Last month, Senior Shopping Editor Katie Bandurski and I were chatting about mail-order cakes, a concept relatively new to me after I wanted easy holiday offerings for guests and discovered the Christmas PieCaken.
My daughter’s birthday is in February, so last month, I was searching for the perfect cake to serve when family came over to celebrate. Naturally, I began my search at the beginning of February (a little over a week before her birthday), which didn’t give me much time. Most local bakeries, understandably, need a fair amount of notice for custom cakes.
Katie mentioned having a good experience ordering from Caroline’s Cakes, so I figured I’d give it a try. It took about four days for me to receive the cakes from the time I ordered them. Here’s how the rest unfolded.
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A southern-style caramel cake that’ll satisfy the sweetest tooth
What is Caroline’s Cakes?
Caroline’s Cakes is a baked goods company based in South Carolina famous for its Southern-style layer cakes. The brand’s signature 7-Layer Caramel Cake is what made it a national success.
In addition to layered cakes, Caroline’s Cakes sells cake bites and an assortment of savory bites, such as Southern Cheese Biscuits and Carolina-Style BBQ pulled pork.
Product Features
Caroline’s Cakes are handmade and can be mail-ordered, meaning you can have sweet treats at your front door within a few days. An overnight shipping option is available for an upcharge in many areas if you’re in a pinch.
The cakes and cake bites can be frozen (and refrozen) for up to six months. So you can order treats well before an event and pull them out to thaw the day of a birthday party or whatever special occasion you’re celebrating.
How We Tested It
I ordered the famous 7-Layer Caramel Cake and some special-edition Valentine’s Day cake bites. Both arrived frozen on my front porch within four days of placing the order.
The treats were shipped frozen on dry ice in a recyclable cooler. Upon opening the box, I was immediately impressed at how the cake remained frozen and completely intact. Plus, it comes in a giftable red tin that’s perfect for keeping the cake in the fridge or freezer. The cake bites came in a sturdy, striped cardboard box with a magnetic closure, also suitable for storage.
After opening the package, I immediately put the cake and cake bites into the freezer. I decided it would be perfect to “test” the treats when we had family over on my daughter’s birthday to get various opinions regarding taste.
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On the day of the party, I pulled the 7-layer cake from the freezer and let it thaw on a cake stand for four hours. I placed the cake bites on a serving plate about 30 minutes before guests arrived. When it was time for dessert, all the treats were perfectly thawed without melting.
Cutting into the 7-Layer Caramel Cake was dreamy. The layers are really impressive. The cake has very delicate sponge layers with generous layers of dense, sugary caramel. The natural icing pattern had several family members asking if I made the cake myself. The cake received several compliments on its taste, and people wanted to know where I’d gotten it. All in all, it was a big hit with my family, who loved the caramel flavor.
While I was impressed by the cake’s flavor, I did notice that the caramel layers were very rich and sweet (a little slice goes a long way). When I asked Katie about the 7-Layer Lemon Cake, she said it was very sweet, too, and she expected it to be a bit more tart. Still, we both agree that the cakes arrived fresh, moist and generally tasty.
As for the cake bites, I had some minor issues with the heart-shaped assorted cake bites sticking together. When I tried to pull a few of them apart to serve, the top layer of frosting pulled off, which was a bit disappointing. However, I asked Katie if she had any issues with the original cake bite shape (she ordered the Lemon Cake Bites). She didn’t have any problems with the cake bites she ordered, but she did tell me she liked eating them straight from the freezer instead of thawing them.
The cake bites were dense and delicious, much like a cake pop without the stick. And just like the layered cake, they looked very pretty sitting out on a serving tray.
Pros
- Fast delivery
- Homemade look and taste
- Keeps up to six months in freezer
- Variety of flavors, with rotating seasonal flavors available
- Cost-effective
Cons
- Cakes and cake bites may be too sweet for some
- Variety pack of cake bites arrived clumped together in places and were difficult to separate
What Other Reviewers Have to Say
The 7-Layer Caramel Cake earns a 4.6-star review on the Caroline’s Cakes site with more than 150 reviews.
Verified buyer Kea C writes, “Our friends and family enjoy your delicious cakes every special occasion. We love sharing your southern specialties with them!”
“Outstanding cake and worth the splurge! Upon opening the package, the aroma of fresh caramel floated right out! The many golden layers are gorgeous to behold,” says reviewer Mary Ann L. “This was a beautiful cake for our Christmas celebration. It is a rich, sweet cake, so slices can be smaller and therefore serve many people. I will definitely buy this cake again. Very pleased with my purchase.”
Other reviewers like Amos P found the caramel cake too sweet. “The 7 layer caramel cake is too sweet because the cake layers are too thin. Try making the cake layers thicker,” they suggest.
Final Verdict
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If you’re looking for a quick and easy dessert option for a special celebration or dinner party, I recommend trying Caroline’s Cakes. The 7-Layer Caramel Cake was a big hit with my family, who didn’t find it too sweet when served in small portions next to plain vanilla ice cream.
I also found Caroline’s Cakes cost-effective compared to some other bakeries I’ve shopped at. Of course, you won’t get customization options at Caroline’s Cakes, but you will get quite a bit of cake for your buck, along with fast shipping and the ability to freeze, serve and refreeze on your own schedule, which I appreciate.
While I would (and have) recommended Caroline’s Cakes to family and friends, I would also warn that the caramel cake is super sweet by design, like a pitcher of southern sweet tea. If you have a major sweet tooth, I think you’ll be happy with Caroline’s Cakes. We found the cakes to be fresh, moist and quite delicious.
Where To Buy Caroline’s Cakes
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A mail-order 7-layer cake with delicate yellow sponge and dense caramel
You can buy the 7-Layer Caramel Cake for $70 directly from Caroline’s Cakes, where you can also shop the brand’s other creations. Goldbelly also sells the caramel cake, along with other layered cakes from the brand.
FAQ
How to thaw Caroline’s Cakes?
All cakes are shipped frozen and packaged with dry ice, along with storing and serving instructions. Caroline’s Cakes recommends storing cakes in the freezer immediately after arrival.
Once pulled from the freezer and set out at room temperature, signature cakes take about three to four hours to thaw. They can also be placed in the refrigerator to thaw overnight.
Signature cakes can be frozen and refrozen for up to six months. The brand recommends wrapping your cake in plastic wrap to do so.
Who owns Caroline’s Cakes?
Richard Reutter, son of Caroline’s Cake’s founder, Caroline Ragsdale Reutter, currently owns and operates the bakery.
Where is Caroline’s Cakes located?
Richard Reutter continues to operate Caroline’s Cakes in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
Why You Should Trust Us
At Taste of Home, we’re committed to producing high-quality reviews from writers with expertise and experience in tandem with real-life, hands-on testing. For this piece, Shopping Editor Mary Henn—who has nearly five years of writing about food and restaurants—tested and reviewed a variety of cake treats from Caroline’s Cakes. Senior Shopping Editor Katie Bandurski, backed by almost a decade of editorial experience in the food space, offered secondary review insights.
