5 ms·
Yes, non-edible cakes made of light, cheap materials like styrofoam are routinely displayed at weddings and other ceremonies. One of the layers might be soft,
by cs702 8y ago
Yes, non-edible cakes made of light, cheap materials like styrofoam are routinely displayed at weddings and other ceremonies. One of the layers might be soft, allowing for fake-cake cutting.
The hosts know the cake is fake. Many of the guests know the cake is fake. After cake-cutting, the fake cake often remains on display while everyone eats slices of real cake brought in from a kitchen.
No effort is made to pretend that the cake on display is real. It has come to be understood, accepted, and expected by society that there should be a cheap sculpture of a cake on display and that everyone should act as if this cheap sculpture is a real cake during the ceremony.
How did we, as a society, arrive here?
- merpnderp 8y agoI'm not sure many of us have arrived there.
- zdragnar 8y agoPerhaps by watching lots of home videos on the internet or TV of people hauling massive tiered wedding cakes around, only to drop them or for a tier to give out and the whole thing to fall over? As pretty and traditional as they are, they aren't nearly as practical to cut for a large crowd, especially once it's fallen on the ground, and nothing tops off the single largest event you'll host and pay for in your life like disappointing all of your guests.
- foxyv 8y agoI can honestly say that, at a wedding, I am never excited for the cake. It usually looks amazing and tastes like industrial lubricants.
- madcaptenor 8y agoI agree. However, at my own wedding I insisted there should be a cake. This is basically the only thing I insisted on - I kept saying that we're not actually married unless there's a cake. Because weddings are complicated, I'm pretty sure I never got a slice of that cake.
- dwighttk 8y agoI think you may have eaten a fake cake. I read about them somewhere.
- kaitai 8y agoMost American wedding cakes are terrible. Two reasons: the one discussed in the article is that often cakes are frozen to be decorated and stored, and so they're already stale by the time the wedding happens, and the second is that many American cakes just don't taste good. A sad byproduct of nutrition fads and pseudoscience combined with low levels of culinary discernment.
- no_wave 8y agoThere are also compromises made on the frosting so that it doesn't melt at room temperature. Fake cakes let you serve cakes that actually taste good. American cake is in general very good - I'm not sure where you're comparing it to - it's the cupcakes that are bad.
- ghostbrainalpha 8y agoI think the biggest factor by far is that these cakes are decorated with "Fondant". Which is like edible sculpting clay. It's technically edible but tastes like garbage. Buttercream makes a delicious cake but it is very difficult to mold some of the decorations people are requiring. I wanted a fun "Batman" cake like this for my son's birthday party. https://www.cta.ae/163-large_default/funny-block-batman-cake.jpg https://www.cta.ae/163-large_default/funny-block-batman-cake... The bakery wants almost $600 for this cake. I think that is part of the reason we are seeing a "fake cake" trend.
- tokai 8y agoI once delivered a huge four layer wedding cake. That delivery was the most tense 45 minutes of my life.
- draw_down 8y agoCome on.
- elkos 8y agoThat was how me and my wife ended up not cutting a cake in our wedding ceremony. After 5yrs I love that girl
- ryandrake 8y agoThe same reason people live in cheap houses with crappy aluminum siding on 3 sides, and fake brick material on the front. The same reason people wear knock-offs of designer clothing. The same reason cars play fake engine noise over their stereo system. The same reason people rent Ferraris for the day. The same reason people go on "vacations" where they spend 5 minutes at each destination taking selfies. People care more about the image of something rather than the actual thing. Authenticity is now something to be faked and posted to Instagram.
- kaitai 8y agoHey, renting a Ferrari for the day is sometimes just a way to drive a Ferrari once!
- throwaway080383 8y agoYeah, the last thing I'd want is to be surrounded by people. I want open road!
- EduardoBautista 8y agoDo some cars really play fake engine noises on the speakers?
- eumoria 8y agoThe Jaguar I-Pace does this [1]. It's the stupidest thing. [1] https://electrek.co/2018/03/07/jaguar-i-pace-artificial-motor-sounds-electric/ https://electrek.co/2018/03/07/jaguar-i-pace-artificial-moto...
- logfromblammo 8y agoI was under the impression that some electrics and hybrids in electric mode played simulated engine noise through speakers to both alert nearby pedestrians that the vehicle is moving and to reassure the driver that it is operating normally. I wouldn't put it past a manufacturer or aftermarket parts maker to play "vroom vroom" noises over the sound system at speeds too low for the driver to actually hear anything from the passenger compartment. If you can put an aluminum spoiler on a stock Honda Civic, you can put an engine noise simulator on your sound system.
- dv_dt 8y agoThere are certain abilities we speculate that differentiate us from animals. I think the ability to abstract concepts separate from direct reality is among them. The ability to exist in symbolic space is a source of great advancement in humanity, but also of great tragedy.
- gameswithgo 8y ago>How did we, as a society, arrive here? It is only one of thousands of insane customs we have, but there have always been insane customs, they just kinda change in a random walk.
- subpixel 8y agoAt my wedding we had pies. They were all real and lasted all of 5min once they were laid out. I cannot fathom the desire to have a fake version of anything at your wedding.
- neuralRiot 8y agoIn my experience, 90% of the things you see on a wedding are fake or staged.