A disgusted dad has slammed an Australian supermarket after bakers allegedly ruined his son’s frog-themed birthday cake with their ‘pathetic’ decorating skills.
In preparation for his son Mason’s third birthday, Shane Hallford, 43, claims to have forked out $49 on a special birthday cake from his local Woolworths store in Tamworth, New South Wales, on November 11.
The dad-of-two claims his request for a frog-themed birthday cake was confirmed by the store three days prior to picking it up – but the policeman and his wife Amy, 29, were both horrified to discover that their son’s cake looked ‘nothing’ like what they ordered.
‘They told me it could be done, no worries at all. He wrote down everything I said and said it would be ready by Sunday morning. I was very excited to see it,’ Mr Hallford said.
A disgusted dad has slammed an Australian supermarket after bakers allegedly ruined his son’s frog-themed birthday cake with their ‘pathetic’ decorating skills
In preparation for his son Mason’s (middle) third birthday, Shane Hallford, 43, (left) claims to have forked out $49 on a special birthday cake from his local Woolworths
‘I went down to pick it up on the morning of Mason’s birthday party. I was in a rush getting extra supplies and didn’t actually check it at the store because it was in a huge box,’ he added.
‘I just assumed it would be fine. When I got home, I opened it up with my wife and we were both mortified.’
Instead of a colourful number three and a big green frog decoration they had envisioned, the ‘mortified’ parents were met with a ‘pathetic’ smiley face and small ‘three’ both written in green icing.
The dad-of-two claims his request for a frog-themed birthday cake was confirmed by the store three days prior to picking it up
‘Amy was very upset, as our guests were arriving in a couple of hours. We thought we would have to try and bake something else,’ he said.
‘I decided to just ring Woolworths to see if they could fix it. I explained the situation but was told that they didn’t “decorate” cakes.’
Mr Hallford explained that because the supermarket has lovely looking pre-made cakes he thought they would do a good job.
‘They told me it could be done, no worries at all. He wrote down everything I said and said it would be ready by Sunday morning. I was very excited to see it,’ Mr Hallford said
‘They do this every day for a living. Surely, they could have done something better than this,’ he said.
Shane said the ‘pathetic’ cake forced his family to seek help from another cake decorator who thankfully ‘saved’ his son’s birthday cake just twenty minutes before guests arrived.
And despite the initial ‘disaster’, Shane said his son Mason still had a great birthday party and enjoyed the ‘repaired’ version of the cake which featured a frog beside water.
Shane said the ‘pathetic’ cake forced his family to seek help from another cake decorator who thankfully ‘saved’ his son’s birthday cake just twenty minutes before his guests arrived
‘Amy was very upset, as our guests were arriving in a couple of hours. We thought we would have to try and bake something else,’ he said
Shane’s angry post has since gone viral, racking up thousands of likes and shares on social media.
‘A cake is an integral part of any child’s birthday party. You want a nice one, so you’re able to remember it and take photos,’ he said.
‘I was most disappointed with just the lack of effort. It seemed like they didn’t even care.
‘It was a disgrace. I will never be buying cakes from Woolworths again.’
Woolworths told FEMAIL that staff have since reached out the family and provided them with a gift card.
‘We’re sorry to have disappointed the customer with our cake decorating, particularly on such a special day for the family,’ the company said in a statement.
‘We’ve been in contact with the customer to apologise and provided them with a $50 Gift Card.’