Cake Talk

I love all things sweet, and so I think it's but natural that this blog would contain an article or two about cakes.  Next to ice cream, I always check out the pastry section of the dessert station whenever I'm in a buffet.  So you would think it's a piece of cake for us deciding on what brand of sweet confection would we be using for our wedding day next year.

Wrong.

Blame it on the Ilocana in me (at least 50%) or the GI (Genuine Ilocano) in my hubby to be.  With a growing list of things to buy and spend for this wedding, we're really cutting costs on things that would not be needed anymore once the wedding is over.  This includes the gown which I'm wearing only once, the flowers which will just wilt and die after the day, the invitations which our guests will just probably throw away after our wedding, and the cake.

Yes, you read it right.

The cake is not our priority because all we need is a slice for each other during the cake cutting ceremony, and that's it.  Unlike weddings in the past wherein the couple spends almost a month's salary for multiple tiers of cake which they will share with all of the guests, M and I just cringe at the idea of parting with more than 5k for a piece of sweet treats which only the two of us would enjoy.  Our package with Enderun already includes several kinds of pastries, puddings and fruits, so we saw no need to add more costs to the wedding budget.  There was even a point sometime during the pamanhikan where I blurted out to my family that if I had it my way, I'd rather we exchange a slice of pizza since pizza delivery is only about Php500. Hahahahaha.  Of course, my mom and sister gave me dagger looks, so I dropped the idea.  But really, do I have to spend that much for literally just one slice of that sweet, tasty goodness covered in icing?

As the hands-on bride to be, my first instinct was to check out two of the best known commercial cake suppliers in the Metro.  You always find their stores anywhere you go, so I thought that because of the volume of their production, they would charge a little lower than the other cake artists.  But no.  I even got quoted as high as Php 18,000 on a three-layered cake with only one layer edible.  The cake, in fairness, looks grand and can really be a centerpiece for the reception.  But I only want a simple design that can still look cute for the photos.  So there.  I searched, searched, searched and searched some more.  The ones that are less than 5k look so ugly and so plain.  The ones higher than 5k look too opulent and gaudy for my taste.  And parting with our hard-earned money is always a serious discussion with my hubs, so we really prayed for a cake supplier that is within our range of what is reasonable.  

So how do I reconcile tradition (cake cutting) with our wedding preps philosophy of spending only for what we really need?

I had our wedding cake customized.  I specified to the prospective suppliers that I only want a three-tiered cake, with only the bottom layer as edible.  Then I sent the pegs I want to all cake artists I considered.

And who's the chosen one?


It's Hearts and Bells.   I still can't believe we just booked a cake supplier today.  I'm really pleased that they already have a prototype of the design I want, so there was no need to customize.

Hooray for our last supplier booking for this year!

Still and all, I'd say it isn't a piece of cake deciding on who'll be making your wedding cake.  ;-P

All cakes baked by Hearts and Bells

All pictures taken from their facebook account 

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Hearts and Bells 
934 Alvarado Street, Binondo, Manila
Telefax # 244-0255
Mobile # 0917-5379388
Emaill:  heartsnbells@yahoo.com

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