Wedding cakes and desserts

Dana Wright4 said:A quick question for our Midwest girls...

I was just out in Indianapolis this past weekend for a wedding, and I am still thinking about those desserts. I’ve heard nothing but glowing reviews about Midwestern baking my whole life, but this was actually my first time tasting the real deal...🙏

So now I'm wondering: what are the odds of me ordering my wedding treats from someone out in the Midwest? Would it even make sense financially to have them shipped or brought in? And more importantly, does anyone have a specific baker they’d recommend?

Thanks...😘

I'm actually curious about this too.
Most of my guests are coming from the Midwest...
but like the other girl mentioned, who knows how everything will hold up after a couple hours in the car 😕 especially during the summer heat. 😲

My cake was from an M&M shop in a suburban neighborhood... it was chocolate and vanilla parfait. Honestly, it was so good that we actually ordered the exact same thing recently for a baptism, just with different decorations on top. I’m totally happy with them—they aren't pricey and the treats are amazing. The only thing is, the place looks like it hasn't been updated since the 80s.

Hey everyone—I was wondering if anyone could give me a heads-up on what the current going rates are for pastries and sweets in the greater Washington, D.C. area? $22/lb seems to be about what I paid at this one bakery I visited recently—and honestly, they were absolutely divine—but I’m looking to place an order soon and want to make sure I'm being reasonable. Whether you're talking about bulk prices or individual items (with or without fancy packaging, doesn't matter!), I'd love some insight. Could someone please help a girl out? 😁

Does anyone have any leads on where I can find a cake topper? I’m looking for something specific—a bride and groom either riding bicycles together or just hanging out next to one.

Is there anyone out there who actually does custom orders like this?

thx 🙏

I can’t recommend Auntie placidscout10 enough—she made our cake and pastries, and they were absolutely wonderful! 👍 Shoot me a private message if you want her details!

Honestly, their homemade cookies are absolutely delicious and look stunning, and their cakes are just as fantastic! Plus, they aren't overpriced at all. Whenever I need a treat, they’re my go-to spot.

Noah Thomas31 said:I can’t recommend Auntie placidscout10 enough—she made our cake and pastries, and they were absolutely wonderful! 👍 Shoot me a private message if you want her details!

I think you could just lay out the details right here...🤷

At least give us a price range and a location....

Back again to talk about Milka. Honestly, her pastries are absolutely incredible. They taste genuinely homemade—not just a bunch of margarine and sugar dumped out of a box, which seems to be what most people do these days. Plus, they look stunning, almost too perfect to eat. We paid $20 per kilo. They did raise their prices recently, though; it’s now $22/kg. They also handled our wedding cake, which was fantastic. The bottom layer was a chocolate/vanilla parfait, the middle was a light vanilla cream with apricot and pineapple, and the top was a Black Forest style. We got to pick all the flavors ourselves, along with the specific design and the topper. We paid $333 for the topper. They really know their craft, and I can't recommend them enough! Everything is customizable through direct communication. They deliver the pastries straight to the venue on the wedding day itself. If you want to set aside some treats for the staff, they’ll package those separately for you. They even handle the guest favor baskets. Our cake arrived around 11:30 PM, and we cut it right at midnight. They took care of the assembly and setup, too. I didn't have to worry one bit about anything happening in the kitchen, like the frosting melting or anything like that. They are based out of Aspen, which isn't hard to get to at all. They service the entire Washington, D.C. area and beyond. If anyone is interested or has any questions, just let me know! 😍

Is their company actually called Smile?

feraltrucker22, to answer your question: YES, absolutely!
Noah Thomas31, I’m right there with you. Those cookies are incredible, and honestly, that cake we had was on another level. Plus, the prices aren't even breaking the bank.😍
I should also mention how organized everything is there; the staff is genuinely decent, too. You can tell they’re running their own show, so they actually care about getting every little detail right. I’d definitely recommend them!

James Ramos said:feraltrucker22, to answer your question: YES, absolutely!
Noah Thomas31, I’m right there with you. Those cookies are incredible, and honestly, that cake we had was on another level. Plus, the prices aren't even breaking the bank.😍
I should also mention how organized everything is there; the staff is genuinely decent, too. You can tell they’re running their own show, so they actually care about getting every little detail right. I’d definitely recommend them!

Yes, exactly. They're from Quote, and they are incredibly professional. Everything feraltrucker22 mentioned is spot on! 👍

Noah Thomas31 said:Yes, exactly. They're from Quote, and they are incredibly professional. Everything feraltrucker22 mentioned is spot on! 👍

I stopped by their shop on Friday, and I have to admit, the pastries are fantastic. I’m planning on ordering some treats and a cake from them, but the pricing isn't exactly $22 70 dollars. At least, that's what they quoted me, and the specific cake I need will end up costing $667...

Ugh, girls, I seriously need some advice because I’m stuck... I ordered some treats from this baker who makes incredible cookies—I've tried them and they are amazing—but her cakes? Not exactly her aesthetic forte. Anyway, she wants me to pick a different flavor for every single layer of this 5-tier cake $167, but here is the catch: the design is basically just red tulle under every layer (which I have to buy myself), white frosting on every layer in that messy, homemade style where you can see all the spatula marks, and five little red roses around the edge of each tier (which I also have to go out and buy). Only the top layer gets the bride and groom toppers; the other layers won't have any flowers or anything else... And get this: she’s actually charging me a decoration fee. DECORATION FEE??? My 10-year-old sister could put down that tulle and those flowers herself! Plus, she doesn't even do those gorgeous fondant cakes, and everywhere else I look, prices are well over $500, not even counting a minimum delivery fee of $67.
Now I’m totally torn. Do I go with the cheap, ugly option, or a stunning cake that costs an absolute fortune? 🙂

Does anyone know a good bakery with amazing cakes around the suburbs of Chicago or maybe near Naperville?

mistygull6 said:Does anyone know a good bakery with amazing cakes around the suburbs of Chicago or maybe near Naperville?

You should probably just send a private message to Mark Kelly4. She's actually from the Kutina area, so she might have some better insight than the rest of us... 👍

mistygull6...hm
I had my heart set on a fondant cake too, but I ended up backing out at the last minute...
I used a local lady for all the wedding catering once (she doesn't do this anymore), but she never worked with fondant. I was terrified about ordering several $27 of it—what if it turned out terrible? Or what if I ordered way too much or not nearly enough?... So, in the end, they made it with some kind of custard cream instead. It was supposed to be an off-white, creamy beige color, but it turned out this sickly yellow shade, like weak coffee. Apparently, their eggs were overcooked, and they just couldn't get rid of that yellow tint. They tried tossing in some cocoa powder, but at that point, I just didn't care... I didn't even look at the cake..

You have to decide what actually matters to you
For me, the cake wasn't even the priority during those final few days—there were plenty of other things more important than that

To be honest, I have no idea who in Washington, D.C. does fondant cakes
There's a woman near me who makes incredible cookies (from a bakery in the Midwest), but I don't know anything about her cakes...

I think there's someone in a small town outside of Austin who makes amazing cookies—I can't remember her name—she did them for my cousin...

I really care about how the cake looks because I can easily whip up something similar at home. But there’s a massive difference between $500 and $667. It doesn't even have to be fondant; maybe something more like this http://img125.imageshack.us/img125/5923/tortahe3.jpg

I can't quite make this out—what am I looking at?

I'm not even sure myself, I just thought she was beautiful.