Buddy vs. Duff - General Discussion

[Mollysmom]

I'm so glad Buddy won both challenges tonight. I almost thought he wouldn't win the cake challenge because of the hot glue and not painting the bottom of the cake boards. 

[Eliza422]

I think the key to Buddy’s actions are his factory like approach to baking. I’m not saying they wouldn’t taste great, but when you are churning out 50 wedding cakes a week you get the cookie cutter, generic approach. You aren’t going to get a personalized, meaningful cake design. I think that’s what duff meant when he said buddy was more concerned about how much he would make in a cake. He doesn’t seem to take an artistic approach, but a very pragmatic approach.

I loved Duff’s cake 1000%, non painted bottoms and all. As Is I would take it. 

[bybrandy]

1 hour ago, Aliconehead said:

The frame thing around the bride and groom looked messy and like nasty.

This, this, this.   I don't know how he put that on the cake.  Clearly he thought it was fine.  But it looked gross.

Buddy was doing what he does.  Yes he did a lot of piping and flowers and it was big, but YAWN.  Seen it.  

I'm not sure Duff's cake read wedding cake at all but the only reason it wasn't finished is because it wasn't something they did every day so they had some engineering bits to work out.  I'm positive if they make this cake again for Duff's wedding (or something similar) there will be less inedible bits and the bottoms/boards will be painted.

[HappyDancex2]

Duffs fiancée looks like his daughter....touching that he started crying though.  Hope he made her sign a prenup but she’s going to anchor baby him lol 

Duffs cake concept was pretty cool.  I like the idea of suspended cakes.  I like the idea of glass.  It was very well done for the time allotment.

Buddy’s cake was large and.....flowery.

[mlp]

Buddy's biggest problem is his attitude.  He does great piping and flowers but he's so sure everything he does is perfect that he doesn't even notice things like the clunky fondant frame around the thick cutout bride and groom which totally detracted from the cake.  His cake was very nice otherwise but it looked like a generic wedding cake.  

Duff's cake was creative.  It didn't really look like a wedding cake there in the bakery but it would be obvious what it was at a wedding reception.  In fact, he made hanging cakes for his own wedding.  He was so sweet when he was talking about his fiancée that I just wanted to hug him.  

[LennieBriscoe]

Buddy's flowers, pearls, and lattice work were MAGNIFICENT. Yeah, cakes often have flowers, but not so well-done.

Why bother calling it a "Wedding Cake" challenge, when a cake that, as Buddy said, could be for the OPENING OF AN AQUARIUM wins????!

What did Duff do with his time?!

He baked three lousy little separate cakes (no need to stack and balance that way, clever boy)!

Duff used GLUE! Oh, wait, he didn't; Jeff did (what was Duff doing, again?). And since when are glued globs of sugar, HANGING SEPARATELY,  part of CAKE decorations??

He furthermore didn't even hide the cardboard bases; had a judge tell him his metal hooks were too bare;  and had another undecorated element (the square  ceiling attachments) pointed out by the BRIDE. 

IMO, the judges simply loved the blue-green colors and "differentness." At least, I hope the decision wasn't from sentimentality over Duff's treacly "Look at the freckles! My fiancee has freckles!" 

One more point: Even IF one calls Duff's cake wedding-appropriate (which, if it's cake, it's appropriate), let's be real:  HE  admitted it was specifically designed for his wedding, his bride. I'm willing to bet not as many betrothed would choose hanging dragon cakes instead of a traditional style.

Oh, and Duff? There is no crying in baking.

BTW, Buddy might have boasted, but Duff sneered. He doesn't get a pass from me.

I think I'll buy a pastry at the local Carlo's tomorrow!

