Budget Weddings Forum

Winter Brunch Menu!

My FH and I love brunch.  The whole "get up late, lazy pancakes/whatever's in the fridge" concept is unbelievable awesome to us, so we want to share it with our guests! 

This is going to be totally DIY, with some hired on-the-day help from 5 or 6 local catering college kids.  I've worked in events before, and have done several years in a high-output restaurant so food safety won't be a problem.

Here goeth the plan. This will be me and my FH doing the work, and a friend is staying with us anyway is probably going to be hanging about.  He'll help if he wants, but it's NOT compulsory.

Menu as follows:

FOOD:
Greek yogurt (store bought)
Granola (store bought or made days previously)
2 toasters - cut your own artisan toast/bagels/crumpets/muffins.  3 types of bread (white, granary, fruit loaf), 2 bagels (plain, onion), crumpets and English muffins. (picked up from local bakery on the day)
Accompaniments for the above - butter, strawberry jam (homemade by my dad), marmalade, honey, a conserve of some kind and Nutella (store bought, except strawberry jam which is made previously)
Continental meat and cheese platter with crackers (prepared the day before, store bought, laid out nicely)
Antipasti (store bought, from jars onto platters)
Sausages (baked in the oven on the day)
Bacon (baked in the oven/done on hob top on the day)
Vegetarian omelette/fritata (potato, onion/leek, mushroom, cheese, eggs) (made on the day, just before serving, all veg prepped the day before)
Egg and bacon quiche (made the day before, served room temp)
Spinach and feta pie/quiche (day before, warmed up in oven)
Pastries (danishes, fruit tartlets, etc) (local bakery)

Wedding cake
We're not doing cake.  I'm making tirimasu cupcakes for the tiers, with a glass dish of tiramisu for the top. (Made previously, served cold/moving to room temp).

DRINKS:
Tea (English breakfast, Earl grey, Jasmine, Peppermint, Fruit)
Coffee (caf, decaf)
Milk
sugar
Apple and cranberry juice
OJ
Hot spiced apple juice
Hot chocolate bar with marshmallows, flakes, squirty cream, etc
Sparkling elder-flower and peach for toasts

My question is: is there anything you'd remove, and why? Is there anything you'd add and why? Any problems you can see? Please be constructive!

Re: Winter Brunch Menu!

  • Brunch menus are usually a hot cooked breakfast (read: eggs benedict, waffles, eggs/bacon cooked to order etc). This isn't really a brunch menu. Whilst a cold continental breakfast (what you have planned) isn't rude, it isn't really what I would expect from a brunch wedding.

    Plus with bacon and sausages, how are you keeping that warm? Who is replenishing when things run out? I just don't think you will be able to have a warm food. Cold bacon (basically bacon not cooked to order) isn't very nice...

    Didn't you have a Christmas roast dinner planned or am I confusing you with another poster?
  • Eh, we have options planned.  Currently trying to ngotiate with the venue - we'll use this if we can't get the whole weekend, but the dinner one if we can, it's that simple.  

    See, it's a bit of a jumble of what everyone I know likes to eat. It'll be served at around noon, so...

    Meep.
  • No problem, good luck! 

    I would suggest if you are DIYing any portion to have the less parts the better. Meaning a roast dinner may be easier because you can have 1-2 caterers on meat, 1 on veg, 1 on yorkshire puds and 1 on gravy.

    Parties are like technology, the less moving parts the less likely it is to break! Your menu looked like a lot of moving parts. 

    Breakfast can be nice, I would see if you could hire some bain-maries. Its winter, so most people will want a warm breakfast. If you have bain-maries that means you can throw in scrambled eggs, mushrooms, beans, with the sausages and bacon.

    I would maybe include some smoked salmon, and cut down on the quiches if you can't get something to keep that warm. 

    Don't forget marmite and HP :)

    Good luck
  • If you have bain-maries that means you can throw in scrambled eggs, mushrooms, beans, with the sausages and bacon.

    I would maybe include some smoked salmon, and cut down on the quiches if you can't get something to keep that warm. 

    Don't forget marmite and HP :)

    Good luck
    My FH would kill me if I forgot the marmite!

    Liking the smoked salmon, and yeah, I'mma look at scrambled eggs, etc. Thanks! xx
  • LondonLisaLondonLisa member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited November 2014
    Also, have you looked at M&S or Waitrose? They do really nice entertaining platters with hot food, whole roasts, cakes etc that can be delivered. This can cut down on the number of caterers you are hiring. 

