How many cake/frosting flavor options do you give clients? I need to create a list but not sure how traditional or unique the flavors should be. I'm a stay-at-home mommy branching out a little more from just family and friends so by all means, not a professional.

I don't really have a list. I just tell them if I can get or make it, they can have it so what do they like?

I dont' get requests for exotic flavors. I get the folks who like just good 'ole regular cake.

And since I'm not really interested in making exotic flavors like monkey-butt-earwax cake, this seems to be working out A-OK!

Do you do cake testings with your clients?

Yes. I consider a tasting to be the time when the client decides if she likes my style of baking ... NOT a time when she samples everything on the menu so she can decide which flavor to pick. I tell them, "My lemon cake tastes just as good as my white cake except it tastes like lemon."

I serve, white/choc and a 3rd flavor at a sampling. I pick the flavors. I believe in the golden rule....those spending the gold get to make the rules. My money ... my choices.

I tell them "these are not the only flavors I make but these are what we have available for sampling today. (then I insert the lemon cake line here)."

When they ask, "What other flavors do you have?" I just ask "what flavors do you like?" I'm not going to be like the joke about the guy who walks into the 33 flavors store, ask what flavors they have, the clerk recites all 33 and the guy says, "ok ... I'll have vanilla!"

No complaints ... no issues ... works out fine for me.

IMO if you offer super exotic flavors, they are going to make you prepare samples for the testing (they want to taste something different) but after that, unless they are really open minded, they will order the regular classic flavors ("because auntie Mary won't eat monkey-buttearwax") so they'll go for vanilla cake. Chocolate in two variations, white, vanilla two variations, butter, carrot and maybe red velvet are the most popular. HTH

Duplicate post, please also see:

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-642125-.html

HTH