Edited April 1, 2019 by LennieBriscoe

[Psychobunny]

Duff is losing me with his superior attitude. We get it, he went to pastry school and worked in restaurants but not everyone has those advantages. The truth is that I would much rather eat Buddy’s slice of cake than a flavorless ile flotant. Nobody likes plain steamed merengue. In addition, the wedding cake challenge was to make a cake for a bunch of future brides. Buddy was right that the right thing was to showcase multiple techniques. I hated the fondant work but Duff didn’t have to focus on that when the piping was beautiful and the flowers were also. I personally hated Duff’s cake. The seahorses didn’t look like the pictures at all and he used inedible materials. I  guess I’m just too traditional because I would much prefer Buddy’s flowers on my hypothetical wedding cake. Finally, my brother is from Baltimore and has had one of Duff’s cakes and he said it was cool looking but not very tasty. I do give Duff points for creativity and he clearly loves his fiancée but I am starting to think that he superior attitude is almost as bad as Buddy’s whining.

[LennieBriscoe]

Yes,  Duff is undoubtedly as "in love" as he said. Certainly he responded to this challenge with his (then-) future wedding as the focus 

But Buddy loves his own wife,  too. 

https://www.delish.com/restaurants/a56469/the-cake-boss-buddy-valastro-love-story/

In the immortal words of Deputy US Marshall Samuel Gerard (I'm just being a weisenheimer!):

Edited April 1, 2019 by LennieBriscoe

[Granny]

On 3/25/2019 at 11:18 AM, HighHopes said:

Buddy's "bigger is better" schtick is going to come back and bite him in the butt I feel. His "let's make this cake as tall as possible" cake is going to topple over in the truck. I hope. 

Tasting the cakes really needs to be part of this competition. It looks like they are both using the same sheet cakes for the second part, with 70% of it being rice crispy treats. Then it's all fondant and hands all over it. It seems more like who can make a better sculpture than who is the better baker. I know the first part is about taste, but the second part should be too!! Sure the thing may look pretty, but if it's 80% non-edible rice crispy treats and pipes, and 20% sheet cake I can buy myself, then what's the point? 

It seems like the parts of the cakes that Buddy is getting praise for are the parts that his assistant did. 

And so it did!  I was actually very amazed that Duff one, but obviously his was near perfect! Score 24/25. Go Duff! 

[Koalagirl]

I don't personally know anywho has tasted Duff's cakes but I am close to two people who have waited on line at Carlos Bakery in NJ and said that it really wasn't worth the wait.  Cakes were not that good.

[Kohola3]

19 minutes ago, Koalagirl said:

Cakes were not that good.

If you like Walmart or Costco cakes, Buddy's your man.

[ruffy666]

I'm certainly not a Buddy apologist but, man, you gotta be impressed that he was able to make a cake THAT BIG and still look good in that amount of time.  The sheer number of techniques including stringwork which can be insanely fussy to do well, I gotta hand it to him.  Duff's, well, personally I don't like airbrushing cakes like that because it reminds of the cheap cakes from the grocery store fridge but his concept was good and unique.

Personally I thought floating islands was a really weird choice for a plated dessert.  I guess it was elevated-ish, but it's sooooo old school.   A big ol' heap of steamed meringues does not sound appealing to me at all.

[ninjakid]

23 minutes ago, ruffy666 said:

 Duff's, well, personally I don't like airbrushing cakes like that because it reminds of the cheap cakes from the grocery store fridge but his concept was good and unique.

Duff handpainted the cakes. He did some airbrushing on the seahorses.

[ShortyMac]

...I might have let out a "hell yeah!" when it was announced that Duff won the cake challenge. That was awesome. 24/25. Buddy's was boring.

Buddy saying 'our plated dessert tasted better' when a couple of judges clearly pointed out that his cream puff cake was too sweet... *rolls eyes*

[Aliconehead]

I think both Duff and Buddy are arrogant.  Duff’s is just a quiet arrogance while Buddy’s is a loud arrogance.  The loudness makes Buddy difficult for me to take.  I enjoy Duff and the Baking championship shows, so that might color my opinion though

[Kohola3]

20 hours ago, mlp said:

Buddy's biggest problem is his attitude.  He does great piping and flowers but he's so sure everything he does is perfect that he doesn't even notice things like the clunky fondant frame around the thick cutout bride and groom which totally detracted from the cake.  His cake was very nice otherwise but it looked like a generic wedding cake.  