    I have a friend who had a M&S delivered ham on boxing day- it was delicious and I would have NEVER guessed it came from there. She said the prices were fairly reasonable. 
  • I have, wasn't massively impressed, but I'll look again with fresh eyes! Any recommendations?
  • Well if you have had a look and nothing jumps out at you, maybe give it a miss. 

    Where are you located? Maybe see if there are any restaurants or bakeries that could do hot food along with the brunch pastires.

    Also remember, everyone loves a good curry! It isn't Christmasy, but if you have a good curry house near by that could make trays of korma, biryani, rice, naan, popadoms and chutnies for a curry buffet. You may be able to negotiate a good deal if it is a smaller, family-owned shop.  

    Do you know a good local butcher? You may be able to get a deal on a hog roast. 

    I know this may seem obscure, I'm just trying to help out with inexpensive options. 
  • My only addition to what Lisa says is depending on how many guests you have, there might be a huge bottleneck by only having 2 toasters. (Especially if that may end up being the only warm part of anyone's breakfast.) Even the toasters at hotel continental breakfast buffets end up with a long line when there are only 8 or 10 guests trying to eat at once.

    image
    image
  • My only addition to what Lisa says is depending on how many guests you have, there might be a huge bottleneck by only having 2 toasters. (Especially if that may end up being the only warm part of anyone's breakfast.) Even the toasters at hotel continental breakfast buffets end up with a long line when there are only 8 or 10 guests trying to eat at once.

    I agree with this. I know toast/bagels are obviously easier to prepare, but I think premade pancakes/waffles would be easier to serve. Depending on your guest count, that is a lot of people using those toasters.

    I like the quiche/omelet options you have, but I think people would be expecting jmore hot dish options. Especially in winter around lunch time.

    Personally, I wouldn't eat the yogurt or granola. Or really most of your first half of options. Those just don't seem special to me.

    Another easy option to add would be some fruit trays.

    Anniversary

    image
  • This was the brunch menu at my daughter's wedding that was catered by the country club:

    glazed salmon
    roast beef
    sausages and bacon
    eggs benedict
    asperagus
    hash browns
    pastries
    fruit

    beverages:  coffee, tea, mimosas, bloody marys and sodas.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
  • This is my menu for Brunchgiving at my house this year for 16 guests:

    Turkey and gruyere quiche 
    Spinach quiche (grain-free/dairy-free for Paleo family members)
    Pumpkin French toast muffins
    Brie and pear tart
    Bacon-wrapped sweet potato tots
    Maple sausage links
    Apple sage hash browns
    Fall fruit salad (apples, pomegranate, citrus fruits, cinnamon)
    Roasted red pepper and goat cheese truffles
    Bloody Mary bar
    Coffee bar
    Assorted juices and milk

    image
    image
  • This is my menu for Brunchgiving at my house this year for 16 guests:

    Turkey and gruyere quiche 
    Spinach quiche (grain-free/dairy-free for Paleo family members)
    Pumpkin French toast muffins
    Brie and pear tart
    Bacon-wrapped sweet potato tots
    Maple sausage links
    Apple sage hash browns
    Fall fruit salad (apples, pomegranate, citrus fruits, cinnamon)
    Roasted red pepper and goat cheese truffles
    Bloody Mary bar
    Coffee bar
    Assorted juices and milk
    Could I have the recipe for those muffins? They sound amazing. I'll be recreating that fruit salad too. 
    Anniversary

    image
  • Maybe I missed it, but if I'm gonna have eggs, I love to have potatoes too.
  • I love the idea of a brunch wedding.    

    That said, I'm more of the "unch" part of brunch, not the "br" part.   Your menu is more of a continental breakfast to me.

    Nothing wrong with that, just pointing that someone like me would prefer a craving station of turkey or RB or something more on the lunch end of brunch.






    What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
  • jacques27jacques27 member
    First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited November 2014

