A new dessert at Connections Cafe in EPCOT is an updated version of the Chocolate Baumkuchen Cake offered at the nearby Starbucks location, but with some additional toppings.
Chocolate Baumkuchen Cake – $6.49
With chocolate ganache and whipped cream
A Baumkuchen Cake is a popular German dessert that is unique because it is poured onto a rotating drum that is heated from below. As the batter gets heated, it is baked into thin layers. The process is repeated to give the cake more volume, resulting in a dessert that has several crispy layers in a round shape.
Baumkuchen translates from German to “Tree Cake,” as “Baum” means tree, and “Kuchen” means cake, in reference to a cross-section of the cake looking like rings of a tree. Following its initial release in 2023, Disney shared a short Instagram video explaining more of the creation process and the unique machinery required to make the cake.
We first reviewed two versions of the Baumkuchen Cake in 2023, when they first arrived in EPCOT. Back then, there were two different flavors in vanilla and chocolate. Both of these flavors are still available at the nearby Starbucks location. Since our initial reviews of both cakes were only mid-tier, we were especially curious to see if this updated version tasted better than its predecessors.
This dessert is ordered at the regular Connections Cafe window, and is also available on the My Disney Experience app for Mobile Order. It has been added to the menu screens and physical menus at the cafe, though it has not yet been included on the location’s digital menu found on the website.
First, we have to acknowledge that we vastly prefer the presentation of the new Chocolate Baumkuchen Cake compared to the previous ones. The old chocolate cake was a basic semicircle with a brown chocolate outer coating and no added decorations. By comparison, this updated version is served on a plate with whipped cream, a chocolate drizzle, and a chocolate Mickey silhouette attached on one side. The Mickey chocolate has no major effect on the flavor, but it makes for a nice picture.
We like that despite being marketed as a chocolate dessert, the cake is not overly sweet. It makes for an excellent breakfast option, or a great snack if you want something new instead of the cafe’s usual liege waffle. Since this one has the added chocolate drizzle, it is a little sweeter than the standard cake varieties from our previous review.
That being said, we ended up liking the added whipped cream and drizzle because they added some moisture to what is a somewhat dry cake. Similar to our previous reviews of the Baumkuchen Cakes, the interior layers are still very dry when eaten by themselves. Thankfully, the added toppings help make this cake a little more moist, especially when the whipped cream starts melting in the Florida heat. We definitely prefer this over the two plain versions at Starbucks and would be okay eating it again, though it still isn’t our favorite EPCOT dessert of all time.
Rating out of 7: 5
You can also watch our video of the cake on our Instagram post:
Will you be grabbing a Chocolate Baumkuchen Cake during your next EPCOT trip? Let us know in the comments.
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