cakeage

Meanings

1. 1noununcountableinformal

   A charge a restaurant adds when customers bring their own cake to eat there.

   Grammar: Uncountable, so no plural and no 'a' before it: they charged us cakeage.

   Patterns

   • charge cakeage
   • a cakeage fee
   • pay cakeage

   The restaurant charges $15 cakeage if you bring your own birthday cake.

   We asked about cakeage before booking, because we wanted to bring a cake.

   Many places waive the cakeage fee if you also order dessert from the menu.

2. 2noununcountableinformal

   The practice or policy of letting diners bring their own cake for a fee.

   Grammar: Used like a service or policy noun, often after 'offer' or 'allow': they allow cakeage.

   Patterns

   • offer cakeage
   • a cakeage policy

   Not every restaurant offers cakeage, so it is worth calling ahead.

   Their cakeage policy is clearly printed at the bottom of the menu.

Common combinations

charge cakeage

Some restaurants charge cakeage of about ten dollars per cake.

a cakeage fee

The cakeage fee was added to the final bill.

waive the cakeage fee

They waived the cakeage fee because we ordered wine.

ask about cakeage

We asked about cakeage when we reserved the table.

bring your own cake

If you bring your own cake, expect a small charge.

Synonyms and how they differ

corkage

This is the model for cakeage: corkage is the fee for bringing your own wine, while cakeage is the fee for bringing your own cake.

cover charge

A cover charge is a general per-person entry fee, not specifically for bringing a cake.

Word family

corkage noun

A restaurant's charge for customers who bring their own wine; cakeage was formed by analogy with it.

Commonly confused: cakeage or cake? cakeage or corkage?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “cakeage”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words