Dessert Designs

Introduction / Overview

For decades, when Middle Tennessee residents think of custom cakes, particularly for milestone events like weddings, one name consistently rises to the top: Dessert Designs. Established by the legendary baker, Leland Riggan, this Nashville institution has solidified its reputation as a monumental fixture in the local wedding and special occasion industry. Their mission is simple yet profound: to produce custom cakes that are not only stunning works of art but also absolutely delicious, leaving clients and their guests "absolutely speechless."

Dessert Designs operates with a professional, detail-oriented approach, making the process—from the initial tasting to the final delivery—a dream for Tennessee couples and event planners. While they are renowned as a premier wedding bakery, their full menu of cakes, pies, and other treats ensures that they are the go-to source for every celebration, whether it’s a quick-order birthday cake or a complex, multi-tiered wedding centerpiece. Customers consistently rave about the attention to excellence and the quality of their ingredients, proving that this artisan bakery has maintained its high standards across generations of happy customers in the Nashville area.

Location and Accessibility

Dessert Designs is conveniently situated in the West Nashville area, nestled within the charming Hillwood neighborhood, making it a central and easy-to-reach location for clients across Davidson County and beyond.

Address:

850 Hillwood Blvd #1, Nashville, TN 37209, USA

Accessibility and Parking:

The location is set in a subtle commercial space that provides ample convenience for customers. Crucially for anyone visiting, the bakery offers a free parking lot, eliminating the stress of finding street parking. Furthermore, the establishment is committed to accessibility, featuring both a wheelchair accessible entrance and a dedicated wheelchair accessible car park, ensuring all members of the Tennessee community can visit with ease.

Contact Information

To schedule a tasting, discuss a custom design, or place an order, you can contact the team at Dessert Designs using the following information:

Address: 850 Hillwood Blvd #1, Nashville, TN 37209, USA

Phone: (615) 354-9555

Services Offered

Dessert Designs provides a comprehensive range of services, specializing in custom, high-end baked goods for all occasions, along with convenient ordering options for everyday enjoyment:

• Custom Wedding Cakes: Specializing in multi-tiered, custom-designed wedding cakes, engagement party cakes, and bridal shower cakes, available for delivery across Nashville and surrounding cities including Franklin, Brentwood, and Hendersonville.
• Consultations and Tastings: Clients are welcomed to schedule appointments to view designs and sample cake flavors for their special events.
• Quick Made-to-Order Cakes: A selection of their most popular flavors available for quick order, typically requiring a two-business-day notice for pickup.
• Full Dessert Menu: Offering a wide array of non-cake desserts, including Plain and Chocolate Cheesecakes, Peanut Butter Pie, Shortbread Cookies, Papas Brownies, and various pies (Pumpkin Pie, Pecan Pie).
• Shipping Services: Bundt cakes (such as the Caramel Bundt Cake and Hallelujah Bundt Cake) can be shipped throughout the continental U.S. with short delivery times to ensure freshness.
• Convenient Ordering: Offering multiple service options including in-store pickup, takeout, delivery, and on-site services (setup, delivery) for larger events.
• Payment Flexibility: Accepting various payment methods including checks, credit cards, debit cards, and NFC mobile payments.

Features / Highlights

The bakery’s success is built upon several distinctive features that set them apart as a leader in the Middle Tennessee dessert industry:

• Iconic Cake Flavors: Dessert Designs is famous for several highly praised, signature cake flavors. These include the legendary Caramel Cake, the unique "Firefly" Cake (a blend of Chocolate Truffle Cake and Sour Cream Pound Cake with caramel icing), the rich Hallelujah! Cake (Sour Cream Pound Cake marbled with Chocolate Truffle Cake), and their widely-loved Strawberry Cake.
• Extensive Cake Menu: Beyond the fan favorites, they offer a vast range of cake flavors to suit any palate, including Almond Amaretto Cake, Red Velvet Cake, Carrot Cake, Lemon Cake, Devil's Food Cake, Italian Cream Cake, German Chocolate Cake, Vanilla Bean Cake, and the rich, flourless Chocolate Truffle Cake.
• Commitment to Wedding Excellence: As a monumental fixture in the local wedding industry, the team, often featuring Leland Riggan and her team, is noted for being "professional, detail-oriented, and incredibly talented," ensuring a wedding cake that is both a beautiful centerpiece and a delicious memory.
• Versatility of Offerings: While known for their cakes, they maintain a comprehensive dessert menu, offering a variety of treats perfect for any small gathering, holiday, or simple indulgence.
• Gluten-Free Options: Dessert Designs is dedicated to inclusivity, confirming that they offer gluten-free cake options, most notably a gluten-free Chocolate Truffle Cake, to ensure all guests can enjoy their delicious creations.

What is Worth Choosing

For any customer in Tennessee, whether celebrating a lifetime commitment or just a Tuesday, the single item most worth choosing from Dessert Designs is their signature Caramel Cake. It is consistently highlighted in reviews and acknowledged by the bakery itself as their "famous" offering. Customers, even those whose wedding cake was a different flavor, often point to the Caramel Cake as a "must try," demonstrating its status as an undeniable local favorite. It represents the rich, old-fashioned quality and attention to detail that the bakery is known for.

However, for those planning a large event, particularly a wedding, choosing Dessert Designs for the entire service is highly advisable. Their established reputation for delivering stunning, architecturally sound, and flawlessly delicious wedding cakes is unmatched. The ability to offer a variety of flavors across tiers—such as alternating layers of Vanilla Bean Cake with caramel frosting and the famous Firefly Cake—ensures every guest finds something they love. Past clients have testified that the cake tasting was the "best day of the whole event" and that the final product was the "best cake" they had ever tasted, making the investment well worth it for a truly memorable Tennessee celebration.