Cake Servings

Image from MarthaStewartWeddings.com

Have you ever wondered how caterers can cut up a wedding cake into about a million slices? It's all in the technique. The same cake, in the hands of a lay person, might only yield half as many servings. But caterers know exactly how to carve it all up to feed the masses.

First, a "wedding cake slice" is officially small. Smaller than a party cake slice. A slice of wedding cake is about 1 inch x 2 inches x 4 inches. Party cake slices, usually from a sheet cake, are more like chunks of cake, about 2 inches square or larger.

Then there's the technique, which never fails to impress me. Since wedding cakes are almost exclusively round, they are cut from concentric circles within the cake tiers like so:

Image from Wilton.com

When well-meaning relatives and friends of a wedding couple tell me they'll be cutting and serving the cake instead of the caterers, I always provide them with a cutting guide (see above). Then they predictably go into a panic! However, cake servings are determined based on the cake cutting guide, so if someone cuts the slices too big, there won't be as much cake to go around. If a couple has ordered exactly enough cake to feed their guests, then the numbers can be off when the slices are larger than usual.

That's why I love a caterer's serving staff! They know what they're doing and they do it quickly too. Because when you're at a wedding, there's nothing worse than waiting forever for cake (or not having any at all)!