Buddy has to do everything HUGE and then assumes that's what everyone wants.  The flowers were beautiful and all but it was just a generic wedding cake.  Give any creative bakery a picture of that and someone would be able to do it.  That frame thing was just hideous.

They were looking for a cake with a wow factor and Duff's definitely made everyone go "wow".

[Mollysmom]

Buddy is too stuck in the old ways of doing things. The cake he made would have looked great in the 80's-early 90's. But people don't want cakes like that anymore. They want more creative things, not the same old fashioned looking cake. Sometimes his cakes just look gaudy - like the one this week. He needs to realize that tastes change over time and the old way of doing things may not be what people want anymore. 

[Kohola3]

7 hours ago, Mollysmom said:

Buddy is too stuck in the old ways of doing things. 

He just keeps reiterating that "this is the way my father taught me" and "I've been making these flowers for X number of years" but times do change.  The flowers are beautiful, I will give him that, and it takes skill.  But at some point you have to look in other directions.  And bigger is not always better.  If you have to worry about a cake falling over on a hill it's probably just the bragging rights for size you're striving for.

[luvapickle]

The difference between Buddy & Duff's remarks come from how they say them, IMO. Buddy truly believes in every word he says; whereas, Duff says it, then winks. I will say that Duff's wedding cake approach is what I do most often. Not the whole hanging thing-stuff like that makes me nervous. But brides...and grooms want originality nowadays. Buddy's cake, I could do in that short amount of time...w/out all the flowers.  Mine would have been buttercream 🙂 or real. Which means all those going off on Duff using inedible....the flowers Buddy made were as well. Buddy's problem was, he never said I want a standard tiered wedding cake. He could have being that was his challenge.

[Lady Iris]

There needs to be cake tasting. How is there no cake tasting? It's a cake contest, shouldn't how the cake tastes be a part of the judging?

[mlp]

3 hours ago, luvapickle said:

Which means all those going off on Duff using inedible....the flowers Buddy made were as well.

I missed that.  What were Buddy's flowers made of then?

[ShortyMac]

28 minutes ago, mlp said:

I missed that.  What were Buddy's flowers made of then?

Gum paste.

[Ladyblue]

Duff all the way! The judges have cut Buddy too much slack! Duff's scores shouldave been higher, and 2 of the events he clearly should have won; especially the Bollywood one. It didn't take a pro to see how sloppy Buddy's was, and beautifully crafted Duff's was. It was simply magnificent, and Duff should have won!

[Mollysmom]

To be fair, gum paste is edible. It wouldn't taste very good, but it is just sugar, egg whites and shortening. But, even though Duff used hot glue on those discs, those were not going to be potentially eaten anyway. They weren't on the actual cake. they were a hanging decoration. 

[Enigma X]

2 hours ago, Lady Iris said:

There needs to be cake tasting. How is there no cake tasting? It's a cake contest, shouldn't how the cake tastes be a part of the judging?

THANK YOU!

[Eliza422]

16 hours ago, Mollysmom said:

Buddy is too stuck in the old ways of doing things. The cake he made would have looked great in the 80's-early 90's. But people don't want cakes like that anymore. They want more creative things, not the same old fashioned looking cake. Sometimes his cakes just look gaudy - like the one this week. He needs to realize that tastes change over time and the old way of doing things may not be what people want anymore. 

If you look at the hot styles of cakes right now, they are often minimalist, with dramatic shapes, colors and often just one star element, like one bunch of flowers, or a geometric highlight.

And of course, personalization. Duff is definitely on trend.

[Kohola3]

2 hours ago, Lady Iris said:

It's a cake contest, shouldn't how the cake tastes be a part of the judging?

But it's not a cake contest per se.  The first part is definitely related to taste and the scoring reflects that.  There is nothing on the score card for taste for the cake competition.

[Lady Iris]

*kicks dirt* Ok, I suppose. But still I'd love to see what recipes they'd concoct for taste on top of decorating skills.

Edited April 2, 2019 by Lady Iris
edited to add, I may be taking this cake show too seriously...

