So...since I'm sick, and it is super cold and snowy outside anyways, I've spent the last few days trying to dissect the Disney Cake pricing structure. I noticed that certain price points came up over and over again, especially within a specific bakery.
It's mostly me guessing, but it has, at least, given me a better idea of what I should expect. In fact, it showed me that the pricing structure seems to be fairly consistent; it's just a matter of the creativity of the various pastry chefs, which accounts for the variances. I spent the most time analyzing 6-inch cakes, because that's what I'm interested ordering for myself. That structure seems to apply to 8-inch cakes as well, but 10-inch cakes seem to be the most variable. However, people seem to get the most creativity once they reach the 10-inch size.
First of all, each place seems to have a particular depth (# of layers) of cake that they prefer, and their pricing reflects that.
Grand Floridian: 2-layer 6-inch cakes = $21
2-layer 8-inch cakes = $37 (ish)
Contemporary: 3-layer 6-inch cakes - $30
3-layer 8-inch = $40
Epcot area resorts: I didnt have many 6-inch cakes to go from here, which I think explains why the cakes that come from this area seem to cost more than anywhere else. 8-inch cakes have anywhere from 2 to 4 layers. In general, I dont have enough cakes from this area to pull from to really determine rules.
I didnt attempt Animal Kingdom at all.
Then for decorations:
- Basic customization cost = $25. Its seems fairly consistent that youre going to pay at least $25 to customize a cake at all. This includes some gum paste/sugar flowers and a 2D edible image. It seems this is where the creativity of the chef comes in. I expect there are probably specific prices for certain things, but nothing was obvious, so I just rolled them together, since almost every cake I saw had these additions at various levels of extravagance.
- Fondant = $15 This amount gets higher the more fondant you need. Most 6-inch cakes only require $15 worth, but some require more. A 10-inch cake seems to always require AT LEAST $30 worth of fondant, but an 8-inch cake can go either way.
- Fillings and Cake Flavors = $5/option The people on this thread seem to play the most with the fillings, but it seems that alternative cake could bring about extra fees as well. If you go with any combination of White or Chocolate cake with White or Chocolate butter cream, then you shouldnt end up paying extra. If you throw in chocolate mousse instead, youll end up with a $5 charge.
- Molded accessories = $35+ - It really depends on what you get here. The standard white chocolate characters have their own price point, while other things such as skulls and Mickey ears vary more. I think you can reasonably expect to pay AT LEAST $35 for any molded items on your cake that arent fondant or simple gum paste. I think this is the main reason why 10-inch cakes are harder to pinpoint; they all seem to have little extras like this.
Here are a few examples (I hope nobody minds if I repost their cakes):
The Grand Floridian has at least 3 cakes listed on this thread at exactly the same price point ($66) so thats where I started. I wanted to figure out the likelihood of being able to keep a cake under $80, if I ordered it from there.
Grand Floridian Brave Theme 2-layer 6-inch Fondant & Edible Image Strawberries & Cream Filling
Base Cost = $21
Base Customize (Flowers & Edible Image) = $25
Filling = $5
Fondant = $15
Total Cost = $66
Grand Floridian Ariel Theme 3-layer 6-inch Fondant & Edible Image Strawberries & White Chocolate Mousse Filling
Base Cost = $30
Base Customize = $25
Fondant = $15
Filling = $5
Total Cost = $75 (The OP reported a cost of $80, so maybe the molded coral cost more, or the GF could charge a little more than the Contemporary for the extra cake layer. Its still a fairly close estimate)
Grand Floridian Frog Prince Theme 3-layer 6-inch Fondant & Molded Frog Amaretto Mousse Filling
Base Cost = $30
Base Customize = $25
Fondant = $30
Filling = $5
Molded Frog etc = $35
Total Cost = $125
(Speculation) The main problem with the Grand Floridian seems to be communication. From what Ive gleaned from the problems people have had, it seems that the pastry chef there has an artists complex (doesnt want to be told what to do with pictures etc) which is further complicated by the fact that you dont actually get to deal with him/her. Its basically a really bad game of telephone, because you not only have to explain to Pat, someone who may or may not have any artistic ability whatsoever, what you want, you also have to explain it in a way so she can explain it to the pastry chef. It seems to me that this ends up tying the hands of the pastry chef, because once he/she actually sits down to work on your cake their creativity is limited by the amount of money youre expecting to pay. Maybe Im completely off on this assumption, but thats how it seems from anecdotal evidence people have given, and the final results.
Its also possible, that past the simple $66 cakes people seem to get a lot of, they may not want to spend too much time on cakes that are under $100. They also seem fond of fondant, which automatically adds $15 to the cost, and even more the more elaborate the cake gets.
Contemporary Resort Robin Hood Theme - 2-layer 6-inch Butter cream & Edible Image
Base Cost = $21
Base Customize= $25
Filling = $5 (the OP didnt post exactly what kind, but it was definitely chocolate and not vanilla, which was used for the rest of the cake)
Total Cost = $51
Contemporary Resort Lady & the Tramp 3-layer 6-inch Buttercream & Edible Image Dark Chocolate Mousse Filling
Base Cost = $30
Base Customize = $25
Dark Chocolate Mousse Filling = $5
Total Cost = $60
Contemporary Resort Mary Poppins 2-layer 6-inch Fondant & Chocolate Carousel White Chocolate & Strawberry Filling
Base Cost = $21
Base Customize = $25
Filling = $5
Fondant = $30
Carousel = $35
Total Cost = $116 (the OP actually indicated that the cake cost $115, so there is a little variance, but not a lot!)
The pastry chef at the Contemporary resort definitely seems more open to suggestion, which helps pin point the exact cost of more elaborate cakes from the beginning. I think that accounts for the cost discrepancy more so than actual tangible differences from resort to resort.
The Epcot area resort cakes stray vastly from the structure Ive deduced. I think that instead of doing their cakes on a cake to cake basis, their custom cake pricing seems to start where the price sheet on this thread suggests: $75 for an 8 or 10-inch cake. They also seem to use cakes with more layers which bump the price up too. There arent many examples of when theyve customized a 6-inch cake, and they seem to charge for everything separately (ie. Each edible image = $15).
(I do have a few examples, but both photobucket and the search function on the DIS stopped working, so I've decided to give up my endeavor for the time being)
Im still not sure what this means for me. I can probably get the cake I want from the Grand Floridian, but theres definitely a communication risk. I think my budget should be suitable for what I want, but theres no really good precedent. I want more gum paste/sugar flowers, in addition to or instead of fondant.
I just thought I'd share in case it can help someone else!
