Wedding Catering

Despite the fact that your wedding day nerves may leave you feeling as though you don’t want to eat, your guests probably won’t be feeling the same.  And as their stomachs begin to rumble, it’s a good feed that will (no doubt) be on their minds.

Choosing a Caterer

Apart from your wedding ceremony itself, the meal is something that your guests are sure to remember.  By taking the time to select a professional and quality caterer, you can rest assured that your food and beverages will be mouth watering, served at the right time and temperature, and by courteous and efficient staff.

When deciding upon a caterer, it is very difficult to select one from a brochure alone, so make sure that you speak to people whom have utilised their services and ask them lots of questions.  Seek recommendations from both family and friends, or people who have recently been married.  Alternatively, a good caterer will be well known to the bridal industry and should be able to provide you with a list of past clients who you may be able to talk to.

If a particular caterer runs a restaurant, go along and sample their food before making any final decisions.  Others may have display albums that you may browse through in order to see how their menus are prepared and some will also be able to offer taste testing.  It may even be possible for you to go along to one of their functions to see how they operate and how they prepare and present their food.

Make appointments with a few different caterers and be sure to look for quality and value for money.  Obtain written quotes from each, and compare these at home to ensure that you’re getting exactly what you want for the price that you can afford.

There are also some other important factors that you should consider when selecting your caterer.  First and foremost, you need to decide upon the style of reception and catering that you wish to have.  There are several options to choose from including:

• Afternoon Tea
• Buffet (sit down or standing)
• Champagne Brunch
• Cocktail Style
• Finger Food
• Luncheon
• Sit down formal dinner

Once you have decided upon the style of reception you would like to have, ensure that your caterer can accommodate for this.  Some caterers specialise in only one particular style (such as buffet or finger food only), so ensure that you choose someone who is experienced in the type of catering you wish to have.  In addition to this, some caters specialise in catering for certain numbers (for example, less than 100 guests or more than 100 guests), so it’s important that you have an idea of how many will be attending your reception.

Regardless of the type of reception you are having, you should consider asking the following questions when meeting with your cater.

• What style of catering do they provide (buffet, sit down dinner, finger food etc)?
• Is there a minimum or maximum number of guests that they will cater for?
• What are the meal or food options available?
• Do they cater for special dietary needs (vegetarian, diabetic, gluten free etc)?
• Are menu changes possible?
• Are wait staff provided and, if so, what will the ratio of staff to guests be?
• Do they provide cutlery, dinnerware, napkins, tablecloths and glassware?
• Do they provide drinks and alcohol (if required)?
• Are they licensed to serve alcohol (if required)?
• Is there anything that they do not provide?
• Is there anything that they need in order to set up or operate?
• Do they clean up after the guests have eaten?
• Are they insured?
• What is the final cost and are there any added costs?
• What deposit is required and when is the final payment due?
• What is their cancellation / refund policy?
• Is there anything else that you should be made aware of?

Once the food has been taken care of, it is time to consider the ‘bevies’!  There are several options and costs associated with serving beverages at a wedding and it is important to consider all of them, and the pros and cons associated with each.

Open Bar

An open bar gives you and your guests the opportunity to drink an unlimited quantity of beverages throughout the length of the reception.  The bar staff keep track of the guests orders and then issue a bill at the end of the reception.  From a guests point of view an open bar is the ‘ultimate’ when it comes to wedding receptions.  Whilst this may be the case, at the end of the day, it is not the guest who will be paying the bill.  The open bar option is fine, should you have an unlimited amount of cash to spend on beverages, but if you’re like the majority of people, this is probably not likely.  Not only is it the most expensive way to serve drinks at the reception, it is also the most likely method to intoxify your guests!
One way around this is to have an open bar for the first hour or two of the reception and then resort to one of the following options listed below.

Tray Service

In order to minimise the cost to you, whilst ensuring that your guests don’t have to pay for their own drinks, you may wish to opt for a tray service.  Prior to your reception, meet with your drinks caterer and select a variety of drinks that you believe will be popular among your guests.  These may then be pre-poured and served to your guests throughout the reception at pre-determined times.  The advantages of this option are that it helps to keep the cost down for you, and it prevents over consumption of alcohol among your guests.  The disadvantages are that if a guest misses the drinks tray they may have to wait until the next round, and secondly they may feel as though they’d like a few more drinks.

Placing Beverages on the Table

By placing bottles of beer and wine (along with soft drinks and juices) on the tables, guests are able to serve their own drinks when they wish.  There are usually two ways in which you may go about this.  The first is to meet with your drinks caterer prior to the reception to order a set amount of beer, wine, champagne, soft drinks and juices.  Have the staff place the drinks on the table, throughout the reception for your guests, allowing a set amount for each table.  This will allow you to control both the expense and the consumption.
The other option is to do the above with an unlimited supply.  This is obviously a more expensive option, but may still be controlled by the drinks staff if you request the service to be cut back throughout the reception.

Cash Bar

The cash bar option allows you to be free of any expenses associated with beverages.  This option requires your guests to pay for their drinks, as they would at any other bar.  Many couples use this option in combination with some of those already mentioned above.  For example, you may wish to have an open bar for the first hour or two and then revert to the cash bar option after that time.  Another option is to provide beer and wine, along with soft drinks and juices throughout the reception, however use the cash bar for spirits.  And yet another option would be to provide non-alcoholic beverages to your guests throughout the reception and use the cash bar for alcoholic drinks.

Bar Tab

A bar tab gives you the option of setting a pre-determined amount of money (the ‘bar tab’) to cover drinks for your guests.  Throughout the reception, bar staff keep note of the drinks being ordered by your guests.  Guests are free to order whenever they wish throughout the reception and once the bar tab is reached, they must purchase their own.  This option gives you peace of mind that you won’t be going over budget and your guests may continue to drink, at their own expense if they wish to.

Self-Catering Beverages

There may also be the case where your caterer or reception venue does not cater for or provide alcohol.  In this case it may be possible for you to arrange to purchase the beverages and organise wait staff to serve it.  If this is the case, you need to discuss your options with your reception venue.  Check whether you are required to arrange any liquor licences or similar in order to have alcoholic beverages served at your reception.

Be sure that you order enough alcohol for the evening, and remember that it is better to have too much than too little.  Many hotels and liquor stores will buy back any unopened bottles or slabs, so you can rest assured that you wouldn’t be left with a house full of alcohol after the big event!  They also may provide complimentary glasses for use at your reception when ordering the alcohol from them.  All you need to pay for are any breakages.  Ask your liquor store to assist you in planning for the amount of alcohol that you will require for your guests.  On average, most guests will consume 4-5 drinks.  The table opposite may also assist in planning how much alcohol you need to purchase.  This should be used as a guide only.

With the right choice of caterer and selection of drinks, your guests are bound to be talking about your reception for years to come.