[trudysmom]

IIRC, Buddy said something like "I made a cake for any bride, I guess Duff made one for his."  Something like that because I remember thinking, maybe any bride a few years ago, but today not any bride would be happy with that cake, especially at the prices you charge.  While I wouldn't have wanted Duff's cake as my wedding cake either, I can appreciate his artistic license and his thoughtfulness in making a cake he thought would please his fiance.  I follow him on twitter and his tweets about his honeymoon are so sweet and funny. Truly a man in love. 

[howiveaddict]

Seems like there would have been a way to ensure that the cake wouldn't fall over in the back of the empty van.  I know it didn't fall over, but it seemed like created drama to me.

[Emkat]

Duff's fiancee looks about 18.

Eta: she's 25 and he's 44...

Edited April 3, 2019 by Emkat
Added info

[Yeah No]

I've just caught up with this - I have to agree with those that say neither of them is coming off that well.  Duff has a big ego and superior attitude, plus I sense an air of spite directed at Buddy.  Not sure what's up with the vibe between them but whenever I read that chefs have a feud going I know there's probably a lot I don't know going on and plenty of good and bad on both sides. 

Buddy has a big ego too and thinks everything he does is the best.  He's been enabled by his family to say whatever he wants and he wears his emotions on his sleeve so of course he looks worse.  I have known of both of these guys for a long time and am not surprised at the rivalry between them.  I think there's a lot of back story to that rivalry that wouldn't make either one of them look any better than the other.  I also wouldn't put it past the network to have set things up on this show deliberately to cause more friction between them, and of course, with them knowing how to play his buttons, Buddy as the more emotional one takes the bait.  Duff doesn't, but I don't sense good emotions in there either despite his calm, placid exterior.

I can't disagree that adding another judge was a good idea.  One judge just doesn't seem like enough.  With the two of them having vastly different styles it would be hard to have one judge not favor one over the other all the time.  So I really can't blame Buddy if that's what he was complaining about.  I do of course don't love the way he acted like a spoiled brat about that and coming off like a sore loser.  Despite that, being half Sicilian from NYC I don't find him as offensive as some others here.  I may not love his attitude and think he's a throwback in a lot of ways, but after seeing him zillions of times on TV I know he has a good side too.  I wouldn't vilify him just on appearances here.  Some of the remarks up thread almost sound like they're based on ethnic prejudice.  He comes from a certain kind of Northeast Italian culture.  I myself didn't come from that culture and my Sicilian family tried to distance itself from that for a lot of reasons, but I still think it's petty to go after surface stuff like his accent and the way he pronounces words.

To address where Buddy has looked better, I was never a regular watcher of the Cake Boss but I did watch enough of it to know that he did look better there, plus he always looks better on "The Rachael Ray Show".  Also, he once had a 2 season cooking show on TLC that was really good.  I think the main trouble with Buddy is that he's too limited to his own style, which is now a very retro style.  There's nothing wrong with that.  I am always defending "old school" because it's kind of important to Italian Americans that their food traditions be respected.  And Buddy has a lot of respect for those traditions, which I admire, and people do love the food, but it is really limited, and that's showing itself here because his stuff on this show is not as artistically creative as it should be for a competition like this.  I think he's at a disadvantage here because chef judges on competitions like this like to be wow-ed with something new and creative, and Buddy's stuff is not really that.  Duff, however, is in some ways going to the opposite extreme.  Part of that is his style, but part of that is strategy, I think.  He knows that in a challenge where a lot of weight is given to novelty and artistic creativity, he wins hands down.   I also think Buddy's stuff on his show was better because he had an entire staff of people assisting him.  He was more of the overall director and the creative people filled in where he lacked.  Duff is used to working on a smaller scale and a lot of the concept and design originates in him.  So he is also at an advantage in that most of what the judges want to see he can do by himself while with the exception of one assistant, Buddy is operating without the very people he relies on to supply all the missing talents that he lacks.

Anyway, that's my assessment.

[luvthepros]

On 4/1/2019 at 11:15 AM, Koalagirl said:

I don't personally know anywho has tasted Duff's cakes but I am close to two people who have waited on line at Carlos Bakery in NJ and said that it really wasn't worth the wait.  Cakes were not that good.

