A note from Anmar Wilding, founder of Crumb Boutique Bakery
Every cake that leaves this studio has a story behind it. So does the bakery itself.
It Started in the UK
Crumb was born in 2010 — not in Cape Town, but while I was living in the UK, in a small town in the East of England, this is where I set up a stall at a local farmer’s market and started selling cakes. What began as a weekend project quickly grew into something much bigger. Word spread, orders followed, and before long Crumb had become one of the top wedding cake bakeries in the region.
In those years, Crumb was recognised at the Wedding Industry Awards — winning Best Wedding Cake Designer in the East of England — a moment that confirmed what I’d believed from the beginning: that people deserve a cake that’s as extraordinary as the occasion it’s made for.
The Chef Behind the Cakes
Before Crumb, before the farmer’s market, before any of this — I trained as a professional chef, at the Institute Of Culinary Arts in Stellenbosch
That foundation shapes everything I do. The way I approach flavour, texture, and technique isn’t just instinct — it’s the result of years of formal training and working at the highest levels of the hospitality industry.
I’ve worked as a private chef on luxury superyachts in the Pacific and the Mediterranean, preparing food for some of the world’s most discerning guests. During the off-season, I spent time as a chalet chef in Switzerland. Along the way, I’ve had the privilege of cooking for a remarkable list of high-profile individuals — including Uma Thurman, Liam Neeson, and many others.
That experience — the precision, the standards, the understanding of what genuine quality looks and tastes like — came with me when I started baking cakes. It’s why Crumb cakes taste the way they do.
Coming Home to Cape Town
In 2017, I moved back to South Africa and spent time working in the wedding industry here before relaunching Crumb in Cape Town.
The city felt like the right place to grow the business. Cape Town’s wedding scene is vibrant and international, the creative community is extraordinary, and there was a gap in the market for the kind of cake I wanted to make — one that challenged the convention of plain white tiers and naked sponge, that pushed colour and character and creativity, and that tasted genuinely spectacular.
Crumb found its home in Woodstock, and it’s been growing ever since.
Beyond the Cake
The work doesn’t stop at the studio door.
I’ve made several television appearances — including Expresso, Afternoon Express, as a guest judge on Taste Master, and as a runner-up on Kokkedoor Series 3. I’ve also had multiple wedding cakes featured on SABC’s Top Billing. In 2022, I published my cookbook, “Cake It Till You Make It” — available in the Crumb online store — which brings some of that knowledge directly into your kitchen.
The sister brand Destination Doughnut grew out of a desire to create and share more than just cakes — cookies, doughnuts, and sweet treats that carry the same standards of craft and quality that Crumb is built on.
What This Means for Your Cake
Every cake I make is the result of everything above — the training, the experience, the years spent understanding what makes food genuinely extraordinary.
When you order from Crumb, you’re not just getting a beautiful cake. You’re getting one made by a professionally trained chef who has spent a career in pursuit of the best possible version of every dish, and who brings that same commitment to every cake.
That’s what Crumb is. That’s what it’s always been.
I’d love to make something extraordinary for you.
xo Anmar
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Crumb Boutique Bakery is based at Salt Circle, 374 Albert Road, Woodstock, Cape Town. All cakes are handmade by professionally trained chef Anmar Wilding. Get in touch →
