I wouldn't say this is a "new" idea - I've been hearing about it for years. Though it usually was the bride and groom having a real top and bottom tier and the bakery used styrofoam for the other layers - not renting a cake from another place.
And the Ace of Cakes designs aren't new either. I got married in 05 so was looking at stuff in 04 (and earlier b/c I'm obsessive like that) and those bright colors, dots, stripes, etc have all been popular for some time now.
Our cake was included in the pp charge at the location - most NYC area locations do that. Since we knew the bakery they used and really liked their product, it worked out perfectly and was completely affordable.
Funny someone said something about wedding cake only being white. Mine was pale yellow with white swirls on it. My southern Chi O sister came up to me early in the reception and said, "Have you seen your cake?" I said, "No, why? What's wrong?" She said, "It's yellow." I said, "OH! It's supposed to be!!!!" I thought it was funny she was so concerned!
