Hansen's Cakes, Los Angeles

I should start by explaining that I'm currently writing a book about cake. It's still in the early stages, so I don't want to spill too many details in case I suddenly find myself taking it in new directions, but seeing as many of the posts to come will have to do with research and experiments I am doing for the project, I thought I'd put it out there.

Right. So, book or not, one of the first things I do when planning a trip to a new city is find out where the best bakeries are. Seeking a slice of great cake in LA was far more important to me than many of the sites. True, it was not my first time visiting so I'd already seen most of the tourist attractions, but even if I'd never set foot there before, cake would have been top on my list (followed closely by eating as much good Mexican food as possible).

I'd read about Hansen's Cakes in my Rough Guide to LA. Though the review was very complementary, it only listed their Beverly Hills location and gave few details. Turns out this historic LA bakery has three locations and dates back seven generations.



The photo above is of the Beverly Hills shop, which has been open since the 1950's. There was the usual window display...



and the usual display case...



filled with an assortment of shaped and sheet cakes. Not so usual was the wall of autographed celebrity head-shots given by appreciative clients.

I introduced myself and explained a bit about the book to Kathy, the ridiculously nice woman running the shop that day. A smile sneaked across her face, and she got up and walked to a refrigerator in the back. She returned, handing me a box packed with samples...



remarking "Well...you have to try it!"

We chatted for a while about cake, the shop, and a little of the history. Started in the 1920's by the first Mr. Hansen, it was the go-to bakery for major Hollywood royalty who had trouble finding Kosher cakes in the city. She suggested that I stop by their location on Fairfax and visit with the current Mr. Hansen to learn more. Only in LA for a few days, I said I'd try, thanked her as many times as I could, and left with a stack of brochures and the box of cake.

That night, we sampled a few and it is, without a doubt, some of the best cake I've ever had. Each and every flavor was wonderful, not too sweet and texturally fantastic. That settled it—even crunched for time, I knew I had to try and meet the man (and the name) behind such amazing confections.

We'd rented a car for the next day in order to go visit one of the main reasons for the trip: The Cake Lady and her Mini-Cake Museum (more on that later this week), and managed to squeeze in a quick visit to the Fairfax shop. I had called early in the morning to see if I needed an appointment to meet Mr. Hansen, and was told he'd be there all day and to just stop by.



Which we did. When I asked a woman at the large front desk about speaking with the owner, she paused, looked at me with faint distrust, and asked "Why?" After I explained, she quickly said "Mr. Hansen is very busy." Kathy, she was not.

A tad disappointed (and afraid), I compromised to email with questions, took a business card and left. As we were standing in front of the shop trying to decide if I should try once more, a man who looked an awful lot like the picture of the current Hansen Kathy had showed me the day before walked by . Figuring there was nothing to loose, I chased after him calling out "Mr Hansen!" He stopped, understandably a bit taken aback, but when I explained who I was and why I had chased him, he kindly offered a quick tour of the bakery.

Inside, I mentioned the brilliance of the cake. He patted a stack of large powder-dusted paper bags and explained that they used a patented secret recipe. Secret was the word of the day as we walked passed the mixing area, the ovens, the wall (!) of cake pans in all shapes and sizes, and the decorating area, which is why, as much as it killed me, I did not take a single picture.

Not much was said about the history, and before I could ask he had to run off to take a phone call. He did say I could email with questions, so when (and if) I do learn more, you may see the Hansen name again.

If you find yourself in LA looking for a wonderful cake (they don't sell slices—but they do sell cupcakes), stop by the Beverly Hills location and tell Kathy I say hello.

Hansen's Cakes