I have waited online at Carlos Bakery in Hoboken for almost 45 minutes. Buddy's bakery goods were well worth the wait. We were four people who went to the bakery and we each had different items......all out of this world. Buddy's cannolis are, without a doubt, some of the best connolis I have ever tasted. The lemon bar was, bar none, the best I have ever had. Buddy's Italian pastries are worth every penny he charges and every minute one has to wait on line. None of us tried any cake, however so really can't say how good Buddy's cakes are.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, luvthepros said:

I have waited online at Carlos Bakery in Hoboken for almost 45 minutes. Buddy's bakery goods were well worth the wait. We were four people who went to the bakery and we each had different items......all out of this world. Buddy's cannolis are, without a doubt, some of the best connolis I have ever tasted. The lemon bar was, bar none, the best I have ever had. Buddy's Italian pastries are worth every penny he charges and every minute one has to wait on line. None of us tried any cake, however so really can't say how good Buddy's cakes are.

I've never been to the Hoboken store but I did go to the one at one of the CT casinos and yes, the cannolis are out of this world.  That from someone that grew up eating Arthur Avenue and Bleecker Street cannolis in NYC and knows from cannolis, LOL. 😉 

[luvthepros]

On 4/2/2019 at 2:09 PM, ShortyMac said:

Gum paste.

Google search found this on the internet........

Sugar paste icing is a sweet edible sugar dough usually made from sucrose and glucose. It is sometimes referred to as sugar gum or gum paste, but should not be confused with fondant

[luvapickle]

On ‎4‎/‎2‎/‎2019 at 2:27 PM, Mollysmom said:

To be fair, gum paste is edible. It wouldn't taste very good, but it is just sugar, egg whites and shortening. But, even though Duff used hot glue on those discs, those were not going to be potentially eaten anyway. They weren't on the actual cake. they were a hanging decoration. 

Depends on how he makes his though. If he goes the gelatin way, they taste horrendous. But if he makes them more like sugarpaste, then yes, they could be edible....with out the wire 🙂 Something tells me he used gelatin being that's the only way they would have stiffened in time.

[luvapickle]

7 hours ago, luvthepros said:

Google search found this on the internet........

Sugar paste icing is a sweet edible sugar dough usually made from sucrose and glucose. It is sometimes referred to as sugar gum or gum paste, but should not be confused with fondant

Sugarpaste & gumpaste are not necessarily the same. It depends on what is used, depending on who is making it, as the "binding" agent. Sugarpaste remains pliable, but will harden given enough time. Gumpaste gets used with a gelatin, to harden items like flowers, quicker. It's the gelatin that tastes like crap.

[trudysmom]

Saw Duff responded on Twitter "No Thanks" when asked whether there would be a 2nd season of the show.  Good.  Neither of them is going to come out of this looking good.

[Kohola3]

37 minutes ago, trudysmom said:

Saw Duff responded on Twitter "No Thanks" when asked whether there would be a 2nd season of the show.

Thank heavens.  This one is painful enough to watch. 

And I predict that this is rigged to come out in a tie anyway.  Both of these guys have fans and FN needs them for other shows so it wouldn't do to have one come out on top. 

Buddy will catch up this week, I bet.

[Maverick]

 I'm on the 'neither of these guys is coming off well' train, riding in the 'this is uncomfortable to watch' car.  Duff's easier to take because he's not as in your face, but I'm getting tired of his anti-old school attitude.   Duff's plated dessert and hanging cake were pretty, but unless you're having a party for a room full of Smurfs, you're not going to feed your guests from it.   There's a place (and customer) for both styles.   It's annoying listening to each of them insult and try to tear down the others style, and in turn the people who like each.

 Keegan and Sherry look like they're trying to keep a hostage taker from snapping and taking someone out every time they deliver results.   The producers are clearly egging this shit on between the two.  What I can't figure out is why they're being so blatant about it with all the behind-the-scenes interludes.  

[ShortyMac]

So, the challanges split 50/50 this week - Duff won the first with the donuts, Buddy won the cake challenge.

