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    Baking On Stage

    Cake Boss Buddy Valastro wants to make Houston cry like little cupcake babies

    Tyler Rudick
    Nov 10, 2011 | 10:42 am
    • Buddy Valastro with one of his creations
      Photo by Thomas Kosa
    • Inside Carlo's Bake Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey
      Photo courtesy of Carlo's

    How’s he do it? For 11 months of the year, celebrity baker Buddy Valastro is busy filming not one, but three different television shows — including the TLC mega-hit Cake Boss. As if that wasn’t enough, he’s also added a traveling theater show to his repertoire, visiting nearly 40 United States cities.

    The Cake Boss hits Houston on Friday night for show at Jones Hall as his frenzied run continues. Valastro took time out from his baking duties one morning to speak with CultureMap about the tour and how he’s officially “living the dream.”

    “Seriously . . . I always wanted a TV show about the bakery,” Valastro says. “This is a family business and, let me tell you, there’s a lot of great material going on all the time.”

    “It’ll definitely make you smile, maybe even cry — it depends," Valastro says.

    “Almost out of the blue, TLC approached me one day,” he recalls. “I rushed them a quick home video I’d made and, luckily, they loved it.”

    Set in Hoboken, N.J., Cake Boss premiered in the spring of 2009 and has enjoyed four popular seasons. Valastro and family will begin taping the fifth season this January. While the Cake Boss was relatively tight-lipped about the upcoming shows, he did reveal that he and his wife would be renewing their vows on a Bahamas cruise.

    The live tour started after Valastro was asked to give a motivational speech at a local New Jersey culinary college.

    “The school wanted me to do something onstage," he says, "so I came up with a fun and entertaining show that eventually premiered at the Count Basie Theater in Red Bank, New Jersey.

    “I was so nervous at first, but the show’s a well-oiled machine at this point. I love to play off the crowd — it keeps each show fresh and a little different from the next. It helps me stay in touch with our fans.”

    “I really want to people to be dancing in the aisles, to have a great time. I like to randomly pick people out of the audience and have them go head to head against each other in a cupcake competition. It’s funny to call kids up onstage too.”

    My own mother, who caught Valastro’s show earlier this month in Pennsylvania, noted that the baker was comically brutal to the adults — and incredibly kind to the kids.

    “I want to theater show to give a positive message, something that makes people want to follow their dreams," Valastro says. "It’s a great night, really. You can bring your entire family, even your mother-in-law.

    “It’ll definitely make you smile, maybe even cry — it depends." Valastro laughs.

    “You’ll have fun, guaranteed.”

    Buddy Valastro appears at Jones Hall Friday night at 7:30. Ticket are available online and at the theater box office.

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    series/good-eats-2011

    Toast of the Town

    Celebrate Houston's culinary stars at 2026 CultureMap Tastemaker  Awards

    CultureMap Staff
    Feb 9, 2026 | 5:18 pm
    2025 CultureMap Houston Tastemaker Awards
    Photo by Daniel Ortiz
    The Tastemaker Awards return on April 16.

    If you love food and drink, this one's for you. The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards return this spring to celebrate Houston's top restaurant and bar talent — and you can get first dibs on discounted tickets right now.

    Join us April 16 at Silver Street Studios for our annual tasting event and awards ceremony. You'll indulge in delicious bites from top chefs, sip signature drinks, and be there for the big reveal of our 2026 Houston winners.

    This year in Houston, we'll present awards for Restaurant of the Year, Chef of the Year, Bar of the Year, Rising Star Chef of the Year, Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year, Dessert Program of the Year, Coffee Shop of the Year, Best New Restaurant, and our wildcard category, Best Sandwich.

    Our panel of judges — including past Tastemaker winners and local industry experts — selects all nominees and winners, except for the Best New Restaurant winner, which will be determined by our savvy readers in a heated online tournament.

    Stay tuned for the unveiling of the 2026 Houston Tastemaker Awards nominees, then get to know them all in our special editorial series leading up to the event.

    The annual CultureMap Tastemaker Awards program is as big as Texas. Mark your calendars for our full event series taking place this spring:

    • Austin — April 9 at Distribution Hall
    • Houston — April 16 at Silver Street Studios
    • Fort Worth — April 30 at Social Space
    • Dallas — May 7 at Astoria Event Venue
    • San Antonio — May 14 at the Briscoe Museum

    Ready to toast the Tastemakers? A limited number of First Dibs tickets are on sale now at discounted rates of $65 for general admission and $99 for VIP (includes early access to the event, dedicated bar, and more perks).

    More delicious details are coming soon, but don't delay. Grab your First Dibs tickets for Houston — and all of our 2026 events — before they're gone.

    ---

    The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards ceremony is sponsored in Houston by Culinary Kahncepts, Shutto, NXT LVL EVENT, and more to be announced. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Southern Smoke Foundation.

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    news/restaurants-bars
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