Did anyone do donuts instead of cake?

I like donuts just fine, but I don't think they work well for wedding desserts because they can't possibly be fresh by that point. And a stale donut isn't a very nice treat. Cake works much better made ahead and served days/hours later. There's a lot of room for other wedding desserts in between expensive cake and donuts, so I would keep looking for different options that fit within your budget. I also think it's always better to serve everyone the same thing and you can do your "ceremonial cutting" with any dessert (cake, pie, brownies, etc.).

We did doughnuts (and mini pies)! This was our set up We ordered them from a local doughnut shop and our DOC picked them up the morning of the wedding, so they were fresh. We each took a bite out of one doughnut for pictures, and then people could get what they liked.

Ooo thank you! this is so pretty

Love the donut or other dessert displays and yes, you can certainly make sure that they are fresh when served.

Beautiful......

I think it looks cute, but agree they don't stay fresh as long as cake, which might be an issue.

Friends of mine had a croquembouche cake and I've seen giant cannoli baskets and cheese wheel cakes, both of which are kind of cool too, if you're not big cake people, but I'm not sure whether they cost much less than a regular cake.

Also I meant to add on that you could just get a sheet cake to be cut up instead of serving your little cake, or use whatever desserts the caterer has, like petit fours or something.

Here are some inspo pictures!

I kind of wish i did donuts instead of cake! haha i don't know why i didn't, i love donuts. i think it's a good idea. it's also more affordable

That cannoli is absolutely hilarious. i love it!

Lol I do too. I was very tempted to have it for our wedding, I must say!

Know your crowd. As a guest, I would be very disappointed if donuts were served in place of cake. For our wedding we will be having a small cake, as we are providing an Italian cookies & pastry room with specialty coffees (the venue has 2 small rooms off the reception room) and a cigar lounge.

Unless your guests knew that donuts are your "thing", I would say I would be a bit offended if the bride and groom got to have cake, and I only got a donut. It is good etiquette that the bride and groom have the same food options as their guests (exempting rare cases of dietary or religious restrictions).

Sheet cakes are good ways to keep the costs down, and you could even display them independently of each other. You could even have some made in different flavors to give guests different options.

You could also opt for a cutting cake and cupcakes.