bakingbuyer - November 2011 - 66

BAKER’S DOZEN

Baker’s
DOZEN
This month, Baking Buyer sat down with the Cake Boss himself, Buddy Valastro, owner of Carlo’s Bakery in Hoboken, NJ, and star of reality television shows that include TLC’s Cake Boss and Next Great Baker, as well as Food Network Challenge. Tune into his shows on TLC, and be sure to check out his new book, Baking With the Cake Boss, that just released on November 1. all new cakes for that day!

1.) What would you do with one whole day to yourself? If there was no one else around—no kids or wife—I would probably take the full day and just relax. I would take three naps and watch a season of a TV show that I’ve never seen before. It would be pure bliss. 2.) Describe your perfect date-night. I’d have to say the perfect date night would be dinner with the wife in the city—Italian, of course! 3.) What is the biggest way that fame has affected your day-to-day life? Being recognized has changed some things, but I try to live my life as normal as possible. 4. Of all the cakes you’ve designed, which one had the most sentimental value? My wife’s 30th birthday cake—I carved out a cake to look exactly like her. 5.) What’s your favorite cake flavor to eat?
66 · BAKING BUYER · NOVEMBER 11

9.) Has Carlo’s Bakery been visited by other reality TV shows, like “Real Housewives of New Jersey”? We’ve had the casts of a few shows stop by for a bite: the cast of Real Housewives of New Jersey, Jersey Shore. Also we’ve had visits from a few talk show hosts such as Al Roker, Rachael Ray, and Regis Philbin.
My father’s cream puff cake is very close to my heart. It’s something that he invented.

6. ) If you could have any career other than in baking, what would it be? I would probably either be a businessman, which isn’t too much different than what I do now. Or maybe something fun like a baseball player. 7.) What’s been your craziest fan experience so far? One of the most surreal things was when a 12-year-old girl rode her bike to the bakery from Brooklyn [which is about 12 miles away]. 8.) Describe your most memorable cake disaster. The day after we finished filming Season 2, someone left open the refrigerator that we kept all of the wedding cakes in. The next morning, we saw that $20,000 worth of wedding cakes had been destroyed. It was all hands on deck—we had to make

10.) What was the last book you read? My book, Baking with the Cake Boss, which came out November 1. 11.) If you could open another Carlo’s Bakery anywhere in the world, where would it be? We’re working on other locations, and we’re trying to figure out a way to relieve the Hoboken store so we can go back to catering our local clientele. I wouldn’t mind opening one in the Atlantis! But I’d have to go visit it first. 12.) If you could go back in time and give advice to your 16-year-old self, what would you say? I’d probably just remind myself to take everything one day at a time. 13.) Who gets you star-struck? I was really excited to meet Oprah. For someone of her magnitude, she is a very humble person.

bakingbuyer - November 2011

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