We’re finally getting a chance to eat at The Cake Bake Shop by Gwendolyn Rogers at Disney’s BoardWalk!

This new spot was originally set to open in late 2023, but was pushed back to Fall 2024, which means now is the time to finally try out items from the menu and see if the wild price tags we’ve seen are really worth the experience. We tried some of the bakery options already, but now it’s time to grab some items off of the dinner menu!

The Cake Bake Shop by Gwendolyn Rogers is located at Disney’s BoardWalk. The outside of the building is gorgeous, and after many, many months, we were so excited to finally step inside!

Atmosphere

We are happy to report that the inside is just as gorgeous, if not even prettier. The whole restaurant is adorned with beautiful white detailing and lots of silver and gold accents. From the moment you step inside you feel like you are royalty. Not only are the employees incredibly warm and welcoming, but the opulence of the restaurant shines through. 

There are five dining rooms in the restaurant, and each one has its own charm and details. They all follow a similar style of being covered in white with exquisite detailing. The main dining area is called the Rose Crown Ring, and there is also a room called the Garden View Room, The Lavender Room, and the Champagne Room.

One of the details in the restaurant that is hard to miss are the chandeliers. There are actually 14 (!) Swarovski crystal embellished chandeliers throughout the restaurant, and Gwendolyn herself actually embellished them over about two weeks. Each one is breath-taking, and it definitely elevates the already elegant experience.

There is a wide variety of seating options throughout the restaurant, including tables, booths, bar seats, and even large tables that can accommodate large groups. No matter where you are sitting, you are sure to feel like you just stepped into another world.

We were also told about a really cool detail located inside the restaurant. Over by the restrooms, you will find a gold star. This star is actually from the original ESPN Club, which we were so excited to see. We love that there is something inside the new restaurant that pays homage to what has come before.

The restaurant will also be decorated based on the season. We saw lots of pumpkin decorations and garland around the restaurant. Some of the pumpkin decorations are actually from Gwendolyn’s home and she brought them into the restaurant to bring a personal touch.

Another really fun detail can be found on the seats at the bar. Some of the seats have a small nametag on the back with the name of someone significant to Disney. Each name also has a food item such as Carrot Cake on it, as the person ordered that item frequently.

Overall, the restaurant is absolutely gorgeous, and we love all the details that can be found throughout. We ended up sitting in the room with the bar in it, so let’s take a seat and get to the food!

Menu

The menu at The Cake Bake Shop is pretty extensive! When you are dining in the restaurant you will get both a restaurant menu, as well as a menu for the items from the bakery. There is no shortage of options, and anyone in your group will probably be able to find something to get here. Let’s take a look at the menu!

There are a variety of Hors D’Oeuvres to choose from including Pesto Burrata and Truffle Pommes Frites. You can also choose from four different soups, including a soup of the day.

The menu includes two different quiches as well as two options for salads. You can also opt for a choose two meal where you can choose two items from a variety of sandwiches, salads, and soups.

The Cake Bake Shop also features seven Signature Dishes including a New Orleans Shrimp Po’boy, Crab Cakes, and a Three Cheese Cavatappi with Basil Breadcrumbs.

There are also a variety of sides that you can choose from.

As well as six different sandwiches including a Croque-Monsieur and a Croque-Madame.

The restaurant also has a Children’s Menu for the kiddos that includes meals such as Grilled Cheese and Buttered Noodles.

You can also choose from a HUGE selection of desserts. The Cake Bake Shop is known for its desserts, and you will likely have a hard time choosing which one to get.

Yep, there are still some more!

And even a few more! We don’t even know which one sounds best at this point.

There are also a variety of drinks to choose from including Petunia Punch and Sparkling Lavender Lemonade.

You can grab some hot chocolate or opt for a Unicorn Hot Chocolate.

There is also coffee, espresso, and tea drinks to choose from including Cafe Latte and Chai Tea Latte.

Or you can get a pot of tea. 

The restaurant also offers a variety of alcoholic beverages including Champagne Cocktails and Signature Cocktails. 

