You Say it’s Your Birthday? It Takes a Cake to Make a Happy Birthday Baby

By Amanda Mayo

When that special day of the year comes around and it’s time to celebrate your birthday once again, the behind-the-scenes bakers of The Five Towns are ready to create a special birthday cake designed specifically for the birthday boy or girl in any flavor imaginable. Delicious cakes may be found in bakeries, ice cream shops or supermarkets and the possibilities behind flavors, fill-ins and toppings seem endless. We’ve put together a guide here in The Standard to help you find the perfect birthday cake for the perfect birthday celebration.

Carvel

Happy Birthday cake from Carvel. Photo courtesy of Carvel.

Carvel Ice Cream & Bakery has been making birthday cakes since the 1950s, creating frozen birthday cakes in various flavors, shapes and sizes. If ice cream cake is your thing, Carvel will easily customize a birthday cake for you, as long as you order it at least a day in advance. For custom cakes, customers may choose from square cakes in a variety of sizes, starting around $12. The square cakes contain layers of premium chocolate and vanilla ice cream, separated by a layer of cookie crunchies. Square cakes can serve up to 38 people when you buy it in sheet size (starting around $50) and they can be made to say any special birthday greeting.

When ordering a cake at a Carvel store, you have the option of looking through the special cake book, where you can order cakes in different shapes and sizes, cakes with cartoon characters, cakes with sports logos and accessories, cakes with simple designs, cakes in the shape of cupcakes and ice cream cones and more. Carvel has a cake in the shape of a football available for the football fanatic’s birthday celebration starting around $20 and a cake in the shape of Carvel’s mascot, Fudgie the Whale, starting around $25. These cakes also have layers of vanilla and chocolate with chocolate crunchies and add in fudge, vanilla crunchies and whipped cream.

Carvel is located at 1344 Peninsula Boulevard in Hewlett. (516) 374-2994. Kosher, check certification. Another nearby Carvel location is at 5 Atlantic Avenue in Lynbrook. (516) 887-2425.

Shlomy’s Bakery

Shlomy’s in Cedarhurst has an extensive collection of delicious birthday cakes, from average flavors like chocolate and vanilla to cakes filled with fresh fruits, candies, custards and whipped creams. Shlomy’s sells round cakes in a variety of sizes, ranging from $16 to $130. Rectangular cakes are good for a larger party, ranging in sizes from 13” x 9” to a full sheet cake that feeds about 100 people. Some of these cakes are on display at the bakery and available for purchase then and there, but if you would like a customized cake, or one of the larger cakes, it needs to be pre-ordered at least a day in advance.

Shlomy’s fresh ingredients for cakes may differ from palate to palate, but they include options such as vanilla buttercream, rolled fondant, chocolate mousse and whipped cream. Prices for cakes will vary depending on which ingredients you would like included in the cake for that special birthday celebration. For your child’s birthday, Shlomy’s can put toys on top of the cake or a variety of assorted sprinkles that add color and depth.

Shlomy’s also offers cheesecakes for birthdays and trifles (cakes you can see through). If the birthday boy or birthday girl prefers fruit in their cake, Shlomy’s will put whatever fruit they’d like into a cake, as long as it’s ordered at least a day in advance. Exotic mangoes, pineapples and blueberries may be added to any cake.

Shlomy’s is located at 536 Central Avenue in Cedarhurst. (516) 374-2525. Kosher, check certification.

Zomick’s

Zomick’s, inside of Gourmet Glatt Emporium in Lawrence sells a variety of birthday cakes already made or even more unique birthday cakes that can be pre-ordered. Zomick’s round cakes start at

Birthday cake with sugar flowers from Zomick’s bakery in Gourmet Glatt Emporium. Photo courtesy of Zomick’s.

seven inches for $13.99; round cakes regularly are coated with buttercream, but, if you want something different, you may get a cake coated with whipped cream that costs a little bit more. Zomick’s round cakes go all the way up to 12 inches for $42.95.

