Neighborhood Eats: Lloyd's Carrot Cake in Riverdale, Bronx

ByEyewitness News WABC logo
Monday, February 3, 2025
Neighborhood Eats: Lloyd's Carrot Cake in the Bronx
For this Neighborhood Eats, Eyewitness News sits down with Lilka Adams, owner of Lloyd's Carrot Cake, who cranks out hundreds of cakes every day.

RIVERDALE, Bronx (WABC) -- Neighborhood Eats headed to the Bronx for some carrot cake on national carrot cake day.

You may have heard of Lloyd's Carrot Cake, but Eyewitness News got to sit down with the woman carrying on her parents' legacy, and cranking out hundreds of cakes every day for which people travel the globe.

"Lloyd's started with my dad, Lloyd Adams. He was originally from the United States Virgin Islands. Saint Thomas, where he got a recipe from his mom. And when he came here at the age of nine, initially, you know, he got into basketball," said Lilka Adams, Lloyd's Carrot Cake, owner.

Once he got injured, his path took him towards baking.

"He would bake cakes for his friends and they would come over and watch the Knicks games because he was the only one with cable. And at that time, you know, they'd be like, Lloyd, this is some good cake. You should really start a business with this," she said.

In 1986, Lloyd opened up his own brick-and-mortar store in the Riverdale section.

"Initially my dad had started this business to just bake for restaurants and diners and coffee shops," Lilka said. "But as he was baking, so many people would just pass by and be like, What is that smell? Like, can I buy a piece of that?"

As he was baking, so many people would just pass by and be like, What is that smell? Like, can I buy a piece of that?
Lilka Adams, Lloyd's Carrot Cake, owner

She says her dad took pride in people loving his cake.

"My dad was just looking to, you know, provide great character for people to enjoy. And, you know, the best part for him was just like, you know, people biting into a slice and just saying, wow, who made this carrot cake?" Lilka said.

She showed Eyewitness News how they make their famous cake.

"Here this is where we, you know, prepare the batter for our cake," Lilka said. "Now we're going to put in some carrots. And then after that, we put in some spices, and then we let it mix for a while. And then you have our liquid gold."

To get enough cakes made for the day, there is a man whose only job is to cut up carrots.

"He comes in every evening and cuts about 300 to maybe 400 carrots. This is on a regular day for us to use the next day," she said.

They have to get the consistency of the batter just right.

"Carrot cake is a very involved product, right? So just making the batter itself is about maybe a 15 to 20-minute process," Lilka said. "If we're talking about our large carrot cakes, which is our 10-inch cake, you know, those take about an hour and 40 minutes to make."

Patience is key.

"I'm like, Listen, man, you can't have everything in a New York minute because these things take time," she said.

"What we're going to do is we're going to put our homemade cream cheese frosting on our cake, which is also made in house from scratch with real cream cheese. And I'm going to just take a few scoops of this and put it on top of our cake and then start frosting," Lilka said. "Some people have mentioned that they had it at an office party or somebody brought it to work and they left work to come get the cake because it was so good again."

Customers agree that it's the best.

"The best carrot cake around in going find nothing better. I travel a whole hour, I use gas, I pay tolls to come to get some cake. That's some good cake," said Damon Harris, a customer. "You do what you do for the people you love."

The best carrot cake around in going find nothing better. I travel a whole hour, I use gas, I pay tolls to come to get some cake. That's some good cake.
Damon Harris, customer

"Carrot cake is our premiere item. However, we do a great red velvet cake. We also have German chocolate cake, strawberry, coconut, pineapple, coconut. We have a delicious chocolate layer cake," Lilka said.

They never did a big marketing push, but the cake spoke for itself and it became a nationwide and international sensation.

"Just a great example of what small business can be if you can put the love and time into it," she said. "I just saw, you know, like all the time, like the blood, sweat, and tears that my mom and dad really put into this business. And, you know, this wasn't the case, they weren't looking for a big payout. You know, they just wanted to have something really, you know, you know, good in the community. They wanted to make a great cake."

Learn more about Lloyd's Carrot Cake HERE.

ALSO READ: Valla Table offers authentic taste of Thailand in Hell's Kitchen

This week's Neighborhood Eats takes you to a Hell's Kitchen eatery serving authentic, elevated Thai cuisine.

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