How Much Cake?

lachattefatale

We're getting our cake from an amazing bakery and I just got their quote. I'm about to call them for more details, but I wanted some input first.

If the cake comes from a bakery that usually has long lines because their cake is that good, and it's the only dessert at our reception, and we have a lot of guests with big appetites, what size pieces should we serve? Wedding slices are usually 1*2, whereas party slices are usually 2*2.

Also, how big a deal is it to serve a slightly larger slice of 2-layer sheet cake from the same bakery (so same quality and flavor) along with the smaller slices of the 3-layer round cakes? I figure an inch longer (so 2*2 if we're serving 1*2 or 2*3 if we're serving 2*2) will approximately make up the volume of dessert, but the proportion of cake to icing and filling might be different, and I'm not sure it would actually save me money with this particular bakery.

ILoveBeachMusic

Are the cake pieces being served at the table or being put on a banquet table for people to get as they want it? If they are being served at the table I would go with the larger pieces of sheet cakes. If guests can get their cake themselves, I wouldn't worry about larger pieces since some people would want smaller pieces anyway. DD and SIL had cake out on a banquet table. They had three different cake flavors. People could choose what they wanted - some people ate more than one piece which was fine because we planned for that. The cake was so good!!!

lachattefatale

Good question. I did talk to my caterer about cutting and serving the cake, but we didn't really discuss what would happen to the plated slices. Dinner's a buffet, so I'd imagine pieces will get set back out on the cake table or the buffet counter. I guess I'll call the caterer before I call the bakery.

SP29

I think size is up to you. I love all dessert, so I'd be more than happy to eat a larger slice , but I don't think you are being a bad host for serving a smaller piece. 

Likewise, as long as the cake is of the same flavour and quality, it is perfectly fine to have a smaller decorated tiered round cake for display and cutting and then have a large sheet cake in the back that is cut up and served. Talk with your baker and see what works out best for you price wise. The sheet cake is usually cheaper, as it is that- a large rectangle, minimal decoration. 

MesmrEwe

All guests should get the SAME portion of cake!  No guest should be getting a smaller slice than others - it reflects INCREDIBLY poorly on you as a host and oftentimes when the geometry is done, the difference in cost is minimal compared to the side-eye (yes, nothing worse than being a cake lover and while the hater next to you gets a four-layer filled slice of cake you're given less than a half portion of unfilled from an aluminum pan kiddie cake instead)...  As long as the portion of cake/fillings/frosting is the same for ALL guests, it's perfectly fine to have the smaller photo-op cake with equally matched cakes for the serving in the back, but it is never o.k. to give some guests one portion and other guests another portion. You wouldn't give some guests a 4oz. steak and others 12oz., you shouldn't do it for cake either.

Talk to your baker to make sure all portions of slices are the same for all guests.  At the end of the day, if the cake is delish, it will get eaten.  I've never been to a wedding with great cake that had any leftover!

lachattefatale

Thanks for the input, guys. I think we're going to just have a massive cake display table with a three-tier round cake and a few individual 9" round cakes on cake stands. As it turns out, since this bakery mostly does 9" cakes to serve in their cafe, those are slightly discounted compared to their per-serving price on other cake sizes. And also fiance liked the idea of lots of cakes on pedestals and now he wants to know if having ice cream with cake is ever a thing at weddings. I told him I'd never seen it, but that it can be our thing at our wedding.

MesmrEwe

lachattefatale said:

Thanks for the input, guys. I think we're going to just have a massive cake display table with a three-tier round cake and a few individual 9" round cakes on cake stands. As it turns out, since this bakery mostly does 9" cakes to serve in their cafe, those are slightly discounted compared to their per-serving price on other cake sizes. And also fiance liked the idea of lots of cakes on pedestals and now he wants to know if having ice cream with cake is ever a thing at weddings. I told him I'd never seen it, but that it can be our thing at our wedding.

We did the individual icecream cups at our wedding in addition to cake.  They were a hit!  (DH's family always had ice cream at family gatherings so it was working a family tradition from his side into the day)...

Jen4948

lachattefatale said:

Thanks for the input, guys. I think we're going to just have a massive cake display table with a three-tier round cake and a few individual 9" round cakes on cake stands. As it turns out, since this bakery mostly does 9" cakes to serve in their cafe, those are slightly discounted compared to their per-serving price on other cake sizes. And also fiance liked the idea of lots of cakes on pedestals and now he wants to know if having ice cream with cake is ever a thing at weddings. I told him I'd never seen it, but that it can be our thing at our wedding.

If there's some way of keeping the ice cream cold enough until it's served, it can certainly be done.  

If your FI is talking about an ice cream cake, yum! But it probably wouldn't be practical to have the cake out on display for a prolonged period of time before cutting it.

hyechica81

sheet cakes from bakeries can get just as expensive as  regular tiered cake we are talking like 50.00-80.00 for a sheet cake from a regular bakery and around 15-30.00 a sheet cake from like a costoco, sams or grocery store. 

tiered cakes done in buttercream filled with buttercream or a simple filling like mousse and simple designs using a piping bag will cost you less around 1-3.00 a serving where as doing a cake with an elaborate filling covered in fondant with sugar flowers or gumpaste flowers will cost you around 4.00 and up a serving 

MesmrEwe

hyechica81 said:

sheet cakes from bakeries can get just as expensive as  regular tiered cake we are talking like 50.00-80.00 for a sheet cake from a regular bakery and around 15-30.00 a sheet cake from like a costoco, sams or grocery store. 

tiered cakes done in buttercream filled with buttercream or a simple filling like mousse and simple designs using a piping bag will cost you less around 1-3.00 a serving where as doing a cake with an elaborate filling covered in fondant with sugar flowers or gumpaste flowers will cost you around 4.00 and up a serving 

This truly depends on the area and the bakery, as well as the bakery's definition of "sheet cake" there are bakeries here that charge $100+ for a 1" aluminum pan "sheet cake" - the prices you're quoting are far lower than what even our local Sam's club charges for an unfilled half-sheet.  This is an international board and prices vary by the area and can give unrealistic expectations when $1-$3/servings are quoted when in reality Walmart isn't even that cheap!

OurWildKingdom

hyechica81 said:

sheet cakes from bakeries can get just as expensive as  regular tiered cake we are talking like 50.00-80.00 for a sheet cake from a regular bakery and around 15-30.00 a sheet cake from like a costoco, sams or grocery store. 

tiered cakes done in buttercream filled with buttercream or a simple filling like mousse and simple designs using a piping bag will cost you less around 1-3.00 a serving where as doing a cake with an elaborate filling covered in fondant with sugar flowers or gumpaste flowers will cost you around 4.00 and up a serving 

Around here, a full sheet cake is in the $40-$50 range from the grocery store. More for special requests.