I have been trying to brush this off but I thought I would check with all of you to see if I should encourage my friend to mention this to the caterers. I made my first wedding cake for my friend's son and the reception was held at our church. As it was a German wedding, many of the omas (Grandmas) and aunts brought cheesecakes and tortes as well as having the wedding cake (6, 10, 14 inch square) for the dessert. The caterers started cutting the cake after they brought out all of the other desserts so everyone was loading their plates up before the cake even came out. When it did, it was cut into 1" x 1" x 4" servings, all piled very unapplealingly on a large platter, making it very hard to get a nice looking serving. The caterers were also so much in a rush to get out of the church that they only brought out two platters of cake. After they were gone, I peaked into the cooler at the church and saw that 1/4 of the 10" was left as well as the 14" which was left completely untouched! Then yesterday at church I heard that some of the guests didn't think there was enough cake! Augh!! So, should I encourage my friend (who hired them as the brides' family was from out of town) to at least mention the situation to them? I just feel bad for my friend who has so much cake to deal with now!

I'd have her mention it and inquire why.

That sucks!

That is so totally sloppily done by the caterer. I would definately say something.

Messy Job! Sounds like they just wanted to get out of there in a hurry. I'd definitely mention it!

People always think that if there are other desserts that people don't want cake. This is not true.

I would have her mention it and ask why this happened. I don't think she can get money back but it would be good to notify the boss if this was not the boss.

I would definetly have her mention it. More so, cause they didn't serve the pieces on individual plates and served them on a platter. How tacky! ;-t

The caterers at my sister's wedding totally butchered the cake. No nice, neat pieces. Just chop-chop, plate plate.

I think they were inexperienced and or had to wait too long to cut the cate. I saw some pieces that were almost total icing and some that were slivers, others were hunks.

They need to know what is "expected" of a cake cutting, and if they can't adapt, they need to let someone else do the cutting. Especially if they are charging for it.

Thanks everyone for validating my feelings. I think what really ticks me off is that I spent a long time finding the right cake and icing combo and I even made a 6 inch cake for the bride-to-be to taste and share with her family. She raved about it and even commented how good it was going to taste when she publicly thanked me at the reception before they cut into it. And then, hardly anyone got to taste it, and those who did probably didn't even realize it was the wedding cake!! Oh well, there's nothing I can do about it at this point!! Thanks for letting me vent!!

On a cake that I'm just dropping off, I ask the couple "who is cutting the cake?" If it's a family member, I direct them to my How to Cut A Wedding Cake page to show them how it's suppose to be done.

If they tell me a caterer is cutting it, I first ask them, "Does the caterer know that?" (because too many people pull the "Oh the caterer does that!" assumption on everything from cake cutting to shoe polishing!). If it's a caterer I'm not familiar with, I suggest to the bride to find out if they know how to cut a cake. Not all caterers know how to do it as evidenced by THIS one, who cut them in dinky little 1x1" slivers. (What is that, about the size of a single Twix candy bar?)

This story is also a good example of why I question the reason a cake is taken to the back and cut "in secret". I cut my cakes right out in the open. People LUV to watch a cake being cut. (I got a fabulous compliment from a woman this past weekend who told me she just enjoyed watching me cut the cake and added, "I told my husband, 'you can tell she knows what she's doing'!")

If this cake had been cut in the open, someone would have seen the cake being placed on platters instead of cake plates (was this covered during the catering consultation?) and the guests would have seen lots of uncut cake sitting there and perhaps eaten more. If all they see is a platter of what looks like leftover cake, some may think "Oh they're running low" or "Oh, they're out of cake" when in reality there is plenty in the back.

But then again ... with all the other desserts, it IS possible the guests filled up on other stuff and just chose not to eat cake.

For my daughter's wedding, we had a cookie buffet and the cake. So many people brought cookies, that by the time they got around to cutting the cake, everyone was full!! I took part of the large tier home, the WHOLE middle tier went to church the next morning, and the top tier went with daughter and SIL (who ate it all up, then realized it was the one they meant to save!) (I delivered a 1st ann. cake to them yesterday!!!)

