By Meghan Walsh
At most weddings, the couple and guests alike eagerly anticipate the cutting of the cake. Today, bakeries are serving up cakes and small desserts galore to appeal to a variety of tastes. From large, traditional wedding cakes to pastries and macarons, two local bakeries offer their ideas for something tasty for everyone.
Davis Bakery
Classic white cakes with white frosting can be the perfect way to tie together any wedding. These traditional cakes are still going strong, says Jay Davis, vice president of operations at Davis Bakery in Woodmere and Warrensville Heights.
“A lot of people just really find our white cake to be delicious,” Davis says. “We add a touch of almond flavor to our white cake, so it gives it a nice, distinct flavor.”
Occasionally, some people want a fruit filling, such as lemon or another citrus, between the cake layers.
Davis says he has noticed couples seeking smaller cakes lately, sometimes for the sole purpose of having a cake cutting ceremony.
“Then, they’re kind of accompanying it with an eclectic mix of desserts, whether it’s our cream cheese pastries or our mini coconut bars to go with that small cake,” he explains.
Couples also frequently accentuate their cakes with floral details.
“A lot of people want nice floral arrangements with the real, live flowers that the florist will place on the cake, and it really does give the cakes a nice, elegant look,” he says.
Overall, Davis says traditional flavors and designs take the cake.
“I would say that we’re still seeing a vast majority of our cakes are white and elegant, white buttercream iced,” he says.
Luna Bakery
Some may say the best part of a meal is dessert, and weddings usually have some sort of baked goods to satisfy a guest’s sweet tooth. But in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, weddings have gotten smaller and henceforth, so have the cakes.
“Everyone has sort of shifted towards this smaller tiered cake with a lot of mini desserts,” says Brynn Keefe, cake shop manager at Luna Bakery in Cleveland Heights and Moreland Hills. “We don’t have a lot of big wedding cakes that serve three or four hundred people.”
Keefe says a lot of people are looking for fruit-based flavors this time of year, such as lemon-raspberry. Hazelnut-mocha is also a trending flavor.
Today’s couples have been in search of non-traditional sweet treats, such as mini tarts, macarons, cookies and other desserts that are more casual, she adds.
“People are really looking for alternatives to cake, which Luna does offer, and so I feel like that is something more (popular) this year than we did in years past,” Keefe says.
