11 Best Grocery Store Chain Bakeries To Order A Birthday Cake

There's no question that the centerpiece of any birthday celebration is bound to be the birthday cake. It's where the whole group gathers to cheer on the guest of honor while singing their praises and waiting for their slice of the cake — literally. But not everybody wants to put on their chef's hat to create a confection worthy of the occasion. Sometimes, it's easier to order a birthday cake at the grocery store bakery and be done with it instead of firing up the mixer and baking your own cake. Whether the consideration is time, money, or crowd size, being able to order a birthday cake from a nearby grocery store can save you stress when putting together a celebration from top to bottom.

Which grocery stores offer the finest possibilities to make your birthday cake and elevated indulgence? Can you depend on the usual grocery chains to deliver when it comes to providing birthday cakes that make the party or are there specialty grocers you should know about to get the best bang for your buck? Luckily, the best bakeries for ordering primo birthday cakes happen to be in some of the best-known grocery chains on the market. Whether you go for the basic vanilla recipe or favor a more thrilling double-chocolate fudge kind of deal, these chains are ready to get your birthday cake order underway.

You know Publix as a prime purveyor of grocery shopping experiences, but did you know about the top-notch bakery providing frosted magic to make every birthday a supremely special occasion? Call in and place your request for a custom round or rectangular cake starting at $21 and ask for it to be filled with fresh strawberries, cannoli cream and more. Choose from a rich palette of frosting colors, customize the decorations on top as well as the border piped along the edges, and upgrade to an ice cream version for an additional $4. With sizes from eight-serving circles to 80-serving sheets, you have plenty of possibilities to feed any group. Bear in mind that Publix needs at least 24 hours of notice to get your stylized bake ready, so remember to plan the details in advance.

Themed cakes featuring popular video games and branded character decorations are featured in the online catalog to make shopping for a motif easier. For milestone birthdays, number-shaped cakes are available to drive home your guest of honor's age. And for last-minute celebrations, Publix also has prepared gourmet selections on hand that maximize flavor and presentation providing an array of upscale cakes with elegant personalities, all without requiring a special order.

The shared standards of Albertsons and Safeway bakeries make this grocery duo an ideal option when shopping for a handcrafted cake to top your birthday table. As long as your idea of a personalized birthday cake doesn't require making the most popular cake in the year you were born, you can count on Albertsons and Safeway to come through for your big bash. Sports-themed bakes and vibrantly-colored monster cakes make cute options for younger partygoers, while double-tiered round cakes pre-decorated in an array of hues and patterns are ready for a custom message to be piped across the top. And to keep the home labor to a minimum, you can pick up a cupcake cake consisting of a selection of individually-wrapped cupcakes combined into a single frosted design — no slicing or plates needed for this premium pull-apart.

If you order a cake for your party, you can pick from six types of frosting, including fudge and cream cheese buttercream, as well as six flavors of cake, with carrot and red velvet on the list of standard options. With prices ranging between $11 and $35 for high-quality bakes that taste great and serve between 24 and 96 guests, I've often chosen Albertsons and Safeway as an outlet for my birthday cake needs, largely for work-based events where the headcount was larger than average.

Get your celebration going in the right direction with a call to your closest Kroger bakery for a birthday cake that's both delightful to behold and delicious to indulge in. As the largest grocer in the U.S., there are plenty of locations around to make your birthday cake dreams come true. For basic round or sheet cake orders, you can expect to pay between $17 and $4, though a deep catalog of flavors and formats gives shoppers a variety of customizable birthday cakes that can suit any scenario. Nimble bakers are at the ready to dress up your cake with frosted calligraphy in the colors of your choice. You'll even find single-serving slices in plastic clamshell cases for moments when a more modest celebration is in order.

Traditional quarter-sheet cakes are your best bet for a moderate-sized party, perfect for customizing your slices to accommodate a crowd, though rounds and half-sheets are available as well. For lovers of classic ice cream cakes, premade Carvel cakes are available in bakery freezers, waiting to be festooned to your order with a personalized message or served up with candles ablaze. Be sure to place your request at least 48 hours before you need your cake; otherwise, your poor planning could make you the forgetful crumb who failed to bring the focal point to the party.

