Buffet or plated dinner?

DanielleS8412

We're getting ready to do out tasting for our main dish for our reception, but are butting heads when it comes to what we want.  Our venue offers more options to choose from if we do a buffet, but I think it just seems a little tacky to have a buffet at a nice wedding, but my FI only really thinks one option from the plated dinners sounds good (at least that we can afford to have).  We're having an elegant wedding, and don't want to throw the vibe off with a buffet...
Opinions??

lyndausvi

While i'm not a fan of buffets I hardly think they are tacky.

 they do stations?  

Dannitra01

I LOVE a good buffet and I think they are far from tacky. With a buffet your guests have the option of sampling everything if they'd like. My FI  have realized that we  actually prefer that we have a buffet at our wedding. We want to give our guests more than just one option. Our wedding is Southern inspired and with so many delicious Southern dishes, we would be doing ourselves a disservice to limit it to just one.

Another thing you may want to think about is how this will affect your guests with special diets. You should probably factor in what you might do in the case that you have a guest that doesn't eat red meat or is allergic to shellfish.  

Maggie0829

Buffets are not tacky.

I prefer them over a plated meal because I at least have an option with what I get to eat with a buffet rather then a plated meal that the bride and groom picked.

For our wedding we had several stations where chef attendants finished off the entrees as the guests walked up...everyone loved this because the portions weren't large so they were able to try out every station without feeling incredibly full or felt like they were wasting food.

Peavy

I agree with you, a plated dinner is definitely more elegant than a buffet.  Even if they offer the same entree plated on on a buffet, it always tastes better plated.  Why not ask the venue if they can do a custom entree for you if you don't like what they're offering.  They can always leave out an ingredient that's objectionable to you, etc, or make substitutions.

ChristineNB

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_buffet-or-plated-dinner?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:23Discussion:be47ccf2-8b96-4652-a231-5f9a27cbfb90Post:4bf4bbbb-7c02-4a50-8ca0-d413afe41720">Re: Buffet or plated dinner?</a>:
[QUOTE]Buffets are not tacky. I prefer them over a plated meal because I at least have an option with what I get to eat with a buffet rather then a plated meal that the bride and groom picked. For our wedding we had several stations where chef attendants finished off the entrees as the guests walked up...everyone loved this because the portions weren't large so they were able to try out every station without feeling incredibly full or felt like they were wasting food.
Posted by Maggie0829[/QUOTE]
I agree, buffets are NOT tacky.  Some of the most elegant weddings I have attended included a buffet. I love having options with my food, and with a buffet the cost isn't necessarily more. 

cwaggoner07

For my case, buffet meal was definitely cheaper. Almost every wedding I've ever been to has been buffet style, and I don't think there's anything tacky about it.

lmskowronski

Is there an option for family style? It what we are doing. Everyone picks what they want/portions, but without the walking around. Our hall is serving the salads as well. I believe it was 2 more per person, but much cheaper than a true plated dinner.

SuMmErKuTiE

Buffets are definitely not tacky. We always prefer a buffet or stations over a plated meal at weddings.

We had stations, as neither of us are fans of plated dinners. There either isn't enough, or we don't like the sides it comes with, or it's not hot enough. It's usually just "ok" where as with stations or a buffet you get a wide variety of things to pick from and you have the option to go back up for more. DH always has us hit up the drive-thru on the way home from plated dinner weddings because we're always so hungry afterwards.

I prefer stations over a buffet, but definitely still prefer the buffet over a plated dinner. We had a carving station with prime rib, ham, and turkey, a pasta station, a summer grille station, and a tuscan station. Our guests loved it, and I saw several people going back up for more.

NOLAbridealmost

Buffets are not tacky at all.

fallbride1109

We had a very elegant hotel wedding and a very nice station buffet.  It was arranged elegantly and in a separate room from the ballroom.  I would have preferred plated but it wasn't in the budget -- but I don't feel like the overall feel of our wedding suffered at all.