If I am attending the wedding and I have made the cake I offer strongly to cut the cake myself. It is easy to learn how to cut a wedding cake and keep it beautiful. Do not cut like many books show and you end up with a tall tower in the middle but go straight across the back of the cake only cut 1/2 way and not all the way across. You need an assistant to hold the plates for you and you use a knife in one hand and the spatula in the other hand. I cut with knife in my right hand starting from the left side of the layer. You cut and place the cake piece against the spatula as you pick up the piece using both utensils and place neatly on the plate that your assistant is holding. You use a napkin or paper towel to wipe off the knife between cuts. You never touch the cake with your hands. (you can wear gloves if you want). As you cut the cake you place the decorations attractively on the rest of the cake to keep it looking nice. I have had caterers watch me and compliment me. It is not hard to learn. Practice on birthday cakes at home. I would not allow the caterers to remove a cake to the kitchen as moving a set up cake can result in a worse disaster of having the cake fall over.

I guess I should have offered to cut and serve the cake. I didn't because I was invited and my husband and I did the music for the ceremony so I was ready to just relax! It was also mentioned a few times that I made the cake and as everyone at the wedding knew me, I felt that I would feel conspicuous if I made the cake and also served it. Oh well, live and learn!

gembaker, that's a great description and it's pretty much the way I do it. Having a helper is a great asset, but I can also do a cake alone. I just fan the plates out on the table, then using the cake comb, move the cut pieces of cake to the plates.

With my method of cutting, I can cut a 200 serving cake in about 15 minutes.

And I'm with you .... I don't believe in "sneaking" a cake into the back room for cutting.

I'm glad this came up, I have a wedding cake I'm doing for a coworker's daughter in September and I'm offering to cut the cake for her -- exactly what time is the best time to cut the cake, right before dinner is served so I can be cutting while they are eating? Or right after they eat dinner so it can be served for dessert?

Holy cow Debi.....you are one wordy gal!

At my wedding (19 years ago, now), my mother made my cake and we had the restaurant serve it. They sliced it in the back, and brought it out with each slice in a little waxed paper bag, presumably for the guest to bring home with them?! Needless to say, it was not what we expected and we were given no clue as to their procedures.

(The cake was served after a dessert course.)

Baffling.

Lol!

http://www.cateritsimple.com/id10.html
How to Cut a Wedding Cake

Awesome thank you! I didn't know to cut the end bit in 2 - always learning!

That's pretty cool. Sometimes I provide the wax-lined cake bags in case someone wants to take a leftover piece home. When I cut the cake and everyone has been served, I always leave a few extra pieces out on plates for those who want seconds. I leave the wax-bags for those who want seconds, but they want to take it home, or maybe take it to someone who couldn't make it to the wedding.

As a legal bakery and catering company, I know it seems mean but the caterer was not hired to cut the cake...they may do it as a favor for free. The cake is the families responsibility unless it is specifically mentioned in the contract. The size slice you describe is in fact the correct size according to Wilton's cake cutting guide which is the prime doctrine used to calculate servings per layer. I know this seems mean and unfair but the caterer is not responsible for the cake...they cut it as a favor to the family, so back off and accept the gift for what it was...a gift. They recieved no payment for this service I assure you.

As a legal bakery and catering company, I know it seems mean but the caterer was not hired to cut the cake...they may do it as a favor for free. The cake is the families responsibility unless it is specifically mentioned in the contract. The size slice you describe is in fact the correct size according to Wilton's cake cutting guide which is the prime doctrine used to calculate servings per layer. I know this seems mean and unfair but the caterer is not responsible for the cake...they cut it as a favor to the family, so back off and accept the gift for what it was...a gift. They recieved no payment for this service I assure you.

Well, if it was truly a "gift" that they served the cake, I think it would have at least been considerate of them to notify the MOG when they were leaving that the bulk of the cake was left in the fridge. She really had no idea during the reception that there was so much cake left over and that not everyone actually got a piece of the cake. In hind sight, I really should have taken over the responsibility when I saw what was happening, but I didn't think it was my place.