If you've been to a birthday for more than six people, you've probably tasted the scrumptious creation that is the Costco birthday cake. There's no extravagance in the design or decor; you can order in person or online, choosing from a limited catalog of frosting-based adornment that gets your message of birthday cheer across in a simple manner. But the flavor of this tender sponge and creamy topping combination available in both buttercream and whipped cream options is exceptional, and the half-sheet quantity means you'll have plenty to serve each guest the slice size that's right for them. It's a great way to minimize your party-planning labor; order Costco pizzas and cakes at the same time and make a single trip to get everything taken care of. With 10-inch rounds for $16 and half-sheets for $25, prices are in line with Costco's well-known discounted warehouse structure.

Something to know before you buy a Costco cake for the birthday gang: These cakes are so big, you'll likely have a bunch left when the party ends, which is great for take-away plates to clear the table or a freezer-bound cake stash that lets you enjoy the rest at your own pace. It's your birthday; you can hoard your leftover cake if you want to! And for a tricky last-minute switcheroo, you can sometimes find abandoned cake orders for sale in the Costco bakery refrigerator case, just in case you didn't get your order in on time.

Milestone birthday moments that call for oversized cakes are not an issue for Sam's Club bakery. The warehouse can supply your birthday party with delicious half- and full-sheet cakes that serve a slew of guests without wasting a crumb. There are also single- and double-tiered round cakes that make a more traditional impression on the birthday table. Customized and oversized, these frosted wonders are available as a blank slate to be decorated to your instructions or pre-decorated themed cakes that just need a birthday message piped on the top surface before they're ready to party. Prices range between $17 and $55, and as long as you order by 2 p.m., you can pick up your Sam's Club birthday cake the next day. If you're on the ball and would rather get the task taken care of well ahead of the party, feel free to order up to 30 days in advance.

If your party needs a more towering centerpiece, the Sam's bakery also offers two-tiered structures with branded superhero and cartoon themes that instantly brighten up your party space. These can be jazzed up further with frosted messages to make the birthday person feel like the hero of the day. And if a batch of birthday cupcakes are more your preference, you can select from vividly-frosted treats in 30-count packs, some with party favors added to the top as a playful bonus for your guests to take home.

Don't sleep on Walmart bakery when your birthday cake obligations show up on the calendar. You can order your celebratory confection by dropping in on the prepared foods section of a super Walmart and get your cake and presents in a single stop. Next-day pick-up for custom cakes priced between $20 and $35 make Walmart one of the most economical and speedy birthday cake places around. This impressive bakery section even has a refrigerator case filled with ready-to-buy bakes you can grab on your way to the office, perfect for adding joy to your colleague's special day. To have a cheery "Happy Birthday!" or other note written on the surface, just ask the bakers on duty and they'll be happy to help you out.

Beyond the basic rectangular cakes, you'll find premade round cakes with charming unicorn or princess add-on decor perfect for a youngster's get-together, while adults might prefer upmarket creations like fudge-topped drip cakes or triple chocolate cake featuring Hershey's icing. Friendly's boxed ice cream cakes share freezer space with Carvel selections, expanding your options into the realm of branded frozen treats. And fans of the Cake Boss can pick up a frosted sponge from Carlo's Bakery, boxed up and ready to make your affair a boss-level fete.

Bulk food proprietor WinCo goes all out to stock its bakery with fresh birthday cakes that rise to the occasion. There may not be as vast a variety of cakes shining in the bakery case, but the options you have here are well-priced and decently sized, with several clever touches available to make birthday cake shopping an enticing endeavor. Priced between $11 and $17, you'll have plenty of room in your budget for elegant sweets that can be personalized.

Premade cakes are available in flavors like white coconut and German chocolate, in 7- and 8-inch circles ready for wedge slicing. There's even a multi-pack cake featuring quartered slices in carrot, caramel, chocolate and red velvet packaged together to make it simple for everyone to get their favorite. Quarter-sheet cakes priced at $20 and half-sheet cakes priced at $25 are ready to be painted with your iced message of birthday cheer, with enough sweet stuff to serve a suggested 30 to 48 guests. Clever servers with advanced cutting skills can adjust their slices for a larger or smaller group if necessary.

