Oswego Cake Designer Wins Kansas City Competition

Oswego has become quite the hub for 3D cake design in recent years.

Two cake designers from Oswego have landed on national cable television shows, and now one of them has won a national competition. Bob Brougham, who owns The Cakery in North Aurora, took home a championship prize from KC CakeFest held on March 3 and 4 in Kansas City.

Brougham, who has appeared twice on TLC's The Ultimate Cake-Off, competed against celebrity cake designers from across the country at the two-day cake festival that doubles as a charity benefit for The Whole Person—a nonprofit dedicated to helping people with disabilities live independently.

The festival includes cake-decorating demonstrations, an expo and classes.

The festivals' big events, however, are the daily Live Cake Battles. Led by cake chefs like Brougham, four teams of four competed to create the cake that best represented a chosen theme. This year’s theme, Brougham said, was Kansas City Past, Present and Future.

Brougham's team won day two’s battle and picked up a check for $2,000.

“I was just in shock to tell you the truth,” he said. “I was looking around at some of the other cakes and was thinking ‘there’s no way we’re going to win this.’”

, made the trip to Kansas City with Brougham and ended up being a late entry into the competition after another competitor dropped out. Lie himself has appeared on the Food Network Challenge.

Brougham, who has been in business for about 20 years, said he’s been creating 3D cakes for a long time. He said the popularity of TV cake competitions, like the Ultimate Cake Off and Food Network Challenge, has created an explosion in demand for such cakes.

“People just don’t want round cakes with flowers on it anymore,” he said. “As an artist I love it, because it gives me a chance to show what I can do.”

The Cakery is located at 937 Oak St. in North Aurora, and can be reached at 630-892-0771.