The giant photo of Buddy Valastro at the front of the King Soopers store in southeast Denver and the employee offering free samples could only mean one thing: the line of “Cake Boss” cakes has made it to town, according to the Denver Business Journal.
Valastro, the “Cake Boss” on the TLC reality show of the same name, announced plans earlier this year to go the retail route and sell some of his creations beyond the doors of his family-run bakery in Hoboken, N.J.
Carlos Bakery, which escaped damage from Hurricane Sandy although it was forced to shut down for lack of power, has become a tourist attraction since TLC aired the first episode of “Cake Boss” in 2009. Valastro and his crew have been turning out elaborate cakes on television for five seasons so far.
But until now, the only way to get your hands on one of Valastro’s creations was to either wait in line at the bakery, or live within its 60-mile delivery zone.
King Soopers parent, The Kroger Co., has become the first national retailer to sell the “Cake Boss” line. But don’t look for the kind of cakes made on the show. These aren’t shaped like yachts, cars or buildings.
The retail line has six cakes available. King Soopers will carry two: the Badda Bloom and the It’s My Party. The website cakebosscakes.com describes both this way: “Moist yellow cake and velvety chocolate cake layers married together by an indulgent layer of fudge filling.”
Buttercream icing is the finishing touch. The Badda Bloom has green icing and flowers; the It’s My Party, yellow icing and balloons.
Discovery Communications, the parent company of TLC, licensed the “Cake Boss” cakes to Dawn Food Products Inc. of Jackson, Mich. Dawn has a manufacturing site and a distribution center in Denver.
The Carlos Bakery website reveals plans—but no specifics—to expand nationwide. An item with the headline “We’re Shipping Soon” simply says: “Craving Carlo’s in Colorado? Searching for scrumptious in Seattle? Carlo’s Bakery coast-to-coast shipping is coming soon! Sign up with your email address to be first to know. You may even get special offers from the bakery!”
Valastro’s third book, “Cooking Italian with the Cake Boss: Family Favorites as Only Buddy Can Serve Them Up,” is out this week.
