The perfect look
White wedding cake still cheap,
traditional and most popular food
By Mike Reilley
Senior Editor____
Although specialty cakes once posed a seri
ous threat in the wedding-cake market, brides
and grooms now prefer traditional white cake,
local bakers said.
Alcohol-flavored cakes — like amaretto
and rum — and cheesecake were popular last
spring, but sales have dropped off “quite a biL”
in the last year, said Rich Mettlcr, owner of
Mettler Family Bakery, Inc.
“We’ll occasionally get an order for one, but
everyone has stuck with the white cake,” he
said. “Some people still want the alcohol
flavored cakes for the groom’s cake.”
Mettler said white cake costs less per piece
than the other flavors. He said a piece of
cheesecake costs about $ 1, whereas a portion of
white cake is about 50 cents. The alcohol-cake
prices vary according to the cost of the liquor.
Gary Smith, owner of Gcier’s Bakery, said
he gets few requests for alcohol-flavored cakes.
He said couples prefer white cake, along with
the traditional mints and peanuts on the side.
Dawn Bargen, a cake decorator at Super
Saver bakery, said white cake always will
dominate the market.
“A lot of people want to go with tradition,”
she said. “White is the most popular this year,
but I’ve noticed that a lot of people are alternat
ing the tiers (of cake) with white and marble
chocolate.”
Mettler said silk flowers and ribbons have
become popular decorations on wedding cakes
in the last year. He said couples string ribbons
to connect a multiple-cake arrangement.
“Besides being a baker, I have to be a florist
now, too,” Mettler said.
Mettler said extravagance determines the
price of a cake. Ribbons, flowers, fountains and
bridges all figure into the final cost, he said.
Mettler said he has made cakes for as little
as $23, but recently earned $600 for a multiple
cake arrangement.
“It was for a general’s daughter up at SAC
Air Force Base,” Mettler said. “It was big. It fed
700 people.
“I took it up there in this big station wagon,”
Mettler said, “and all you could fit in there was
cake and I. That was it.”
Mettler warned prospective brides and
grooms to put their cake orders in “as early as
possible.”
“They should order six or seven months
ahead of time,” he said. “Between April and
September, our order book is packed. It’s
probably about 90 percent full right now. Wc
filled up 60 percent of it at wedding shows
alone.”
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Balloons, sculptures, even lasers can enliven reception
By Kirstin Swanson
Staff Reporter
There are musts for every wed
ding reception: The bride and
groom cut the cake, a toast is made,
and everyone eats cake and little
pastel mints.
But a wedding reception doesn’t
have to stop there. With imagination
as a guide, a wedding reception can
be as creative as the bride and groom
want it to be.
Lincoln may not be the most
exciting place for a wedding recep
tion, but many options do exist for
going that extra step.
Brenda Ryan, manager at Paper
Parade, said about once a week the
store decorates for a wedding recep
tion. Paper Parade’s services use
balloons of all colors and shapes.
Ryan said they use mini-balloons
for individual table decorations and
often create balloon arches to put
over the serving table, in the arch
way or on the dance floor. A balloon
arch costs about $75.
Lately, Ryan said, she has been
making red and black balloon
arches for weddings. Burgundy, sil
ver and teal have been other popular
colors in the past, she said.
At one wedding, helium-filled
latex balloons were used instead of
throwing rice at the newlyweds.
Ryan said when the couple left the
church all of the guests released
their balloons.
Ice sculptures are another idea
for making receptions a little fan
cier. The Comhusker Hotel’s Ren
aissance Room will create ice sculp
tures for anywhere from $75 to
$150. Sculptures include fish, dol
phins , deer, bears, swans and eagles.
Hearts, Chinese boats and Santa ]
Claus are other options.
Marcel Bonetti, executive chef
at the Comhusker, said it takes
from 1 1/2 to three hours to create
a sculpture.
Outside of Nebraska, more ex
otic ideas for wedding receptions
exist. New York City offers profes
sionally trained mimes who are
made up to look like marble statues
and hold their poses for several
hours. These live statues interact
with wedding guests by winking,
blowing kisses and falling off their
pedestals. Costs range from $350 to
&500 a statue plus travel expenses.
If cost is no concern, a laser light
show may be the perfect entertain
ment for wedding guests. Expert
technicians can use light, beams of
radiation and mirrors to draw color
ful three-dimensional images on the
banquet-hall walls. Costs for laser
entertainment range from $2,000 to
$5,000.
By letting the imagination run
wild, a wedding reception can be
come more than a cake-and-punch -
affair.
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