Sheet cakes from Zomick’s also come in a variety of sizes and can usually feed more people. Half a sheet is $52.95 and a full sheet is $102. A square cake may also be purchased for the birthday boy or birthday girl starting at 8 inches and going up to 12 inches for $47.95. Zomick’s makes a special cake in the shape of a doll, perfect for girls, for $24.95, and it can be made in any color with any filling and any frostings. Zomick’s “bungalow bar” is a popular layer cake that comes in chocolate and vanilla and it can be made to say any birthday greeting, with a hard chocolate or vanilla coating.

If you place an order five days in advance, cakes may be made in a number of different varieties, with different toppings and different flavors. Cakes from Zomick’s come in flavors like chocolate crunch, pineapple crunch, chocolate iced, chocolate chip, Rocky Road, coconut, buttercream, Boston Cream, red velvet, banana cream, chocolate mousse, Napoleon custard and more.

Zomick’s is located inside of Gourmet Glatt Emporium at 137 Spruce Street in Lawrence. (516) 569-5520.

Haagen-Dazs

Haagen-Dazs is another option for a birthday boy or birthday girl who loves ice cream cake. The ice cream shop offers a variety of ice cream cakes that are highly customizable, each specially created with your choice of Haagen-Dazs ice cream flavors in a number of sizes and designs to suit the

Ribbon cake, encircled with Pirouline cookies, from Haagen-Dazs. Photo courtesy of Haagen-Dazs.

number of guests.

Haagen-Dazs’ pre-made cakes include unique flavors and designs, but some have to be ordered a day in advance because not all stores carry the same exact cakes. The Haagen-Dazs ribbon cake is filled with any of the shop’s unique ice cream flavors, covered in whipped topping, surrounded by frosting-filled cones. The decadent caramel drizzle cake comes with your choice of Haagen-Dazs ice cream, covered in a rich chocolate coating, drizzle with caramel and garnished with fudge swirls and pecan halves. Another popular Haagen-Dazs cake is their confetti cake, where a generous helping of bright sprinkles are scattered across a creamy whipped topping that coats any flavor of Haagen-Dazs ice cream.

Haagen-Dazs cakes come in round and square sizes starting around $8 for a four-inch cake and going up to around $50 for a 10-inch cake that feeds up to 34 people.

Haagen-Dazs is located at 116 Cedarhurst Avenue in Cedarhurst. (516) 374-6107. Kosher, check certification.

Ezra’s Yogurt & Ice Cream

Ezra’s Yogurt & Ice Cream in Cedarhurst, located next to Ezra’s Pharmacy, serves up Cholov Yisroel ice cream cakes in flavors like cookies and cream, vanilla fudge, mint chocolate chip, butter pecan and chocolate chip. Ice cream cakes need to be ordered ahead of time, at least a day in advance, and can be made with a variety of candy toppings. Candy toppings at Ezra’s include chocolate chips, Oreo cookies, Reese’s Pieces, M&M’s candy, gummi bears and more. Cholov Yisroel ice cream cakes at Ezra’s Yogurt & Ice Cream start at $16.95.

Ezra’s Yogurt & Ice Cream is located at 604 Central Avenue in Cedarhurst. (516) 569-7820. Kosher, check certification.

Cold Stone Creamery

Last but not least on our list is Cold Stone Creamery, located in Lynbrook. Cold Stone Creamery has a wide selection and variety of cakes for any special birthday celebration. Their signature “Birthday

Rectangular birthday cake from Cold Stone Creamery. Photo courtesy of Cold Stone Creamery.

Cake” comes with a layer of moist devil’s food cake piled high with sweet ice cream. Cold Stone’s other signature cakes include flavors like cookies and cream, chocolate fudge, cookie dough, strawberry passion, red velvet, and, of course, cake batter. Cakes start around $18.

For more personalized cakes from Cold Stone Creamery, call at least one day in advance to get your perfect combination of ice cream, whipped cream, candies and other toppings. Most of Cold Stone’s cakes have vanilla, chocolate, devil’s food, red velvet, or another cake flavor layered between your choice of ice cream.

Cold Stone Creamery is located at 6 Broadway in Lynbrook. (516) 887-5077. Kosher, check certification.

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Wall’s Bake Shop in Hewlett was closed for vacation at the time The Standard  wrote this article. Wall’s Bake Shop has a multi-decade tradition for baking yummy birthday cakes for Five Towners. Wall’s is located at 1336 Broadway in Hewlett. (516) 374-3771.