Has anyone had a good experience with an ice cream bar?

Caitlin192

FI and I aren't cake people and we really wanted to do a sundae bar for dessert. We thought it would be really easy to find someone but there are only two services available. One hasn't gotten back to me and the other is Baskin Robbins catering. With BR, we get 8 flavors, a full toppings bar, and a server for just over $800 at the most. Price is per person and that quote was for everyone on our list. 

I feel like that's comparable to a cake price but I'm still not completely sold. I thought there would be more choices available but now I'm wondering if we should just do cupcakes or something. 

dokchampa

The reception, and food, are for your guests. You might not like cake but your guests might. Not everyone likes ice cream. I would do it as an added bit to your dessert.

Wiscisbliss

As long as you offer something sweet for dessert you're doing just fine.  

Like dokchampa said, not everyone likes ice cream, but not everyone likes cake either (or pie or brownies, or snickerdoodles).  So no matter what you do you won't please everyone.  ice cream will make most people happy.  Enjoy the sundaes!

Caitlin192

I have to disagree with the food being for the guests. I have to eat it too, and I have to pay for it. Of course we'll make accommodations for guests who need a vegetarian option or a special dietary need, but if they don't like seafood pasta or steak, then they're out of luck for the night. Same with ice cream. I rarely eat cake, and I don't remember the last time I had more than a bite of wedding cake because it's usually stale-ish and really overly sweet. I don't think it's on me to try to please everyone with dessert, appetizers, or dinner. 

MyNameIsNot

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_has-anyone-had-a-good-experience-with-an-ice-cream-bar?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:5Discussion:a03ade00-bd13-42e5-97f4-2d2449c0fa98Post:e3cc4305-474e-4f83-a0c0-d1f576e34544">Re: Has anyone had a good experience with an ice cream bar?</a>:
[QUOTE]I<strong> have to disagree with the food being for the guests</strong>. I have to eat it too, and I have to pay for it. Of course we'll make accommodations for guests who need a vegetarian option or a special dietary need, but if they don't like seafood pasta or steak, then they're out of luck for the night. Same with ice cream. I rarely eat cake, and I don't remember the last time I had more than a bite of wedding cake because it's usually stale-ish and really overly sweet. I don't think it's on me to try to please everyone with dessert, appetizers, or dinner. 
Posted by Caitlin192[/QUOTE]

<div>Then you don't understand the point of the reception.  The reception is your opportunity to recieve your guests and to thank them for coming to witness your ceremony.</div><div>
</div><div>But honestly, ice cream is a crowd pleaser.  That would be more of an issue if you were thinking of serving something less popular, like peppermint flan.  The issue with ice cream is less that your guests won't like it and more that it melts into a sticky, gross mess long before the majority of guests get to the ice cream bar.  You don't have to do a cake, but I would really stay away from anything that can't be left at room temperature for long.  I would look into cupcakes, assorted pastries, brownies, pies, cookies or something else along the assorted dessert line.  </div>

NOLAbridealmost

Ice cream is a delicious alternative to cake that should be a relatively big crowd pleaser.   You're fine offering that in lieu of cake...although as a whole you really need an attitude adjustment. 

Caitlin192

I apologize if I didn't explain myself correctly. While of course I recognize that my guests are an important part of the day and the reception is a thank you and a recognition for them being a part of our new life together, I can't worry about pleasing everyone without driving myself crazy. We are paying for the majority of the wedding, and we just don't have it in the budget to serve two desserts for 175 people. Yes, the reception is for the guests, and I want everyone to have a great time and be happy with what they're served, but the food is never the most important part of the weddings and hardly memorable unless it's really good or really bad.

The most important thing to my FI and I is to be present at our reception and to make the most of our time with our family and friends. To that end, we bought an extra hour at the venue, we're doing a first look and hopefully we can get our formals done before the ceremony so we can join our guests for cocktails. We're not doing a bouquet, garter, or cake cutting. We just want to have the most fun as we can. That way no one has to stop dancing. If we did ice cream, it would be for a two hours set up in the last two hours of the ceremony and the company would send servers, set up, and break down. That way people could go at their leisure. 

Sue-n-Kevin

We had a cake, and an ice cream sundae bar later in the evening as a "late night snack" surprise. 

It sounds as though you think it has to be one or the other. You can have both if you want and still keep the costs down. You don't say anything about the catering or venue for your reception, or size of guest list so it's hard to personalize my advice, but here's what I'd do. 

While you may not like cake, I personally have always loved wedding cake. You can get a small "token" cake to cut for pics (if you want), and in the kitchen your caterer can cut sheet cakes from Costco. Their sheet cakes serve 48 people and are $17 each locally. You can get a mousse filling between the layers and I find their cakes particularly tasty. If you don't have a Costco membership, check with family members or friends, or maybe Sam's Club has something comparable.

The ice cream option can be served a bit later than the cake/dessert, maybe an hour or two. We had 4 half gallons of ice cream, one of them raspberry sorbet. There were multiple toppings to sprinkle including fresh strawberry sauce, and 3 different types of sauces. This was arranged by our caterer and I think cost maybe $1 per person. They provided one of the wait staff for scooping and guests put their own toppings on it.

You could also check with different rental companies in your area. I just rented a bunch of stuff for my daughter's grad party. The rental company we used had soft serve ice cream machines and the ingredients to make it and it was $220. This might be another option to consider. You may want to hire a server to assist. They also had ice cream carts with umbrellas to rent that you buy the ice cream bars for ($110). You may want to ask on your local wedding board for rental companies.

NOLAbridealmost

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_has-anyone-had-a-good-experience-with-an-ice-cream-bar?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:5Discussion:a03ade00-bd13-42e5-97f4-2d2449c0fa98Post:86353648-bc50-4c32-9b1c-556922d87daf">Re: Has anyone had a good experience with an ice cream bar?</a>:
[QUOTE]I apologize if I didn't explain myself correctly. While of course I recognize that my guests are an important part of the day and the reception is a thank you and a recognition for them being a part of our new life together, I can't worry about pleasing everyone without driving myself crazy. We are paying for the majority of the wedding, and we just don't have it in the budget to serve two desserts for 175 people. Yes, the reception is for the guests, and I want everyone to have a great time and be happy with what they're served, but the food is never the most important part of the weddings and hardly memorable unless it's really good or really bad. The most important thing to my FI and I is to be present at our reception and to make the most of our time with our family and friends. To that end, we bought an extra hour at the venue, we're doing a first look and hopefully we can get our formals done before the ceremony so we can join our guests for cocktails. We're not doing a bouquet, garter, or cake cutting. We just want to have the most fun as we can. That way no one has to stop dancing. If we did ice cream, it would be for a two hours set up in the last two hours of the ceremony and the company would send servers, set up, and break down. That way people could go at their leisure. 
Posted by Caitlin192[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>I apologize for my earlier statement about your attitude.   I think you're fine doing ice cream instead of cake.  =) Yummy!

</div>

laurenandbill3

A friend of mine had coldstone ice cream brought in. I am not sure if that is an option by you but it was a huge crowd pleaser and no one seemed to have any problems with the messiness factor. They also had cupcakes if you didn't want ice cream.

RebeccaB88

My cousin did an ice cream sundae bar for her reception, and it was a medium hit.  There were a lot of people who were honestly disappointed that there wasn't any cake - myself included.  Some people ate the ice cream anyway, but some didn't.  She did have trays of bite sized baked goods as well - whoopie pies, brownies, bars, etc.  She went with the ice cream because SHE doesn't like cake, but didn't take into account that not all her guests felt the same way she did.  And, the guests noticed. 

Logistically, the caterer handled the ice cream bar. They froze big industrial-sized tubs of ice cream (they only had vanilla) in blocks of ice, and staff scooped it.  They had tons of toppings. It was good...but it wasn't cake.

GoodLuckBear14

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_has-anyone-had-a-good-experience-with-an-ice-cream-bar?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:5Discussion:a03ade00-bd13-42e5-97f4-2d2449c0fa98Post:00fc9cde-3b95-4c30-bebe-85def4f1307d">Re:Has anyone had a good experience with an ice cream bar?</a>:
[QUOTE]Well, actually, the food WAS the most important thing at our wedding reception, so I may not be the best person to advise you. I think if you do just ice cream, some will be disappointed, but you seem okay with that so if you want it, go for it. However, I do have to say that 800 seems like way more than you can get cake for. We had fabulous cake at our wedding for much much less. It was very tasty and not at all stale and we got 4 flavors, with enough for 120 guests to each have 2 pieces for around 300 dollars. If you shop local grocery stores and mom and pop bakeries, you'll get much better prices than bakeries that "specialize" in wedding cakes. And in my experience they taste better too. I say all this not to discourage you from the ice cream bar, but just to let you know that price may not be as comparable as you think.
Posted by StageManager14[/QUOTE]

Ditto Stage.

And in case youa re going to bring up the difference in prices by geography, we were married in Philly and got a cake for $250 that was delicious and could have fed 200 guests with a couple slices each.  To say we had some cake left over is the understatement of the year.

TheSlowskys

I think its clear from you posts that you are doing your best to please your guests, but you are absolutely right, you cannot please everyone. Ice cream is a crowd pleaser, and I think some people might be bummed at no cake, but on the same token, I am sure some people would not have even bothered to eat your cake.  I wouldn't miss the cake at all - I've only been blown away by 1 wedding cake in my life. The rest... meh.

I am sure you will discuss with your vendor, but do make sure they have some way of keeping the ice cream cold.  Coldstone is a good idea as PP mentioned (and they usually offer cake as a mix in). Your local board may also have some recommendations. If there's a pinkberry near you I think they do catering as well.

Lolagirl2012

We went to a wedding that was a great experience. They hired a locally owned ice-cream shop to come in and dish out their specialty sundae (a tommy turtle which is hot fudge, hot caramel and pecans over vanilla ice-cream), so something fairly simple. The staff assembled the sundaes for us in an assembly line and we could omit items if we wanted and not get sundae toppings on our nice clothes. The bride was a friend, who also just didn't like cake and she said it was very cost effective.

There was not a single person at our table who complained We loved it!

dixfam4

I've been doing weddings and events for yrs and people always look forward to the cake!  If you'd rather, do cupcakes, some mini desserts? Afterall...  It is your day... I just know that I've been to so many from beginning to end, even went shopping with the bride and went to her rehearsal, i've seen so many and been to so many, and people always... always run to the cake, ooh & ahh over it and can't wait to take pictures of your cutting it!

Congrats and good luck on whatever you choose...