There may be no more elegant bakery in the Southwest for conjuring up one-of-a-kind birthday cakes than the pastry counter at Arizona luxury grocer AJ's Fine Foods. The grocer's gourmet creations look more like French patisserie fare than average grocery store cakes. The portfolio shows off photos of exquisitely decorated multi-tiered cakes in flavors such as cannoli and chocolate raspberry mousse. Eight-inch rounds in single and double layers cost between $25 and $30 and feed up to 16 guests; Quarter- and half-sheets that serve between 20 and 48 revelers will run you between $45 and $65. Custom cakes can be ordered 48 hours in advance with custom flavors for cake, filling and frosting, as well as personalization for the birthday person.

If you're looking for affordability, you should know that at AJ's, the higher price reflects better quality; having served these cakes at several occasions myself, I can vouch for the standard of excellence this chain adheres to. Though you'll be paying a premium for your birthday cake here, you'll also be getting handmade bakes that take flavor to the max while presenting eye-popping designs that dress your party table to the nines. Though an as-is cake from AJ's bakery is plenty amazing to draw oohs and aahs from your crowd, being able to add personal touches in decoration and flavor combinations will let you share a cake designed for your guest of honor but baked by pros who know how to pull off frosted miracles.

Bringing birthday cakes to the table is easier when you have an H-E-B grocery store in your neighborhood to help with the heavy lifting. Ranging from 6-inch personal size birthday cakes to quarter-sheet cakes with prices between $17 and $40, the selections are suitable for whatever size jubilee you're providing cake for. Vibrant frosting colors applied in intricate patterns blend classic cake craft with contemporary razzle-dazzle, giving cake customizers of all tastes the potential of ordering a one-of-a-kind confection to make the party pop.

Specialty selections at H-E-B include a tasteful array of bar cakes equal to ⅛ of a sheet cake but presented as a more premium option in unexpected flavors that include pecan tres leches, pumpkin chai and Italian crème cake. They're a more petite yet perfectly pretty design that suits a moderate-sized celebration and can be sliced thick or thin to go as far as needed. With chocolate fudge, strawberries and cream, and sprinkle-strewn classic cakes available, getting the bakers to add a frosted message on top of the cake lets you meet the process at the halfway point so you can avoid placing an order before the big day.

With Food Lion's reputation for providing customer satisfaction in every department, it's no surprises that the bakery cranks out crowd-pleasing birthday cakes, too. Fresh-baked beauties in chocolate, yellow, and marbled sponge are available in a range of shapes and sizes, everything from ⅛ sheet accompanied by six cupcakes to a full sheet cake. Food Lion frosts these finished phenoms in your choice of buttercream frosting or a buttercream variation the company calls "Bettercreme Whipped Topping." Request decor in your favorite colors or add an edible photo print to the top for an extra personal touch.

If you need a customized cake to make your festivities grand, be sure to place your order at least 24 hours ahead of the big day. This will give the store plenty of time to secure the flavor you want, as well as leaving lead time for producing the pretty piping that makes the finished product a feast for the eyes as well as the belly. Prices vary by region, which means a call is required to find out what your order will cost. And if you end up with last-minute birthday cake needs, there are premade cakes on hand that can work in a pinch.

Head to Wegmans for your birthday cake needs and prepare to be dazzled by the capabilities of this first-rate bakery. Thoughtful selections made for gluten-free eaters are possible too, expanding the range of customers who can find birthday cakes to accommodate both their tastes and their needs. Priced between $30 for a ¼ sheet cake that serves 15 to 18 and $70 for a full sheet that serves 60 to 72 guests, this chain has one of the more elevated pricing structures among grocery store bakeries. Three flavors of cake and five types of frosting are standard, with colored borders costing $4 extra, while several fruit and pudding-style fillings can be added to the center of the cake for various additional fees. Decorations, sprinkles, messages, and photo images can also be tacked onto your order.

While it's no Wegmans bakery secret that the company makes great birthday cakes, maybe the most notable difference between Wegmans and other grocery stores is the artificial dye-free frostings. This chain proudly presents fruit and vegetable colorings as a standard in their icing recipes, creating a feel-good vibrancy that lets cautious eaters have their healthier cake and eat it, too. So although the prices are a bit higher, the mindful quality is reflective of the extra cost.