Fellow Baker:

I need your opinion. I made a scratch lemon cake for a friend over the weekend a for paid cake. A recipe that is tried and true and everybody loves it.

She calls me this morning and tells me that she and her family didn't like the cake, that it didn't taste like lemon.

What in the world, with all the lemon juice that was used as well as lemon zest there is no way. And I tasted the scrapes from the cake it was very lemony.

The only thing I can think of is she and her family had never had scratch lemon cake before and it didn't taste nor look like boxed or grocery store cake. And that's what she's used to.

Not even sure what to do about her, I do know that I may not be the baker for her if she's used to the box and grocery store cake.

Always a tough one. I am assuming that this is her first experience with your cakes? Had a similar situation the other day, a guy called and (nicely) wanted a refund cause the cake was "Dry" and it "ruined their evening". I told him to bring it back which he did do and there was only the one piece missing. I told him to hold on, took it in the back and we all tasted it - totally moist and delicious and exactly the product we try to put out. I told him that we do bake from scratch and that will have a different texture than a boxed mix which is probably what he is used to and that he did receive a quality product. I gave him a 30% refund to keep him happy (I know he won't be back but at least he won't badmouth us) and sent him on his way.

Sounds like a similar situation, you can't please them all. I suggest a similar solution.

Perfect Kory! Yeah...a toughie. Probably used to the overly exaggerated tastes in some mixes.

I doubt it has anything to do with being used to box/grocery cakes. Everyone has a different level of flavor sensetivity. What's very lemony to one person can barely register to another person. It's the same with texture and moistness. Taste buds are very fickle like that. It's a genetic thing and can't really be helped.

This sounds like a case of the customer's expectations and the baker's product didn't mesh. It happens. I wouldn't worry that your cake was bad or anything. You're right in that you may not be the right baker for her, but I don't think box mix is to blame.

And that's true too CeeTee...right, not necessarily a box mix problem. I like hot peppers on my food. But don't even try to give me a jalapeno...it's not hot enough, waste of my time. Where as everyone else around me would die choking with the amount of habaneros I pile on my food.

I wasn't trying to bash the box, just thought maybe that's what he was used to and therefore expected and then got something different. I think we're on the same page.

I don't mean to bash box mixes either, but if that's the flavor and texture you're used to, a scratch cake is not going to come close. They are just different in every way.

Just on the flip side of this I made the exact same cake for another customer on the same day from the same set of mix. They raved about it.

A full refund has been given. Thank You to everyone that responded.

I'm chalking that one up to different strokes for different folks.

Thanks for posting the outcome! I have not had to deal with this yet, but I work in a restaurant and I find it very frustrating when someone complains about a meal they ordered FROM A MENU WITH A DESCRIPTION, and then say they dont like it! Nothing wrong with it, they just dont like it - and then expect you to wear the cost of it because they made a wrong choice. JMO

So sorry about what happened to you. I suppose in this business one will come across all sorts of customers.