Whole Foods Is Apparently Fixing Its Controversial Berry Chantilly Cake
Grocery stores of all shapes and sizes, take note: if you think you can pull a fast one and change a beloved food item, whatever that item may be, one (or all) of your loyal customers will notice. Not only will they notice, they will make an absolute stink about it. This week, it was Whole Foods Market that tried to throw the wool over its customers' eyes by changing one of its most popular baked goods, the Berry Chantilly Cake. Available as a whole cake and by the slice, the layered cake was made with a vanilla sponge and alternating layers of fresh fruit and cream. However, through an act of pure "skimpflation," according to fans of the cake, the reworked slice of cake was almost entirely filled with compote and fruit on the side, and rather than being made fresh, was delivered frozen.
"This is it," noted TikTok user @culturework in a video on September 20, showing the slice of cake to the camera. "The berries are on the outside, and they just put some jam in the middle. Also it's half the size it used to be, but flat rated at $5."
After the backlash, the organic market told media outlets in a statement that it had recently "aligned the flavor profile, size, packaging, and price so customers will have the same high-quality experience in each of our stores." In other words? Small adjustments were being made to ingredients and quality to cut costs.
Responding to critics, Whole Foods has gone back to the original cake recipe
Despite this statement that the Berry Chantilly Cake was just as good as the original, fans weren't standing for it. As a result, Whole Foods did something most large corporations wouldn't normally do; it listened to its critics and changed course. According to comments left on a @wholefoodsmarket TikTok video from September 24, the brand will abandon plans to change the recipe, and go back to the original cake its fans seek out on a daily basis.
"Hi, our Berry Chantilly Cake is unchanged," the comment from Whole Foods says in response to a "bring back berry chantilly" comment underneath the video. "Due to feedback, we're bringing back single slices of the classic Chantilly Cake customers know and love!" Additional comments on the video reassure fans that their feedback is being heard and shared with the appropriate teams, and that the cake has not and will not be discontinued.