    FOOD:
    Greek yogurt (store bought)
    Granola (store bought or made days previously) 
    2 toasters - cut your own artisan toast/bagels/crumpets/muffins.  3 types of bread (white, granary, fruit loaf), 2 bagels (plain, onion), crumpets and English muffins. (picked up from local bakery on the day)  Nix the toast/crumpets/muffins - anything that requires the toaster.  1. You're asking for the line to be held up because of it. 2. I'm your guest - I shouldn't have to slice and heat my own food.  Untoasted, presliced bagels are still good.  Go with assorted pastries (danish, mini muffins, corn muffins, sweet and/or savory scones) and/or various artisan rolls and breadsticks.
    Accompaniments for the above - butter, strawberry jam (homemade by my dad), marmalade, honey, a conserve of some kind and Nutella (store bought, except strawberry jam which is made previously)
    Continental meat and cheese platter with crackers (prepared the day before, store bought, laid out nicely) 
    Antipasti (store bought, from jars onto platters)
    Sausages (baked in the oven on the day)
    Bacon (baked in the oven/done on hob top on the day)  How are the sausages and bacon going to be kept warm?  Are you renting chafing dishes and using sterno?  If so, it might be ok, but if you're not, I'd be inclined to go with something like a spiral sliced ham - good hot, cold, or room temp and doesn't suffer from texture issues after sitting out like bacon.  You already have bacon in one of the quiche - if you really want sausage represented, you could do another quiche with sausage, caramelized onion, and gruyere or some other combo.
    Vegetarian omelette/fritata (potato, onion/leek, mushroom, cheese, eggs) (made on the day, just before serving, all veg prepped the day before)
    Egg and bacon quiche (made the day before, served room temp) 
    Spinach and feta pie/quiche (day before, warmed up in oven)
    Pastries (danishes, fruit tartlets, etc) (local bakery)  I put pastries in the sweet or savory category above in lieu of toasted items.  As far as other pastries go you could do biscotti to go with the tea or coffee and maybe a coffee cake with a nice streusel top.

    Wedding cake
    We're not doing cake.  I'm making tirimasu cupcakes for the tiers, with a glass dish of tiramisu for the top. (Made previously, served cold/moving to room temp).  I'm unclear on the set-up of this.  Will the tiramisu be a dish large enough for everyone to have a serving or are you expecting everyone will have the cupcakes and the top tier is a smaller dish?  Because if it's not enough for everyone, then I would probably just nix the cupcakes and rock the tiramisu instead - maybe have several in large trifle dishes so it looks more impressive.

    DRINKS:
    Tea (English breakfast, Earl grey, Jasmine, Peppermint, Fruit)
    Coffee (caf, decaf)
    Milk
    sugar
    Apple and cranberry juice 
    OJ 
    Hot spiced apple juice  In my experience with putting together continental breakfasts for work events, juice isn't that popular.  So unless you're putting vodka in that cranberry or OJ, I think you may be overdoing it (for a crowd of 60, we barely go through a gallon of juice).  Both hot and cold apple isn't necessary.  Cranberry without vodka isn't that popular (I love it, but it's not that popular).  Or what about nixing the plain juice and creating a punch?
    Hot chocolate bar with marshmallows, flakes, squirty cream, etc
    Sparkling elder-flower and peach for toasts
    Other things: 
    I would have a cold beverage besides juice - even if it's just something like an infused water (lemon, lime, and orange slices for example).

    Instead of my suggestion of an additional sausage quiche, you could do a strata - similar in concept without having to worry about the quiche crust getting soggy sitting out.

    You have a lot of carbs and a lot of egg based dishes.  I would be inclined to find a way to incorporate another vegetable.  Maybe a nice tossed salad - spinach with some toasted walnuts or hazelnuts if you don't have nut allergies to worry about, shaved fennel, sliced pears or sectioned mandarins, maybe a little goat cheese or gorganzola (but not really necessary), and a nice light citrus vinaigrette to help cut the richness of all the egg dishes. 
  • I wouldn't really call this brunch. This is breakfast. I would be disappointed to go to a wedding at noon and be served breakfast. Can you add some more lunch type foods to make it more of a brunch? 
    image
  • It looks great to me! Some of these may be recommendations that others made, but this is what I thought of:
    - Add roasted potatoes and fruit salad
    - For the pastries, make sure you have croissants!!! 
    - Remove antipasti (to me they're more of an afternoon/evening finger food, not really breakfast/brunch)



  • Also, I don't think my vegetarian friends eat eggs. Maybe some do, but I don't think all of them do. Your omelette / quiche options all sound fairly similar. I agree with PPs in 2 toasters probably not enough, add potatoes, add meat like prime rib carving station, add something like waffles or pancakes and something egg-less if your vegetarian friends don't eat eggs. Love smoked salmon.
  • I'd add water.  Also, do any of your guests have allergies or special diet requirements?  For instance, I have celiac disease so I wouldn't be able to have a lot of the food on your menu.  If there was gluten free bread there, I would have to eat it untoasted because I do not want to risk using the same toaster as everyone else and getting cross contamination.  
    image
  • You have an awesome menu & very well planned for DIY too. The only thing I saw that I would like as a guest is water.
  • @emmiejayne How is it going with the planning? Have you decided on a menu yet? It must be fairly soon! Hope everything is going well x
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards