sydney
(opposite Summer Hill train station)

Tel: +61 (02) 9797 6331

Monday - closed
Tuesday to Friday - 10am to 6pm
Saturday - 8am to 4pm
Sunday - 10am to 2pm

Related GrabYourFork posts:
Cupcakes on Pitt, Sydney

19 Comments:

At 11/02/2006 1:41 am, Jess (fushmush) said…

mmmm, they look so yummy.

how long do you think the Cupcake craze will last? I can't imagine it will last forever.

I feel sorry for all these stores who have based their entire business on selling cupcakes. Fads are very fickle!
At 11/02/2006 4:07 am, Yvo Sin said…

Cupcakes are so in right now here too. It's a bit sickening sometimes but I happily indulge occasionally :) Great pictures, I want the chocolate mint one...
At 11/02/2006 1:08 pm, Anonymous said…

I've been here a few times and have to agree about the rude staff there. So, glad it's not just me.

The little cupcakes are cute and I get some when heading over to friends for coffee.

:)
At 11/03/2006 10:54 pm, thanh7580 said…

Cupcakes are really in at the moment. I read an article recently in the newspaper that said quite a few cake businesses had turned into dedicated high end cupcake businesses and were making a killing.
At 11/07/2006 5:34 pm, Kat said…

I wanna try this place out, if only to see how rude the staff really are! *lol* BTW, the link on the dropdown menu for this entry is going to the wrong post (Cupcakes on Pitt).

And like food hog, I'm wondering which cupcakes you think are better?
At 11/07/2006 8:30 pm, Lil said…

There's an article on the SMH on BabyCakes by Renee: http://www.smh.com.au/news/good-living/small-food-nation/2006/11/06/1162661608609.html
At 11/09/2006 8:21 am, Veruca Salt said…

I was very unimpressed with the rude service. We should have walked out after the first eye roll.

At $1 a pop, I expect a little smile with my purchase.
At 11/11/2006 9:44 am, Anonymous said…

After reading the article in SMH I was thinking of going too. Interesting about the eye rolls, wonder what's the story with their attitude.
At 7/17/2007 4:08 pm, Anonymous said…

THESE CUPCAKES ARE THE BESTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT~!!!

tad on the expensive side tho :S
At 7/20/2007 6:12 pm, Helen (Grab Your Fork) said…

Hi Anon - They are a little pricy, but tasty as you say :)
At 7/31/2007 5:00 pm, Anonymous said…

I was hesitant to go to babycakes after reading some of the comments made by people.

I went to get 3dozen of the little heavenly delights and was pleasantly surprised when greeted with warm smiles and patient service.. also even more pleasantly surprised when instead of getting 3dozen @$10 per dozen I was informed (by the lovely staff member) that you can get 50 for $35.. You would be crazy not to for that price..

The cakes themselves were fresh and delicious and the varieties many and varied and all were delicious..

I would recommend trying babycakes for any party as they are the most delicious morsel and great because you can have a few and not feel guilty...

Don't always believe what you read it is worth discovering things for yourself
At 1/07/2008 12:26 pm, SydneyChick said…

Oh I love baby cakes. A friend lives just up the road and I can be sure that for any event the baby cakes will arrive.

Always moist and gorgeous and always a hit with the adults and kids.
They are the perfect size so you can try one or two of the different styles.
At 1/07/2008 11:15 pm, Helen (Grab Your Fork) said…

Hi nikki71 - Great to hear about your positive experience. Everyone loves a bit of warmth and a friendly smile. It'll always bring people back!

Hi sydneychick - They're a great size - altho' in my case it just means I want to try every single type! I'm not sure who they're a bigger hit with - the kids or the adults!
At 6/13/2008 10:18 pm, Anonymous said…

ive been here a couple of times and they are great treat with a coffee or to bring along to a friends place. They are good for there price at $1 each, as i have recently gone to cupcakes on pitt and they were $2 each and were just a plain chocolate or vanilla cupcake with an item of flavour on top instead of a flavour all the way through as babycakes are.

Jess
At 6/15/2008 10:20 pm, Helen (Grab Your Fork) said…

Hi Jess - I've actually just bought a baby muffin tray so I'm looking forward to making my own baby cakes soon :)
At 7/07/2008 3:57 pm, Kat said…

I'm told there's a Baby Cakes near Wynyard now. My favourite cupcakes are from My Little Cupcake in Neutral Bay. They only have 2 flavours, and their icing is super sweet, but I can knock back half a dozen within an hour, never mind the sugar migraine. :-D
At 7/08/2008 11:38 pm, Helen (Grab Your Fork) said…

Hi Kat 0+ - Ahh the cupcake shops are propagating! I've zipped past My Little Cupcake but have yet to sample them. They sound good though!
At 3/05/2010 9:16 pm, PastryPrincess said…

i went to the wynyard shop yesterday and bought 8 tiny babycakes. they really are the size of cupcake babies! very cute though and that way you can have more and try more different ones... clever! ;) im glad i immediately took pictures of them because when i got home they had all been kinda mushed up in the box. havent tried them all yet but they're yummy little treats. will blog about them very soon!
At 3/15/2010 2:20 pm, Helen (Grab Your Fork) said…

Hi PastryPrincess - It's been amazing to see how Baby Cakes has grown as a company. Transporting cupcakes is always dangerous - best done via the stomach I say :)