my fiance isn't a big cake fan, but luckily pie is something meaningful to him - we're getting a bunch of flavors from the local diner.

We got married last August, and had an amazing groom's cake. It had a giant stegosaurus made of chocolate on top! I was pretty impressed :) Here's a photo: http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ZX94OUczYTo3gnpKZdp6ug?feat=directlink

at my wedding this past september, i surprised my husband with a grooms cake. here is the link to it:
http://blog.pinkcakebox.com/sports-grooms-cake-2-2008-09-17.htm
everyone loved it, and man was it tasty!!!

and this was our wedding cake, from the same place. not very traditional, but we couldnt have been happier!
http://blog.pinkcakebox.com/cupcake-wedding-cake-2-2008-09-13.htm

My husband's groom's cake was a snare drum (he's a percussionist) that had two sticks, one with each of our names and the cake affectionately stated "The Perfect Pair". There was also a small golfer teeing off the drum to a "green" which was a much smaller round cake that looked like a golf green complete with the hole and pin. It was adorable and combined 2 of his favorite things!

I actually have to go pick my fiance's next weekend! I moved to the North from New Orleans and was shocked no one does that up here. With my friends and family, it's almost unheard of not to have one. Last wedding I saw, a friends got a giant crazy groom's cake and a tiny plain wedding cake. They can steal the show if you want them to!

My husband had a groom's cake that highlighted his love of poker, cards, and gambling. The top tier was shaped to look like a die. It also had white chocolate playing cards jutting out. Designing it was one of the most fun parts of the wedding planning.

never heard of this until I got engaged this year, I kind of hate the idea..seems silly...but I live in California and you don't see grooms cakes here so thats probably why.

Maybe it's because I didn't grow up with them, either, but I have to say, I don't love groom's cakes. It seems strange to have any kind of "theme" at a wedding other than the wedding itself; these cakes seem to say, "We're getting married, *and* the groom loves his dog/his car/hockey/whatever!" I just don't get it. I do love chocolate cake, though, so maybe I should lighten up!

I surprised my husband with a Krispy Kreme groom's cake... my caterer basically stacked fresh Krispy Kreme donuts into a wedding-cake shape, and decorated it with flowers. It was beautiful, and a big hit... the kids at our wedding LOVED it!

I'm not sure if this is why the tradition started, but it's been a major money saver for my all friends that have gotten married.
They had a small pretty, traditional (expensive) wedding cake for the cake cutting ceremony and taking pictures of.
Then the 'grooms cake' was a huge cheap sheet cake from the grocery store (not always in chocolate sometimes in the grooms favorite flavor), decorated with comic book characters, or sports teams to actually feed the 200 people that they end up inviting despite their best efforts to trim down the guest list.

When you have a lot of guests you could end up spending a thousand dollars to feed them all pretty cake, or you could pick up an 80$ sheet cake.

We are from Texas, and a groom's cake is pretty standard. My husband knew he was getting one, he just didn't know what it was. My mom had him convinced that it was going to be a Texas flag, so when he showed up and it was a Stargate, he pretty much freaked out! It was one of the highlights of the day.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sabrinandavid/2881021911/

(If you go one more photo, you'll see our wedding cake, with our custom made topper that looks like us!)

I've lived in Chicago for almost 2 years now, but grew up in New Orleans. I've never been to a wedding that didn't have a groom's cake; but then, I haven't been to any weddings up North yet. Who knew they were regional?

I've always seen them as a way of offering a chocolate option, and to have a little fun (as much as cakes can be "fun", anyway) and show some of the couple's personality. Now that I think about it, it's a very smart way to stretch a cake budget, too. Neat!

http://www.abreadaday.com

seems kind of wasteful to have two cakes, because every time I've seen a groom's cake, it's been crazily elaborate, AND the wedding cake has been equally expensive-looking. but then again, what are weddings if not wasteful for the sake of "tradition"?

My husband is a voracious reader and loves Southern literature. So I asked for a list of his favorite books and we had them turned into several groom's cakes.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rossandaudrey/sets/72157618503556611/

Grooms' cakes dont have to be themed (although I wouldn't doubt that the majority are). There are many bakeries that offer nicely decorated chocolate cakes. Garnishing with chocolate covered strawberries seems to be extremely popular, as are chocolate shavings. But they can come in any number of styles.

Our groom's cake was very simply decorated, but it was so delicious. I chose the baker specifically because I had loved the groom's cake at my cousin's wedding.

It's not so totally wasteful, because you order fewer portions of wedding cake to compensate. Frequently people want a little piece of both, but you don't order 200 portions of each for a 200 guest wedding.

My husband was convinced that my mother and I, and then our friends, were perpetrating some kind of very elaborate joke because he (from New Jersey) had never heard of groom's cake. Friends made both our cakes, and for his they used my grandmother's devils food packaged mix cherry pie filling cake with a fudge icing...and chocolate-dipped Twizzlers, his favorite candy, including a spray of them coming up from the middle of the cake. It was simple, and fun, and suited him perfectly.

We had a casual party the day after the wedding and brought all the leftover cake.

You say kitschy, I say plain weird.

It's a little boy's birthday cake for a grown man any way you slice it (pun intended).

Weddings certainly shouldn't be overly serious or uptight events, but there's something inherently odd about celebrating a very adult milestone with a very childish chunk of sculpted frosting: "Enjoy your honeymoon, Billy, here's a stegosaurus!"

I didn't know this was a Southern tradition; I just thought it was a tacky tradition (that I hadn't even heard of until several years ago). It should be filed away with the chicken dance.

I'm not sure why it would be considered tacky. It's a LOT less tacky than a groom heading up his bride's dress to retrieve her garter and throw it into the audience. Ick!

My husband's groom's cake was a huge Cubs logo, made by my cousin. We served it for dessert at the rehearsal dinner. He loved it. (My brothers-in-law got a Darth Vader cake and a Spongebob cake, all made by my same cousin, all served at rehearsal dinners.)

I can't believe people don't know about them. Haven't you seen Steel Magnolias?! "It's got gray icing! People are gonna be hacking into this poor animal that looks like it's bleeding to death!" (It was a red-velvet armadillo.)

For what it's worth, I'm a party planner in the South, and Groom's cakes are standard. It seems to me that the grooms really enjoy having something that is just about them. It doesn't have to go with a theme, it doesn't have to be a certain color or flavor. It can be ANYTHING they want, and they don't have to compromise.