Your Devon and Cornwall Wedding - May/June 2020 (Issue 25)

CHEF IN MY HOME “With our weddings we, like many other catering companies, offer a bespoke service but we take it one step further, not only writing menus for our wedding couples but also growing our produce and rearing livestock for their dishes too,” owners Victoria and Dean Dawes tell us. “We like to work about 16 months in advance with this service so that we can plan the polytunnels and raised beds for growing the produce.” Victoria and Dean have worked with some very varied menus using this service, one of the most memorable at a wedding at Bre-Pen farm near Mawgan Porth in Cornwall where the couple wanted their wedding meal to tell the story of their travels around the world. “It featured influences from countries such as Cambodia, Argentina, Vietnam, Brasil and Korea to name but a few,” Victoria and Dean tell us. “They wanted Korean barbecues in the middle of each table so that guests could cook their meat and fish, as well as an entire goat cooked over a fire. We sourced the meat and fish locally using alpaca meat from Moorfield farm in Bodmin for one of the South American dishes, and a goat from our herd. We did run into a few problems with the planning! Because it was under canvas and on National Trust land, we couldn’t use coal for the Korean barbecue for insurance reasons, so we adapted their wish and came up with some different suggestions including teppanyaki grills which involved having a bespoke wiring system made to run them all.” TOP TIP : “There hasn’t been a request that we have not been able to manage to fulfil and we have had a few strange ones such as using a JCB to cut the wedding cake! So let your imagination run wild and link your food to your theme, and don’t be afraid to get in touch!” - Victoria and Dean Chef in my home | 07496 886 554 | www.chefinmyhome.co.uk Let’s get social: www.instagram.com/chefinmyhomecornwall WEST COUNTRY CATERERS Sarah-Jane Payne has run West Country Caterers for 23 years and the company endeavour to move with the various wedding styles that are trending, from cold buffets to formal sit down wedding breakfasts and street food-style casual dining. “Our aim is always to tailor the wedding menu to suit the individual parties’ needs and tastes, rather than dictating the menu that they have to choose from,” Sarah-Jane tells us. “Over the years, we have followed trends and fashions which are usually led by celebrity weddings. Some years ago there was a leap in requests for gourmet bangers and mash with red onion gravy after actress Kate Winslet’s wedding. Currently, the trend is for street food-style celebrations and rustic-inspired themes involving sharing platters. We now offer big pan-style dishes in the form of paella, chilli and nachos with relevant dips and cassoulet or different varieties of curry served with rice, naan and poppadoms. We still offer the traditional style of wedding breakfasts and barbecues and work alongside North Devon Hog Roasts to supply a hog roast for the day or evening party food. West Country Caterers also offer a full design and planning service.” TOP TIP : “Remember that the caterer is there from start to finish so can be asked to liaise with all the other wedding suppliers throughout the day, for example, photographers, florists and cake designers. We’re always available to chat through any planning or concerns that the couple may have throughout their planning stages.” - Sarah-Jane West Country Caterers | 01769 560 473 | www.west-country-caterers.co.uk Let’s get social: www.facebook.com/WestCountryCaterers 50