Alternatives to the Wedding Cake — What Couples Are Choosing Instead
Somewhere along the 21st century, the traditional 2 tier wedding cake stopped being a given. More and more of the couples I work with at Hitch Perfect are asking the same thing: do we actually have to have one?
The short answer is no. The cake-cutting moment has been on the wedding running sheet for generations, but there is nothing that says you have to keep it. What I love about this part of wedding planning is that it is one of the easiest places to make a celebration feel unmistakably yours. Here is what couples in South East Queensland are choosing instead, and what to think about before you make the call.
Why couples are skipping the traditional wedding cake
Couples have a few reasons. Sometimes it’s taste - neither of them actually loves cake, and serving something they would not personally choose feels off. Sometimes it’s budget - a beautifully crafted three-tier cake from a Brisbane cake artist can run you upwards of $1000, depending on size, finishes, and design, and that money might be better spent elsewhere to some couples. Sometimes it is simply that they want to do something different. All of those reasons are valid.
The other thing I see is that traditional cake-cutting can feel a little disconnected from the celebration around it. If you are not particularly sentimental about the moment, it can land as a beat in the timeline rather than a real highlight.
The most popular wedding cake alternatives in 2026
Here are the options I am seeing chosen most often by my couples lately.
A grazing dessert table. A spread of bite-sized desserts - macarons, brownies, mini tarts, profiteroles, cannoli, pavlova spoons - laid out as a styled feature. It gives guests variety and the table itself becomes part of the styling and experience. Allow $12 to $25 per head depending on the vendor and the size of the spread.
Doughnut walls or grazing towers. This one has staying power for a reason. A wall of glazed and filled doughnuts photographs beautifully, doubles as a styled moment, and translates across formal and casual celebrations. Expect $6 to $10 per doughnut from most Brisbane suppliers, plus a hire fee for the wall itself.
A cheese tower or savoury wedding "cake". For couples who genuinely do not eat dessert, a tiered cheese stack with figs, honeycomb, dried fruit, crackers, and lavosh is a stunning alternative and it is often happily polished off. Aim for a wheel rather than a wedge per tier for the cleanest stack!
Croquembouche. A French tradition that has been quietly returning. A tower of caramel-glazed profiteroles is dramatic, can be cut into ceremonially, and is a beautiful nod to old-world celebration. Worth knowing: caramel does not love a hot Queensland day - speak with your planner about timing if you are marrying in summer!
Pies, tarts, and pavlova. A pie wall, a stack of decorated pavlovas, or a curated selection of fruit tarts all work as a centrepiece dessert with broad appeal. Pavlova in particular feels right for an Australian wedding!
Gelato or ice cream cart. A late-night gelato cart or scoop bar is one of the most loved guest experiences I have planned. It is a whole moment in itself, it cools everyone down, and people remember it. Carts in Brisbane typically have a hire period of two to three hours, including staff and a flavour selection.
Late-night treats. Wood-fired pizza after the formal dinner, a mid-reception loaded fries cart, or a hot chip station closer to the dance floor. These are not dessert in the traditional sense, but they fill the same role: a shared moment of food after the formal courses!
A small "cutting cake" with a dessert table behind it. If you want the photo of cutting a cake without the cost or scale of a full tiered design, a single-tier cake on the dessert table is a graceful compromise. You get the moment, your photographer gets the shot, and the rest of the spread does the heavy lifting.
What to think about before you skip the cake entirely
A few things worth flagging from a planner's perspective.
Your guests still expect dessert. Whatever you choose, make sure there is a clear sweet element to the evening. People notice, and it is a part of the meal that lands as a shared moment.
Plan for the "cutting" moment. If the cake-cutting is being replaced, decide what - if anything - takes its place in the timeline. A first dance, a champagne tower, lighting the dessert grazing table for the first time, or simply moving the toasts forward all work.
Family expectations. Some parents and grandparents are sentimental about a traditional cake. If that is a factor for you, a small cutting cake plus a more interesting dessert table is a graceful middle ground.
Logistics with your venue. Check whether your venue has cakeage fees that would also apply to alternative desserts, whether they can store and serve what you are planning, and whether external dessert vendors need to be approved in advance. This is one of the most overlooked vendor-coordination issues I see.
Photography. Alternative desserts photograph beautifully - but only if they are styled with intention. Talk with your stylist about height, texture, and surface - a flat layout reads differently to a layered one in the gallery.
How to choose what is actually right for your wedding
The question I ask my couples is simple: what do the two of you genuinely love? If it is cheese, do the cheese tower. If it is gelato, do the gelato. If neither of you grew up loving wedding cake but you have always loved a good pavlova, that is your answer!
Your wedding dessert is one of the easiest places to make the day feel like you. It is also one of the lowest-risk spots to break with tradition - guests rarely feel let down by a thoughtful, well-styled alternative, particularly when the rest of the celebration is well-planned.
What’s my verdict?
You do not have to have a wedding cake. You also do not have to skip it. The best wedding cake alternatives are the ones that fit the way you actually celebrate, the climate you are getting married in, and the experience you want your guests to take home with them.
If you would love help mapping the dessert moment into your full wedding day timeline — including vendor coordination, styling, and the logistics that make these things actually work — that is exactly what I am here for. Get in touch with Hitch Perfect and we can build a celebration that feels effortless from the first canapé to the last bite.
Written by Kate Duff — Owner and Lead Planner at Hitch Perfect, South East Queensland's boutique wedding planning and styling studio.