Current sectionArt & CultureShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeAn empire built on crumbs: Israeli-born pastry chef Ron Ben-Israel. Credit: Ohad KabIn Ron Ben-Israel's cake empire for New York's elite, every confection is a masterpiece, and every masterpiece is completely edible. 'In recent years, we have increasingly been asked to sign nondisclosure agreements, and are forbidden from saying whom the cake is being made for'08:48 PM • June 01 2026 IDTAnyone who has seen "The Devil Wears Prada 2" could hardly miss the ball scene, with its centerpiece: a towering, multilayered cake that looked less like dessert than a lavish work of art. The man behind this confectionary feat was Israeli-born cake designer Ron Ben-Israel, who has spent decades supplying New York's elite with sculptural cakes adorned with sugar flowers, gold accents and unapologetic grandeur.In the NewsNew York's Cake King Hasn't Forgotten His Israeli Roots'I Read Every Word She Ever Wrote': Alan Berliner on Making His Film 'BENITA''You Culturally Appropriate a Lot. You Also Took Genocide – We Did It First!'Defying War, Boycott and Threats of Censorship, Docaviv 2026 to Open in Tel AvivIn Tel Aviv, an Exhibition Turns Israel's 'Enemies of the State' Into ArtRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIIsrael Orders Unprecedented Seizure of Religious Site From Palestinian AuthorityIsrael 2026 Election Poll Tracker: The Latest ProjectionsWho Built the Biblical-era Fortresses in the Deserts of Israel and Jordan?UN Report Accuses Israeli Forces of Rape, Sexual Abuse of Palestinian DetaineesNot Lapid or Bennett: Could This Former IDF Chief Be Israel's Next Leader?Pentagon Leaks Signal U.S. Effort to Blame Israel for Risks of Renewed Iran War