Little Banana: vegan wedding cake, appointment only

In Portland's wedding world, custom vegan cake can feel like something you only hear about through a planner, which is exactly why a tasting at Little Banana Bakery is worth booking. The studio makes five official vegan cake flavors plus vegan berry crumble bars, out of an appointment-only space you can't walk into off the sidewalk. Owner and pastry chef Amanda Durham Quijada started Little Banana in 2021 as a home-based business during early motherhood. She trained in pastry at Oregon Culinary Institute, studied sugar flowers under Maggie Austin, and has more than 20 years in catering. The site footer calls it a Pacific Northwest cake studio making wedding cakes to order in Portland and beyond, and it isn't a dedicated vegan bakery or a dedicated gluten-free bakery.

The current menu lists the vegan cake flavors in one line, Chocolate, Vanilla, Spice, Funfetti and Lemon, and that's the full set. Lemon Velvet, red velvet, carrot, German chocolate, berry chantilly, chocolate truffle and triple mousse are other cakes, and they aren't on the vegan list. Vegan berry crumble bars are $30 a dozen, with a two-dozen minimum, and panna cotta comes with GF and vegan options in seasonal flavors. Past those, anything on the menu marked "can be made gluten free" is a gluten-free note and says nothing about vegan.

There are no walk-ins, and the kitchen is domestically licensed. Tastings are by appointment at an office space the studio describes as inner Southeast Portland, or you can pick up a tasting box, and this guide doesn't list a street address. A cake tasting is $75 for four flavors and fillings, a dessert tasting is $75, and cake plus dessert is $125. Wedding cakes start at $500 and celebration cakes at $150, dessert tables start at $500 unless you're already getting a cake, and delivery and setup carry a distance fee. Inquiries go in by email, and the address for that is on the studio's website.

The studio describes gluten-free as a lifestyle offering, and it says so twice, since the kitchen isn't a dedicated facility. If a guest has celiac or a severe gluten allergy, the studio tells you to order from a dedicated gluten-free bakery, and this guide gives you the same advice.

If you want a vegan wedding cake in Portland, a studio with vegan chocolate, vanilla, spice, funfetti and lemon is a real option and an easy one to recommend. Book the tasting, pick one of the five vegan flavors, and add the berry crumble bars if you're doing a dessert table. Please don't go hunting for a home address, and when you describe the studio to friends, say it makes vegan cakes, since Amanda's menu is careful about exactly that.

The essentials are on the Little Banana Bakery page.