Where should the wedding cake be set up?

You’ve chosen the venue and you’ve booked your wedding cake.

But have you thought about where in the venue you would like to display the cake? The first step is to ask the venue and your planner where the preferred spot is.

They will probably have a good idea already of what works from past weddings. And I would always listen to their advice. However the chances are they will be looking at things from a purely aesthetic viewpoint. While this is important, it’s just as important to think about the practicalities of staging your wedding cake.

There have been a couple of times when we have turned up with the cake and basically refused to put it where the venue wanted us to. Once was when there was a space heater right under the cake table! There was no way that was going to be a good idea. We politely asked that the heater be moved.

So first rule. No heaters or radiators too close to the cake! Think about it. Cake has a lot of sugar, butter, chocolate etc in it. All these thing will melt if they get too hot. Even a fondant or royal iced cake will succumb eventually.

Which is why windows are not the best either. Even with winter weddings. Think greenhouse. Sunlight through glass, even on cold days, will warm up really fast. And anything in that direct sunlight will also warm up fast. I’ve also had to ask for the cake table to be moved when it was a very sunny day and they had put the cake table right by huge windows.

Second rule. No direct sunlight. It’s the same issue as the heaters, things melt.

Marquees. Okay I’m going to be honest. They give cake makers issues.

Heat again, a marquee can get really hot, especially the ones with the plastic windows. They also get humid. Humidity is a big enemy of sugar. Have you ever had a bag of sugar get damp? We have had sugar flowers literally melt and droop into a sticky mess in a hot and humid marquee. It’s heart-breaking, and there’s nothing we could do about it. We had to set a cake up in a marquee during last summers heatwave. As soon as the bride told me it was going to be in a marquee I advised her to ask the marquee company to provide fans or a portable air conditioning unit, thankfully she did. But we have also had another couple who ignored all our advice, the cake table was on a crazy slope and there was no fan or AC. Of course we were right, the cake lasted barely an hour before the wedding planner was messaging me asking how to save the leaning tower of melting buttercream cake. A fondant cake would have lasted longer, but the really uneven and wobbly table was never going to end well. I remember once having to push folded kitchen roll under the bottom cake board to desperately try to make the cake look level. This was after spending a lot of time on making sure that cake was perfectly level! Yes we have a spirit level.

Third rule. If having a marquee, think about asking the company to provide a couple of fans or an AC unit to train on the cake. And ask them to make sure the cake table is level. Think very hard about having a semi naked or buttercream cake in a marquee. And we do now have a disclaimer you’ll need to sign for putting a cake in a marquee.

This brings us nicely to the cake table itself. It’s probably obvious, but make sure it’s big enough. Your cake maker will be able to tell you what size cake board the cake will be on. Then allow space for the cake knife etc that you might want to have on the table with the wedding cake. Your venue or planner will have set up dozens of cakes, so they will be able to advise on which table to use.

Also ask the venue or wedding planner to check that the table is level (again we will check with our trusty spirit level before setting up.) And also that it’s not wobbly. I once had to ask for the table to be changed because it was so wobbly I was scared to put the cake on it!

 I’d also recommend having the cake table to the side. That way there’s no danger of anyone bumping it and sending the cake flying.

Fourth rule. Find out the diameter of the cake and tell the venue, so they provide a big enough table for everything. Also ask them to check that the table is level and stable.

Trust your cake maker when it comes to setting up your wedding cake. It’s our job to make it all look amazing, and we will. We regularly work with the florist and the stylist to co-ordinate everything. If you’re having fresh flowers on your cake then we will arrange them on the cake when we’re setting up. The same with the stylist, if there’s anything they need to do with the cake table, then we will assist them. In other words you can leave everything to us.

Your cake staging checklist.

1/ No heaters, radiators, open fires near the cake!

2/ Not too close to any windows. Sunlight through windows can have the same effect as a heater or radiator.

3/ Keep the cake cool. If you’re having a marquee then it’s hard to regulate their temperature, so think about fans or an AC unit for the cake area. If it’s a hot day you’ll be thankful of them for you and your guests too! Buttercream and semi naked cakes in a marquee are a very bad idea too.

4/ Ask the venue to make sure the cake table is level and stable. And tell them how big the cake is, and anything you want on the table with the cake. Then they can provide the right size table. One less thing to worry about 😊