Bakery Blog

Live Birds in a Cake?! How Wedding Cakes Have Evolved Over the Centuries
Live Birds in a Cake?! How Wedding Cakes Have Evolved Over the Centuries
We all have an idea of what a traditional wedding cake is. Well, it turns out that marriage’s most famous dessert has changed a lot throughout history. Read more...
Gambino's king cake babies, the ten-count pack the bakery sells for Carnival parties.
Who Buys the Next One? The Rule of the King Cake Baby
Find the baby in your slice of king cake and the next cake is on you. How New Orleans actually plays the rule — at the office, at the kitchen... Read more...
Why is “Wedding Cake Flavor” a New Orleans Thing?
Why is “Wedding Cake Flavor” a New Orleans Thing?
Almond sponge cake. Almond buttercream. Layers of pineapple filling. It’s a combination known well in southeast Louisiana, but hardly at all in other parts of the country. How did this... Read more...
A Gambino's king cake boxed and wrapped, ready to be shipped out of Louisiana.
Shipping a King Cake Out of Louisiana
Shipping a King Cake Out of Louisiana New Orleanians leave. They go to Houston for the job, to Atlanta for the in-laws, to a dozen other cities that will never... Read more...
A whole Gambino's traditional king cake, iced in purple, green, and gold, ready to be sliced and shared.
How to Keep a King Cake Fresh
How to Keep a King Cake Fresh Down here, a king cake rarely dies a quick death. Somebody orders one for the office, or three show up at the same... Read more...
A traditional Gambino's King Cake iced in purple, green, and gold sugar, ready to serve.
When King Cake Season Starts and Ends
When King Cake Season Starts and Ends Every October, someone calls Gambino's convinced they're jumping the gun by asking about a king cake before the Halloween candy is even off... Read more...
A German chocolate cake from Gambino's, layered devil's food under a coconut coating
German Chocolate Cake Isn't German
There is a particular kind of pleasure in learning that a thing you were sure about is not so. It is the pleasure of the good story, and the German... Read more...
A Gambino's king cake iced in purple, green, and gold, photographed whole before slicing
What Makes a Great King Cake
Dough, proof, filling, icing, and how it arrives. The criteria a New Orleans bakery uses to judge a king cake. Read more...
The History of the New Orleans Jazz Fest
The History of the New Orleans Jazz Fest
It’s festival season in New Orleans! There are tons of great options this time of year, but of course, the city’s crown jewel is the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival,... Read more...
When, why, and how Sicilians turned New Orleans into their Little Palermo
When, why, and how Sicilians turned New Orleans into their Little Palermo
New Orleans wouldn’t be New Orleans without influences from a variety of ethnic groups over the centuries: the French, the Spanish, Africans, and American Indians often get the lion’s share... Read more...