There is also a menu section with Classic Cocktails and New Orleans Inspired. 

Additionally, you can choose from a selection of beers, wine, and champagne to go with your meal too! Now that we have covered what the menu offers, let’s take a look at what we decided to order.

Eats

We got a couple of different food items including a slice of cake, as well as Gwen’s Famous Cosmo. Let’s dive in!

We started off with Gwen’s Famous Cosmo which costs $20.99. This drink is Gwendolyn’s personal recipe and contains Ketel One vodka, Cointreau, fresh lime, cranberry, orange oil, and is garnished with an orange peel.

We thought this drink was wonderful. It included some impeccable ingredients, and we loved that it was her own personal recipe. The drink really shines with the smooth Ketel One vodka and the fresh citrus flavor of the orange oil and orange peel. The longer the drink sat, the more the orange peel infused into the drink and elevated the amount of orange flavor.

Next up, we got the French Ham & Brie Sandwich with Lemon Caesar Salad Choose Two which costs $26.99. This menu option allows you to choose two items from the list. The first option we chose was the French Ham & Brie Sandwich which is sliced French ham and Brie cheese served warm on a toasted French baguette with a Maille Dijon mustard and mayonnaise sauce. The second option we chose was the Lemon Caesar Salad which is freshly cut romaine lettuce tossed in a homemade creamy Caesar dressing made with anchovies, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, and lemon. The salad is topped with Parmesan cheese and homemade croutons.

The sandwich was great. The brie was nice and fresh, fluffy on the inside but held its form on the outside. The homemade sauce was exactly what you would expect. The sauce was creamy but not super sharp where we felt it had too much of a bite. We thought the ratios of meat to cheese to sauce to bread were great, and all the elements worked together nicely.

We thought the salad was just okay. It wasn’t anything special, but we did think it had the perfect amount of parmesan cheese on top and we loved the homemade croutons. Overall, it definitely wasn’t our favorite part of the meal, and we would likely opt for something else the next time. We thought the portions of the choose two were good though.

We also tried the Three Cheese Cavatappi w/ Basil Breadcrumbs which costs $23.99. The dish blends Gruyère, Vermont sharp cheddar, and a touch of bleu cheese which is melted in a homemade cream sauce with applewood smoked bacon folded into cavatappi pasta. It is topped with toasted basil breadcrumbs and baked to perfection. The cavatappi is served with a freshly toasted half French baguette and salted European butter.

This was by far our FAVORITE dish! It was soooo yummy, we are pretty sure we may have had a few tears in our eyes! The blend of the three cheeses was fabulous and the crispy breadcrumbs on top were perfection.

We thought it tasted like the combination of a deviled egg and your favorite, creamiest mac and cheese. The applewood smoked bacon could be tasted in each bite and we were so sad when we got to the bottom of this dish. We are so impressed by this dish, and this is something we would get again and again (and again and again…)

The cavatappi was also served with a piece of French baguette and salted European butter. The butter was very creamy, and we could taste a hint of saltiness to it. The bread itself was pretty standard, but it was a nice side for the cavatappi.

Finally, we got the Raspberry Champagne Cake which costs $22.99. The cake is three layers of fluffy vanilla cake brushed with a French champagne simple syrup, filled with our Raspberry Pixie Jam, and fresh raspberries. It is then frosted with a champagne vanilla buttercream and topped with fresh raspberries.

First of all, can we talk about how it literally glistens!?! We can’t get over the beautiful glitter on this piece of cake. If you saw us rotating the cake just to see catch the glisten of the glitter, no you didn’t. Alright, glitter aside though, how does the cake actually taste? The cake was super light and the buttercream melts easily and doesn’t leave the fatty, lardy coating in the top of your mouth. 

This cake is just delicious though. The layers were so moist, and the raspberries are beautiful. We were told that the raspberries were hand-picked and hand-placed so only the best berries are included in the cake. You can tell that there was a lot of time put into this cake, and we loved the balance of tartness and sweetness in this cake. 