There was a graphic in front of Duff's point total for the first challenge, so, I couldn't see it. I think Buddy's was 18 or 19/25.

I agree that Duff screwed himself by not having enough cake, it was pretty bad as far as the cake part. 16/25, and Buddy got 24/25. Buddy definitely deserved that one.

Surprise, they are tied at 212 going in to the finale...

[Kohola3]

1 minute ago, ShortyMac said:

Surprise, they are tied at 212 going in to the finale...

My money is on a tie.

[Earmuffs Mom]

Is anyone else grossed out whenever Buddy’s elbow-deep in batter/dough etc and just slopping it everywhere? 

[mlp]

I hate to say it but Duff blew it with the magic cake.  It was a neat idea but, as Buddy said over and over,  it wasn't really a cake.  I have to admit that Buddy's cake looked a lot better.

I thought they'd save the tie for the finale.  

[bybrandy]

Rooting for Duff and honestly thought Buddy's cake looked a little like a magic show inside a bordello.  But it had cake.  So..   I have no beef with Buddy's win in that round.

[ninjakid]

10 hours ago, bybrandy said:

Rooting for Duff and honestly thought Buddy's cake looked a little like a magic show inside a bordello.  But it had cake.  So..   I have no beef with Buddy's win in that round.

I think Buddy won, but I think the 8 point spread was unjustified.

[lilly6]

I think Buddy is an ass.  He's a tradesman while Duff is an artist. 

I think this week's outcome was producer-driven to evoke a win for Buddy and a tie.  Duff and Geof are so funny but they know better than to present a wooden structure with a little bit of sheet cake.

How funny that the winning element of Buddy's cake was designed by the other guy.  It was kind of cool. 

[Maverick]

56 minutes ago, lilly6 said:

I think Buddy is an ass.  He's a tradesman while Duff is an artist. 

 I think that's a bit harsh.  Buddy is a jerk, but there's nothing wrong with being a tradesman.  

 I found it highly suspect that Duff did something so stupid just at the point when his lead was starting to look insurmountable.  He even bragged the challenge was about the presentation not the cake.  Uh no, I didn't hear that in the brief.  I think it's pretty obvious he was being the good shill and intentionally whiffed it. And did they drop the ridiculous pretense of them picking the challenges?   I don't recall hearing weird voiceover guy mentioning during the Magic Castle intro. 

 I had to laugh at the judges sitting in the car in the first challenge.  Looked like they were ready for a fast getaway in case one of them melted down.  

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, lilly6 said:

I think Buddy is an ass.  He's a tradesman while Duff is an artist. 

To be fair, Buddy is a tradesman and there's nothing wrong with that, but he's also more than a tradesman.  He's a true baker.  No one can argue with his baking technique.  Where he lacks is in creativity and artistic flair.  I think Duff is more of an artistic snob to be honest.  And I don't find that attractive.  Then again I don't find Buddy's dick swinging braggadocio very attractive either.

29 minutes ago, Maverick said:

 I found it highly suspect that Duff did something so stupid just at the point when his lead was starting to look insurmountable.  He even bragged the challenge was about the presentation not the cake.  Uh no, I didn't hear that in the brief.  I think it's pretty obvious he was being the good shill and intentionally whiffed it. And did they drop the ridiculous pretense of them picking the challenges?   I don't recall hearing weird voiceover guy mentioning during the Magic Castle intro.  

I think I heard that Buddy picked this last challenge.  Not sure, though.  I don't know if I believe Duff intentionally blew it but it does seem contrived that they would be tied at this point.  It reminds me of every "Hell's Kitchen" I've ever watched.  "Shock, surprise", they're tied at the last minute and the final challenge will break the tie!  I think maybe Buddy's scores were inflated to produce a tie but that Buddy would have won the challenge anyway, just by not as much, so messing with the scores wouldn't affect the final outcome either way.

[luvthepros]

1 hour ago, lilly6 said:

I think Buddy is an ass.  He's a tradesman while Duff is an artist. 

Is there something wrong with being a tradesman? Buddy doesn't hide what his roots are. He is a baker and yes, he gets both hands into the batter. Isn't that what bakers do?