What’s on THE MENU? Wedding catering questions answered Choosing what food and drink to serve on your big day is one of the biggest milestones in the planning process, especially if you’re dedicated foodies like us! After all, this is an essential element not only in ensuring your guests’ enjoyment of the day, but also keeping them going so they can keep up the celebratory pace with the two of you! If it’s something you’ve started to think about, you may already have a list of questions. So, here we tackle the need-to-knows. Do I need a wedding caterer? This very much depends on your venue. The topic of catering will be an important one to discuss with the venue team when you have your initial show around. Venues such as hotels will likely have their own in-house team of chefs who will provide your catering as part of your wedding package. Others such as manor houses and some barns will be operated by a catering company, in which case this will be taken care of again. If you’d rather have the power of choice however, look for a dry hire venue that will either offer you a list of recommended caterers or will otherwise give you complete freedom of choice. You may, of course, decide to go totally DIY and opt for an al fresco, festival style, tipi wedding, in which case the sky’s the limit. What do I need to know before booking a caterer? There are three essential pieces information you’ll need to be armed with before you start looking for wedding caterers. The first is the where. Prospective caterers will need to know where they’ll be cooking in order to ascertain whether it’s a location they can logistically work with and what equipment they may or may not need to bring in. Next and equally important are the numbers. You’ll need to provide a fairly accurate idea of numbers. Under- or over-estimating can be problematic and costly. So, be as precise as you can and keep the team apprised of any updates. Finally, budget. Work out how much of your overall budget you’re allocating to the food. Caterers will most often work on a cost per head basis, so this will be essential to your final quote. Questions for your caterer Once you’ve narrowed down your shortlist of caterers and it’s time for a planning meeting, you may be wondering how to tackle the next steps. Presumably you’ll have already addressed point number one: whether they’re available on your wedding date, so here are some more questions you might not have thought of yet. •Have you catered a wedding at our venue before? •Will you provide crockery, cutlery and waiting staff? •Do you offer set options or can you create bespoke menus? •Will there be an opportunity to try our selections before the big day, and is there an extra charge for this? •How much deposit do you require and when is the final balance due? •When do we need to confirm final numbers? •Can we see your food safety credentials? •If we need any special event permits who will handle those? •From where do you source your ingredients? •How much time will you need for set-up and clear-up? •Do you charge a set fee or cost per head? What food do I need to provide on the day aside from the wedding breakfast? Remember, a wedding can be a long day. Most ceremonies will take place late morning or early afternoon and celebrations may go on into the wee small hours, so guests are going to be with you for most of the day. While the two of you will be on cloud nine on the day, with food the furthest thing from your minds (hard to believe, right?) try to put yourself in your guests’ shoes from the planning stages to make sure you leave no stone unturned as far as their enjoyment is concerned. We’ve all been to a wedding, so put your hands up if you agree that by far the biggest slump for a guest is post ceremony. You’re handed a glass of alcohol, but the tummy has started to rumble, and the happy couple have disappeared with their photographer for what seems like hours on end while all you can think about is when the wedding breakfast is coming. The simplest solution is canapes. Tried and tested, these mini morsels can be created to reflect your favourite flavours or theme. What about mini fish ‘n’ chip cones if you’re saying “I do” by the seaside, or burger sliders for an al fresco summer vibe? We love the idea of a snack station whether it be sweet or savoury. Accessible to everyone, guests can help themselves without having to chase the waiting staff around the venue or risk missing out. A scone station is ideal for an English country garden vibe, or perhaps popcorn if you’re big movie fans. Curated Lifestyle on Unsplash Toa Hefitab on Unsplash CATERING 53
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