My boss who is an attorney also had a very fancy hotel wedding and they did family style.

clcranda

I don't think buffets are tacky.  But things to keep in mind with them-  sometimes they are more expensive than plated.  The chefs have to prepare more food.  They don't know what someone is going to eat.  WIth a plated meal, they know how many of each dish they have to prepare.  Also,  how many lines will the buffet have?  If there is only 1 one line, it may take a while for your guests to get through the line.  My FI went to one and it took over 90 mins for everyone to get their food.  The people at the front of the line were done eating before the people at the end even had their food.  I think done the right way, it could be very nice.

TurtlesAllTheWayDown

I think buffets are definitely more casual. That said, do whatever will give your guests a tasty meal.

random4180

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_buffet-or-plated-dinner?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:23Discussion:be47ccf2-8b96-4652-a231-5f9a27cbfb90Post:f03cce70-61f1-43a8-a735-10f51b7d60d3">Re: Buffet or plated dinner?</a>:
[QUOTE]I agree with you, a plated dinner is definitely more elegant than a buffet. <strong> Even if they offer the same entree plated on on a buffet, it always tastes better plated</strong>.  Why not ask the venue if they can do a custom entree for you if you don't like what they're offering.  They can always leave out an ingredient that's objectionable to you, etc, or make substitutions.
Posted by Peavy[/QUOTE]
<div>
</div><div>What...? That's not exactly a fact. </div><div>
</div><div>I love buffets <em>way</em> more than plated because I like being able to choose my food and see my food. And just answering the "chicken, beef, or fish?" option isn't the same as picking out your entree, sides, and appetizers in a restaurant. Not to mention that I'm a strict vegetarian and I tend to get screwed with anything plated, whereas with a buffet if I want to make a meal of the green salad, I can! I don't think there's much elegance lost and I think buffets offer more freedom, which I find pretty accommodating to the guests. </div>

jmichlik

This is a tricky one to me, and here's why: if I am a guest at someone else's wedding I don't mind a buffet, but there was no way I was having one myself. Now to be fair I have only been to one buffet wedding and it was done very nicely, but I have spoken to friends who were unhappy about buffet weddings they had attended. Several things to consider:
- When you have a buffet any guests who are older/have trouble moving around may need someone to get their food. My grandmother is 87 and while she can walk around a bit if I'd had a buffet she would not have been able to stand in a line for it.
- It's important to consider the ratio of guests to stations. I have had people tell me they were at large weddings with only 1-2 large stations and as a result tables were called up one by one to avoid lines/crowds. They were the unfortunate ones at the highest number table and had to wait a long time until they were called for the food. Also, sometimes (and I think this is only at poorly planned weddings, but I've heard of it happening) certain foods may run out by the end or food will be cold.

As I said I don't mind attending buffet weddings at all; however, in comparison I felt the plated dinner was more elegant for my own wedding.

librababy

Love a true buffet. I have seen those Platinum wedding shows with their fancy weddings and big budgets still do a buffet (one wedding had a buffet where the guests actually served themselves and the food alone costs $110,000.) So not tacky at all to have a buffet. To each their own.

Buffets can be poorly done (having people wait too long, etc) but I still prefer it over plated meals. 

charlycrowe

i believe at the end of the day it is your day!
You should surround yourself with the people that know you best & will be happy with what you choose.
I don't think that anyone really close to you desires you to start your happy life in debt. Key factor to your decision:  Stay within your budget.
i am having a family style wedding, with a "Fiesta de Amor" theme in San Antonio. We decided to throw our beloved family a great July 4th party & get married somewhere in the middle of it all!  we're letting everyone in on the fun of planning it too.  After polling our guests, they've overwhelming opted for a less-formal-than sit down affair.  From having dinner picnic style on blankets on the grounds, to family style sit down, to "grazing" stations.  Keeping to the July 4thTex-Mex theme, we're going with casual table seating (no seat assignments), and a self-serve buffet.  Our hors d'ouerves hour will have 4 stations with different groupings of appetizers and drink at each station.