Final flour fight: The results of the Great Brussels Charity Bake Off 2016 are…

The long table was literally heaving with show-stopping cakes as Brussels’ best bakers waited to be crowned in the charity contest. Monday night’s gathering at legal firm Linklaters welcomed hundreds of people to discover the results and join in the cake feast.

As the judges digested and deliberated, a long line formed to view the 18 colourful, decorated entries. They were divided into three categories: music of the 70s, 80s and 90s with the added challenge for teams of having to come up with a musical pun. From reggae and rock, to girl and boy bands, teams from Belgium’s international community divulged their musical preferences and showed off their inimitable skills with rolled icing and frosting.

Organised by Brussels New Generation, the British Chamber of Commerce’s young networking wing, president Amélie Coulet welcomed everyone to the evening and thanked all the bakers for their efforts. Judges were Graeme Taylor, quarter-finalist of BBC Masterchef UK 2012, and Vanessa Ducheyne, owner of Brussels bakery Lilicup. Before announcing the results, Taylor confessed that their most difficult task had been to taste all the entries with equal appetite, especially after cake number 15. Despite the surfeit of sugar and calories, the pair announced the following results:

70s music: winner Spice Up Your Life; runner up Baking to the Future

80s music: winner David Brownie's Rise and Fall of the Sugar Star Dust; runner up Cake That & Tarty

90s music:  winner St Paul’s School Bakers; runner up H+Kakes Strategies

Following whoops of joy from the winners and the presentation of prizes, the serious business of tasting began. After the battle of the batter it was the fight of the fork as all and one descended on the bakes in carb-fuelled fury.

The crumb carnage was for a good cause. Brussels non-profit Community Help Service (CHS) benefitted from the event as its English-language helpline is entirely reliant on donations and fundraising. Chair Geoff Brown told the Bulletin: “I think the turnout has been good. Events like this are really fantastic from our point of view.”

CHS combines the free and confidential 24-hour helpline with a mental health centre, offering a full range of services. In 2015 it moved to new premises in Avenue des Phalènes, off Avenue Franklin Roosevelt. “We have a whole house now, so it’s a nice place for people to come. Sometimes they’re not comfortable coming to these kinds of session in the first place, so it’s a better experience for them and it’s also a nice place for the therapists to work,” said Brown.