You're So Baked, Dude: Creative Groom's Cakes

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A FAIRY-TALE WEDDING CAKE commands center stage, frosted with more bling than the bridesmaids (and, honestly, its selection might have involved more deliberation). But for all their fondant finery, bridal confections can be supremely impersonal. Cue the groom's cake, a Southern tradition that's part concession prize for a good-sport husband-to-be, part sugary window to his soul. "People get bogged down with wedding planning; groom's cakes are a way to lighten the mood," says Stephanie Baker, a Falls Church pastry pro who tells couples to keep just two restrictions in mind — "the limitations of creativity and the law of gravity." Before visions of armadillo groom's cakes a la "Steel Magnolias" give you cold feet, look around town: Sculptural inspiration is as rich as those endless layers of buttercream, from stately memorials to only-in-D.C. personalities.

» CHERRY BLOSSOMS
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Randi Goldman of Creative Cakes evokes nostalgia for romantic springtime ambles around the Tidal Basin. Like their floral inspiration, this cake's sugary blossoms are ever so delicate — and meant for fleeting admiration. $370; 75 servings (8814 Brookville Road, Silver Spring; 301-587-1599)

» US CAPITOL
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Budding politicos can pay homage to current or future stomping grounds with a patriotic cake shaped like the Capitol (or, uh, the White House, for the very ambitious). Leslie Poyourow of Fancy Cakes by Leslie turned a trad tiered cake into a neoclassical beauty draped with icing bunting. $8 per slice. (4939 Elm St., Bethesda; 301-652-9390; Fancycakesbyleslie.com)

» JEFFERSON MEMORIAL
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Sparkly fondant mimics the manicured masculinity of the Jefferson Memorial. Instead of Thomas' statue peering through the columns, the payoff here is decidedly more delicious: fab flavors (chocolate truffle, vanilla chiffon) from Kendall Barrett of Kendall's Cakes. $15 per slice; 25 servings. (201 W. Greenway Blvd., Falls Church; 703-536-2200; Kendallscakes.com)

» NATIONAL ZOO
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There's no doubt about it: Wedding planning can be a bear. Enter Tian Tian, the zoo's lovable papa panda bear — and arguably the city's fuzziest celebrity — in his confectionery likeness by baker-artist Tracey Alston of Cakes by Tracey in Waldorf, Md. $12 per serving; price is lower sans bamboo and edible accessories. (Cakesbytracey.com; 301-638-9191)

» BEN'S CHILI BOWL
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For 50-plus years, it's been a fact: Nothing tops a half-smoke after a night out on U Street. Stephanie Baker (of her aptly named bakery, Stephanie the Baker) pays tribute to this quintessential D.C. landmark (and occasional presidential hangout), trading chili for sweet old-fashioned flavors such as French vanilla and devil's food. $8 per slice, minimum 30 servings. (354-A W. Broad St., Falls Church; 703-534-CAKE)