Mirror Magic & Minimal Sugar: How Annabelle’s AnnTremet Cake Is Centering Creativity in Cake
The Chinese name of AnnTremet means forest and dewdrop, reflecting a spirit that is as pure and simple as the cakes themselves.
Annabelle quit her full-time job in 2019 to build a youthful, artsy cake shop in New York that’s light on sugar but big on color, craft, and hands-on fun.
From 9 to 5 to Mirror-Glaze Maven
In 2019, Annabelle left her full-time job to turn her love for artful desserts into AnnTremet Cake, a creative cake shop in the West Village designed with young people in mind. She saw an opening in the U.S. market for cakes with Asian-style sweetness and mirror-glaze designs, something beautiful but still rare. AnnTremet became the only spot in New York where you can not only order a stunning mirror cake but also take a DIY class to glaze your own.
Edible Art with Real Ingredients
Each season inspires something new at AnnTremet. Spring brings sakura, strawberry matcha, and yuzu; summer highlights lavender and refreshing, colorful flavors. Customer favorites include the black sesame and raspberry mousse cakes, and drinks like sakura lemonade or the ube latte made with real purple yam purée. Annabelle keeps it thoughtful—using real ingredients and creating desserts that are both visually exciting and balanced in flavor.
Production on Her Terms
Everything is made in-house without a central kitchen. Mousse cakes are prepped overnight and must be ordered in advance. If a flavor sells out, that’s it for the day. DIY cake require seven days’ notice, giving her team time to prepare every element with care. Annabelle’s process keeps the shop flexible and creative, while still grounded in consistency and quality.
Growing with Intention
AnnTremet recently opened a location in Long Island City, a space that attracts more professionals and students compared to the artsy crowd of the West Village. Annabelle sees this as a chance to introduce new events like flower arranging and outdoor fitness meetups, all centered around community and connection. Rising egg and dairy prices have been tough, but she continues to hold pricing steady while adjusting behind the scenes. Her advice to aspiring cake shop owners is clear: it’s more work than it looks, and keeping people excited takes real effort behind every pretty cake.