A Cake of His Own
Groom's cakes have been showing up at wedding receptions for decades--I see a groom's cake at about one in every three weddings I photograph. If you do a little research you'll find the groom's cake started out as a southern tradition, but now the trend is catching on everywhere. Do you need one? No. But you might want to consider it!
Many times these days, the point of a groom's cake is to do something special for the groom on a day that might otherwise seem to be "all about the bride". The style and flavor of the cake can be decided entirely by the groom, or it can be a joint decision by the couple. Sometimes it's a surprise the bride plans for the groom.
Most of the groom's cakes I've photographed have a special meaning for the "man of the hour". I've seen plenty of college logos (especially the familiar Florida Gator), as well as cakes that pay tribute to the grooms' interests--hobbies, sports, music themes, pets. Some groom's cakes are meant as a practical joke, like the one pictured below where the groom, a University of Miami graduate, was presented with a Florida Gator cake. Many groom's cakes are simple flat cakes with personalized decorations and/or messages. Others are literally baked sculptures that seem almost a shame to cut up and eat!
It seems particularly appropriate to have a groom's cake if the two of you are at opposite ends of the flavor spectrum. The traditional version from years-gone-by was typically a fruit cake, but nowadays it's most likely to be chocolate. Still I've seen some surprising flavors and fillings underneath the decorated surfaces, many times it's the combination that's most likely to please the groom. And I think sometimes the bride and groom reserve the groom's cake flavor for something totally unexpected. And usually quite delightful.
Larry Bach, owner of Sprinkles Custom Cakes in Winter Park (sprinkles.com), says some years back, when no one would dare have anything but a white wedding cake, brides would choose to have a groom's cake simply so there could be an alternative flavor. Chocolate is still the number one choice, he says, but other flavors, such as Red Velvet, are quite popular, too.
In talking with Larry, I was surprised to hear one important reason brides might choose to have a groom's cake: budget. The way he explained it to me, the groom's cake typically costs considerably less than the main cake. So a budget-conscious bride who wants a particularly expensive wedding cake can have a smaller more affordable version if the less expensive groom's cake rounds out the total number of servings needed.
Larry believes the trend really caught on after the movie Steel Magnolias, which featured a groom's cake shaped like an armadillo. He admits he doesn't know the significance of that particular animal, but since the movie came out, Sprinkles has been asked to create dozens of armadillo cakes, one as recently as two weeks ago. Golf and fishing are also popular themes, along with cars, school logos and military insignia. You'll find pictures of some of Larry's favorite groom's cakes at the end of the blog.
As for the presentation of the groom's cake at the reception, I've sometimes seen it on the same table as the wedding cake (if the table is large enough, that is, because it can't be allowed to take attention away from the "star attraction"!) But most of the time, the groom's cake is set on a small table of its own, usually within close proximity of the wedding cake. If there's enough room in the reception hall, it can be displayed a good distance a way.
The groom's cake is usually cut soon after the wedding cake and most often by the groom, of course! There are several different ways to serve the groom's cake. Many times, it's cut and left on the serving table for guests to pick up at their leisure. Other times it's sliced then brought around on trays later in the evening. Sometimes it's served as a smaller piece, alongside the wedding cake and that can be a nice contrast. It's totally up to you! One idea that I found especially nice: servers placed equal numbers of wedding cake servings and groom's cake slices on each table, so the guests could try either or both. Interestingly enough, the longtime southern tradition is to package up slices of groom's cake for the guests to take home as a favor (as the old "wives tale" goes, a single woman who sleeps with a piece of groom's cake under her pillow will have a dream about her future husband). Some more practical couples choose to reserve the groom's cake ritual for either the rehearsal dinner or their post-wedding brunch.
Maybe the best thing about having a groom's cake at your reception is the fun, the humor, the element of surprise
it can inject into the proceedings. My friend Larry Bach told me a funny story as I was preparing to write this blog. A bride and groom came into Sprinkles to order their groom's cake. She was a graduate of UF, he was an FSU alumnus, so there were plenty of good-natured jabs as they ordered the famous Seminole Indian cake design, chocolate in flavor. Later, the bride called and asked Larry to make one of the cake layers orange and the other one blue. Since Larry is himself a Florida Gator, he was all too happy to oblige! Imagine the look on the face of the groom--and the delighted guests--as he cut the first slice and discovered the rival school's colors inside his cake!
--Doug
(The following images, courtesy of Larry Bach, Sprinkles Custom Cakes)
NEXT BLOG: Today my blog received a comment asking about the "Trash the Dress" trend--which is getting so much buzz, that it's now sometimes referred to by its initials TTD. Do you know anyone who's done it? Would you do it
yourself? Next blog, this Orlando wedding
photographer shares his thoughts on what's becoming a somewhat controversial trend.
Many times these days, the point of a groom's cake is to do something special for the groom on a day that might otherwise seem to be "all about the bride". The style and flavor of the cake can be decided entirely by the groom, or it can be a joint decision by the couple. Sometimes it's a surprise the bride plans for the groom. Most of the groom's cakes I've photographed have a special meaning for the "man of the hour". I've seen plenty of college logos (especially the familiar Florida Gator), as well as cakes that pay tribute to the grooms' interests--hobbies, sports, music themes, pets. Some groom's cakes are meant as a practical joke, like the one pictured below where the groom, a University of Miami graduate, was presented with a Florida Gator cake. Many groom's cakes are simple flat cakes with personalized decorations and/or messages. Others are literally baked sculptures that seem almost a shame to cut up and eat!
It seems particularly appropriate to have a groom's cake if the two of you are at opposite ends of the flavor spectrum. The traditional version from years-gone-by was typically a fruit cake, but nowadays it's most likely to be chocolate. Still I've seen some surprising flavors and fillings underneath the decorated surfaces, many times it's the combination that's most likely to please the groom. And I think sometimes the bride and groom reserve the groom's cake flavor for something totally unexpected. And usually quite delightful.
Larry Bach, owner of Sprinkles Custom Cakes in Winter Park (sprinkles.com), says some years back, when no one would dare have anything but a white wedding cake, brides would choose to have a groom's cake simply so there could be an alternative flavor. Chocolate is still the number one choice, he says, but other flavors, such as Red Velvet, are quite popular, too. In talking with Larry, I was surprised to hear one important reason brides might choose to have a groom's cake: budget. The way he explained it to me, the groom's cake typically costs considerably less than the main cake. So a budget-conscious bride who wants a particularly expensive wedding cake can have a smaller more affordable version if the less expensive groom's cake rounds out the total number of servings needed.
Larry believes the trend really caught on after the movie Steel Magnolias, which featured a groom's cake shaped like an armadillo. He admits he doesn't know the significance of that particular animal, but since the movie came out, Sprinkles has been asked to create dozens of armadillo cakes, one as recently as two weeks ago. Golf and fishing are also popular themes, along with cars, school logos and military insignia. You'll find pictures of some of Larry's favorite groom's cakes at the end of the blog.
As for the presentation of the groom's cake at the reception, I've sometimes seen it on the same table as the wedding cake (if the table is large enough, that is, because it can't be allowed to take attention away from the "star attraction"!) But most of the time, the groom's cake is set on a small table of its own, usually within close proximity of the wedding cake. If there's enough room in the reception hall, it can be displayed a good distance a way. The groom's cake is usually cut soon after the wedding cake and most often by the groom, of course! There are several different ways to serve the groom's cake. Many times, it's cut and left on the serving table for guests to pick up at their leisure. Other times it's sliced then brought around on trays later in the evening. Sometimes it's served as a smaller piece, alongside the wedding cake and that can be a nice contrast. It's totally up to you! One idea that I found especially nice: servers placed equal numbers of wedding cake servings and groom's cake slices on each table, so the guests could try either or both. Interestingly enough, the longtime southern tradition is to package up slices of groom's cake for the guests to take home as a favor (as the old "wives tale" goes, a single woman who sleeps with a piece of groom's cake under her pillow will have a dream about her future husband). Some more practical couples choose to reserve the groom's cake ritual for either the rehearsal dinner or their post-wedding brunch.
Maybe the best thing about having a groom's cake at your reception is the fun, the humor, the element of surprise
it can inject into the proceedings. My friend Larry Bach told me a funny story as I was preparing to write this blog. A bride and groom came into Sprinkles to order their groom's cake. She was a graduate of UF, he was an FSU alumnus, so there were plenty of good-natured jabs as they ordered the famous Seminole Indian cake design, chocolate in flavor. Later, the bride called and asked Larry to make one of the cake layers orange and the other one blue. Since Larry is himself a Florida Gator, he was all too happy to oblige! Imagine the look on the face of the groom--and the delighted guests--as he cut the first slice and discovered the rival school's colors inside his cake! --Doug
(The following images, courtesy of Larry Bach, Sprinkles Custom Cakes)
NEXT BLOG: Today my blog received a comment asking about the "Trash the Dress" trend--which is getting so much buzz, that it's now sometimes referred to by its initials TTD. Do you know anyone who's done it? Would you do it
yourself? Next blog, this Orlando wedding
photographer shares his thoughts on what's becoming a somewhat controversial trend.
BTW, if you have a question about a particular wedding trend, go ahead, click the "comment" button and ask!
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