Run out of Food

Worst case scenario, you run out of food at your reception. Whether you are serving cake and champagne, small plates, stations, full sit down dinner, or a buffet, the last thing you want is for your guests to leave hungry.



One way to avoid this is to be clear with your caterer as to your expectations, "Hey, Mr. or Mrs. Caterer, our guests are expecting a full meal, and they eat, so make sure we don't run out of food!"



Sometimes you look a quote for a caterer and notice the prices are pretty low, sometimes too good to be true. And that's because you are expecting a full dinner and they are pricing the meal out as light hors devours.



This would not a good scenario for anyone. So remember to be clear. 50% of your budget will be spent on food, you should get what you are paying for.

Dragonfly Sushi Caters!

Not every resturant is equipted to be your favorite resturant and also be a great wedding caterer. It takes a lot to be a professional wedding caterer! Don't be fooled, not every resturant that caters can do weddings!!!  But Dragonfly Sushi and Saki is breaking the mold. Not only are they amazing at Sushi, but they have a full catering menu that doesn't have to be Japanese inspired

We love their sushi, my husband and I eat there all of the time! And now we have 6 weddings contracted to use them for their wedding catering!

Check out this video for their awesometastic set up!

And you can follow them on Twitter!

Catering Crumbs!

One of our favoritest, funnest caters now has a blog and a twitter account! So check out Catering Crumbs for fun catering advice, amazing urban catering ideas, and just plain fun stuff!



Leah and her staff work really hard at finding fun unique wants to display food, they make eveything fresh, and their displays are incredible!



So check it out, and then follow Leah on Twitter, at CateringCrumbs!



{and if you aren't following us, we are WeddingPlanner1}

Food for Thought!

Were you thinking of using a family friend or new small local business to cater your wedding?





Think again!



Even though you may save money using one of these outlets, your reception will not have the same quality as it would if you had a professional wedding caterer. When hiring any vendor for your wedding, make sure they have wedding experience because it’s completely different from any other celebration.



The caterer needs to be able to adhere to the strict timeline and work quickly and efficiently so the guests are never wondering why it is taking so long to get a glass of water or their next course of the meal. It’s important to have the very best service on your special day!!



Here are some questions you should ask before hiring a caterer:



1. Have they ever catered a wedding before? (sounds like a stupid question, but you will be surprised…)



2. What is their price range? Are costs itemized depending on the foods you choose, or is there an all-inclusive flat rate? What would that include (linens, tax, gratuities, etc.)? Does the caterer have printed price sheets for food selections?



3. Will the caterer provide tables, chairs, plates, table linens, silverware, salt-and-pepper shakers, and more? Ask to see these items to make sure they're acceptable. Do you have to rent tables, place settings, and/or other equipment or will they arrange for the rentals?



4. Who is the main contact? Will the same person you work with when planning also oversee meal service on the day of the party? (You want this to be the case.) And what will their role me that day, will they be a server or supervisor!



5. Is the caterer working any other events or parties on the same weekend, on the same day, or at the same time as yours? (You want to be sure they will devote sufficient attention to you. You may want to pass on a smaller outfit who indicates they have another job or two scheduled for that day.)



6. Will the caterer provide wait staff? If so, what will they be wearing? Have those servers EVER served before?



7. Will the caterer be willing to include a recipe you provide, like a special family dish, or an appetizer with some sort of sentimental significance? Can they prepare vegetarian or kosher meals for some of your guests if needed?



8. Where will the food be prepared? Are there on-site facilities, or do you, the caterer, and the site manager need to make additional arrangements? If the caterer must bring in his or her own equipment, is there an additional fee?



9. Does the caterer have a license? (This means the business has met health department standards and has liability insurance -- make sure this includes a liquor license if you're having a bar.)



10. Can the caterer provide alcohol? Or can you handle the bar separately? If you can provide it, is there a corkage fee? How and when do you get the alcohol to the caterer?



I am not saying that a brand new caterer is not hire-able, but I want you to know what you are getting into, everyone has to start someone, and having a game plan is a great place to start!



Source

Let them Eat Cake and....

Wedding cake is beautiful and everyone loves to look at what a beautiful work of art it is - but what if you wanted to serve cake and _________ (you fill in the blank). Wouldn't it be nice to shake things up a bit. At one event we had tableside Cherries Jubilee, the guests loved it! It was such a treat.

But if you didn't want to go that far, how are some of these suggestions. They are a fun play on common foods served in small portions are look AMAZING! Something your guests will be sure to remember. Another great way to personalize your wedding!

The top image is from Oh Joy! And the lower from Kim Vallee.

Vendor Contracts- Part Deux!

Let's talk about your venue, even just for a moment. I mean you have to have the reception some where, even if its at your house (then maybe it'd be rental contract for the tent, but even so, it's a place). Financially, this is the most important aspect of the wedding, because it is where the most money is spent (50% remember), so make sure that the site and the contract are "legit". If you are working with a national hotel, it is more likely to have a legal contract, but make sure they are not nickel and dime'ing, and if they are, then know those amounts ahead of time so you are not surprised.

• Total cost and line item break down of what's included



• Exact date and time of the wedding



• Exact location(s) of the wedding reception (Ballroom A or the Pelican Room)



• Detailed list of everything the venue will provide



• The name of the site representative who will be on hand on your wedding day



• Proof of Liability insurance and liquor license



• Amount of deposit and when it was paid



• Balance outstanding and when it is due (or the payment schedule)



• Cancellation policy/refund policy



• Anything else you agreed to orally, make sure you get it written down so you have proof, you can always add amendments to contracts - don't be afraid to ask!!!

Also have a exact drawing of how you'd like the room set up, we recently did a wedding at a Hilton and they provided a CAD drawing of the room, so we crossed out the tables we didn't need and numbered the tables on the layout how we wanted it.... when we got there for set up the banquet captain had just set up the tables as we had numbered leaving a HUGE gap between the doors and where the tables were started.... even spacing would have been nice. They fixed it, but if the drawing had been more accurate, it would have been one less stressor.

Welcome to Miami!

I just got back from an amazing wedding in Miami! Lourdes and Andrew - thank you for including me in your plans! I hope to get your pictures up here as soon as possible! You both are an amazing couple! The ceremony was so personal, the reception was as beautiful as the two of you! I hope you are having a blast in Napa Valley!


Lourdes did so many things to make sure the event was classy - and make sure to include both of their heritages! Lourdes' family speaks Spanish and Andrew's is Ukrainian, so Lourdes did her vows in Ukrainian and Andrew did his in Spanish, the families kept the theme in the reception doing the toasts in multiple languages, it was super special!

The food was amazing, she had Cuban Food, Ukrainian food, and Italian food, all so delicious, I've never seen so many guests go back for seconds and even thirds!


I can't wait to post pictures soon!

Funny Because It's True!

We all want to save a buck or two, but all to often saving money by hiring friends or doing things yourself can lead to an outcome you weren't expecting (most of the time not a good outcome). Especially if you have a friend helping with the cake or the flowers beware that this adds another level of stress to the wedding for. Whenever possible hire professionals for the wedding and if Aunt Kay really wants to help, have her help with the rehearsal - it's not that we don't love Aunt Kay - it's just that the stress it will cause you, and frankly her, can be too much to handle - it may not seem like it now, but I promise it's a stressor.


These cartoons - I found at Grooms Online - it reminds me of when I told my parents that I was getting married, my father said "So Kentucky Fried Chicken and a keg, sound good!"

Food! (the first of the 5 F's)

Food accounts for 50% of the wedding budget (most of the time, depending on the area) that means that 40% of the entire budget accounts for what goes into the guests stomach - and 10% for the venue, that's a lot of money! We'll go over where the other money goes towards as the days go on....

But keeping that in mind, if food is uber important to you (or your client) that percentage can certainly go up! But if you are only serving cake and champagne, that figure can be lowered. But let's talk about what's typical - 50% for food and venue.

Did you know that when asked 85 out of 100 people said the #1 thing that comes to mind when remembering a wedding is what or how good the meal was - #2 was how fun the reception was. So food is certainly something that deserves some time.

I am loving the idea of serving fun and different foods, recently we coordinated an after party for one of our clients (another growing trend - for another post) the client wanted to serve lots of little foods, mini hamburgers (like two bits), mini grilled cheese and ham sandwiches and an espresso cup filled with tomato bisque, mini bite sized hot dogs in a bun! (all should be eaten in 2 bites).