Sweet Bakery & Cakery's Karori shop is a cake and coffee spot in Marsden Village, making cakes, cupcakes and sweet treats to order for birthdays, weddings and corporate events, alongside everyday bakery favourites. It's the original home of the business, and the only one of Sweet's shops set up for an eat-in experience.
Grace Kreft started Sweet in 2013, and after months of making cakes and cupcakes for celebrations across Wellington, opened the Karori cake and coffee shop in Marsden Village in April 2015. Grace and her husband Brad ran the business together for five years, growing it from a small cake operation into a shop with a loyal following, before passing it on to new owner Tuan, a chef and long-time fan of the business, in mid-2018.
The Karori team is split between a retail crew serving customers over the counter with treats, Coffee Supreme and shakes, and a kitchen team who arrive early each day to bake, pipe and ice everything from everyday treats to custom celebration cakes. The bakery uses natural New Zealand ingredients where available, including Whittaker's chocolate, Mainland butter and Chelsea sugar, and offers over 25 different cake and cupcake flavours to choose from.
Tucked into Marsden Village, Sweet Bakery & Cakery's Karori shop is where the whole business began, and remains the spot for anyone in Wellington after a custom celebration cake, a coffee and a treat, or both.
Grace Kreft started Sweet in 2013, driven by a passion for beautiful baking and cakes. After months spent making cakes and cupcakes for celebrations across Wellington, she opened the doors to a proper cake and coffee shop in Marsden Village, Karori, in April 2015. As demand grew, a second shop followed on Cuba Street in October 2016. Grace and her husband Brad ran Sweet together for five years, building it from a small cake business into a two-shop operation with a strong online ordering side too. In mid-2018, they passed the business on to a new owner, Tuan, a chef and long-time fan of Sweet.
The Karori shop runs on two teams working together. The retail team is on the front line each day, serving customers over the counter, dishing out treats, and making Coffee Supreme and shakes. The kitchen team starts early each morning, mixing, scooping, baking, piping and icing everything that goes out that day — including hours spent on the "made to order" cakes built for birthdays, weddings and other celebrations.
At the centre of Sweet's menu are its made-to-order cakes and cupcakes, available in over 25 different flavours, hand-baked and decorated for weddings, birthdays and corporate functions. Alongside the custom cake side, the shop sells everyday bakery treats including donuts and brownie sandwiches, plus baking mixes for anyone who wants to recreate a Sweet treat at home, and gift vouchers for gifting the experience to someone else.
Sweet uses natural New Zealand ingredients where it can, name-checking Whittaker's chocolate, Mainland butter and Chelsea sugar as favourites in its baking.
Unlike the Cuba Street shop, which operates as a takeaway-style milk bar with limited seating, the Karori shop is set up for an 'eat in' experience — making it the better choice for anyone wanting to sit down with a coffee and a slice for a special occasion.
Made-to-order cakes and cupcakes are taken for pick-up in Karori or delivery Tuesday to Saturday, with deliveries generally running between 10am and midday. For anyone ordering for the next day, Sweet recommends going with a chocolate-based flavour. Bookings aren't taken at either shop, so it's a case of popping in during opening hours.
The Karori shop is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 4.30pm, and is usually closed on public holidays — Sweet suggests checking its Facebook page for holiday updates, or emailing directly if you're not sure whether they'll be open on a particular date.
Whether it's a custom wedding cake, a quick coffee and cupcake, or a corporate order for the office, Sweet's Karori shop brings the whole business's story full circle, back to the neighbourhood where it all started.