Since The Cake Bake Shop is known for its desserts, we also tried out a few others! There are SO many desserts at this location, as it does have a whole bakery section in addition to what you can get at the restaurant. We grabbed three other desserts, and the first one we took a bite out of was a slice of the Key Lime Pie for $14.99. This had the best crust on a key lime pie we’ve EVER had! We absolutely loved it; however, our one complaint was that there was just a little bit too much whipped cream for us. It completely overtook the flavor of the key lime, so we do wish there was a much thinner layer of it. However, the key lime itself was extremely light and was clearly a whipped pie filling.

Next up, we took a bite of the Millionaire Cake, which will cost you $22.99 per slice. If you like chocolate, you’ll LOVE this cake! What really brought it to the next level was that there are other elements besides chocolate that break up the flavor profile — buttercream, salted caramel, ganache, and shortbread cookies to be specific. While it is a PRICEY piece of cake, it’s also MASSIVE and can easily be shared between 3-4 people!

Lastly, we took a bite of the Magic Bar, which you can get for $13.99. This was very rich and delicious with a very strong coconut flavor, but we don’t think it’s necessarily the choice to make when faced with all the other options. Perhaps if you’re just taking something to go, this may be a better option, but if you’re sitting in the restaurant, we think other options are better!

Overall

Overall, we really loved our meal at The Cake Bake Shop. The atmosphere feels so elevated, and the restaurant is beautiful. From the moment you step through the front doors you feel so well taken care of. Everyone was warm and welcoming, and you really did feel like royalty. The prices are definitely on the expensive side, but the experience you get at this restaurant is exceptional. We think this could be a great option for a special occasion as it is a really elevated experience but is still more affordable than places like Victoria & Albert’s.

We did want to note that The Cake Bake Shop automatically adds a 20% gratuity to the bill, just so you are aware. Right now, the restaurant only accepts a Disney Visa discount, but we spoke with a leader that said they are working on bringing in a DVC discount as well. We enjoyed our food, especially that Three Cheese Cavatappi which we are STILL thinking about. The restaurant boasts a huge menu and a wonderful atmosphere. 

Nosh or Not?

You might want to stop by The Cake Bake Shop if…

• You are looking for an elevated experience to celebrate a special occasion. The Cake Bake Shop makes you feel like royalty, but that also comes with a more expensive price. We think this restaurant would be perfect for a special occasion as it offers delicious food with an impressive atmosphere.
• You want to eat somewhere with lots of options and aren’t worried about the price. The menu at The Cake Bake Shop offers a lot of variety! Not to mention the number of desserts you can choose from. The portions are a good size and we really enjoyed the food we had.
• You want delicious food in an opulent atmosphere with great service. If you are looking for a wonderful overall experience, The Cake Bake Shop might be perfect for you. We were so impressed from the moment we walked through the door at how welcomed we felt. The service was wonderful and we left feeling satisfied with our meal.

You might want to skip The Cake Bake Shop if…

• You are budget-conscious and don’t want to spend a lot on a meal. There has been a lot of criticism of the prices at The Cake Bake Shop. They are definitely on the more expesnsive side, so if you are wanting a cheap meal, you will want to head elsewhere.
• You are looking for a quick meal or are short on time. The experience at The Cake Bake Shop is fantastic, but it is not a good choice if you need to be in and out quickly. We think this restaurant is best enjoyed when you have plenty of time to savor the whole experience.
• You want the best meal your money can get. While we really enjoyed our dinner at The Cake Bake Shop, if you are really looking to go all out for a meal, we think there are still better options in Disney World. Victoria & Albert’s is the crème de la crème of dining experiences at Disney World and you may want to choose it if you are looking for the best luxury dining experience.

There are a lot of great options here for everyone, that’s for sure, but you do have to keep these prices in mind. We’re looking forward to continuing to try some of the other options here, so be sure to stay tuned to DFB!

“Is that croissant gold dipped?” Disney Fans Have a LOT To Say About the Menu at This New Hotel Restaurant

Which of these items would you get? Tell us in the comments!