The highlight of the wedding reception is seeing how big the cake will be. Everyone wants to be unique and wow their guests. Since the wedding cake is a big expense, choose wisely.

Wedding cakes have gone from simple single or double-tiered creations to sweet confections that don’t even look like traditional cakes. Sugar can be manipulated into the shape of flowers, geometric shapes and jewels. It is amazing what they can do with some batter and frosting these days.

Before the big day, you’ll have to sample piece after piece of wedding cake. The last thing you want to do is leave it up to chance. Dream up your biggest and best design and then go in search of the perfect way to create it.

1. Find a baker who can meet your expectations. You are not there just to see if he or she can make your design but to test their mettle as a baker. A cake can look good but it also has to taste good.

2. Ask lots of questions. Whatever you want to know, don’t be afraid to voice it. How does the baker plan to create your cake? Will he use marzipan, fondant or ganache? He may have suggestions for the design but don’t accept them out of hand unless you really agree.

3. What’s the price? You don’t want to look cheap but breaking the bank is out of the question also. You might have to scale down your 10-tiered cake or get a couple of sheet cakes with the same icing to feed all your guests. A cake for a service of 200 can be expensive.

4. Ask for a design book. You might not have any idea of the style of cake you want. Your wedding colors are the only thing you know. A good baker has a book of past wedding creations and signature creations for their shop. They should also be able to ask a few questions and come up with suggestions for you from the information that you provide.

5. Will they deliver? You know about Murphy’s Law, right? Don’t ask your uncle with the large SUV to pick up the wedding cake from the shop. It is worth the cost to have the baker responsible for delivering and setting up the cake at the reception. If anything goes wrong on their part, you can get a refund.

It could be a simple yellow cake with butter cream icing in three tiers or a five-tier square cake with decorative sugar flowers. Either way, you want the cake for your wedding to meet all of your expectations and then some.