Our proposed menu

OurWildKingdom

Beverages:

Coffee with sweeteners, dairy milk and soy milk
Iced tea with lemon, simple syrup, and artificial sweeteners 
Pink lemon-limeade
Very Berry Refresher
Cider punch
Water with lemon on the side (maybe a gallon or two of infused water in addition to plain)

Food: 

Cheese and crackers tray
Vegetable trays with dip (including vegan dips)
Fruit trays
Finger sandwiches: chicken salad, egg salad, tofu salad, cucumber-cream cheese, pimiento cheese
Wraps cut in thirds: Ham, turkey, roast beef, and roasted vegetable, plus a tray of gluten-free wraps with roasted vegetables
Mediterranean trays with hummus, baba ghanouj, stuffed grape leaves, and tabouli
Antipasti trays
"New York" deli trays with roast beef, corned beef, pastrami, and roast turkey for those who need something gluten-free with meat (I asked the deli manager at the grocery store and found out that all the meat is gluten-free) or just want something different; one with potato salad, one with coleslaw, hold the bread

Sweets:

Chocolate chip cookies (our nearby food service supply store has large boxes of ready-to-bake cookies)
Sheet cakes: one half-white and half-yellow, the other half-chocolate and half-red velvet, both with Bavarian cream filling and either white buttercream, white whipped satin, or Oreo whipped satin (I didn't know this was an option till today) icing
Vegan gluten-free chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing

Late afternoon snack:

Sheet pizza

My questions: 

1. We pushed the wedding back to October. Should we offer hot tea instead of or in addition to iced?
2. Should we bother with the infused water?
3. I was considering switching to mini croissant sandwiches instead of wraps (except for gluten-free, of course). The costs are comparable. What do you think guests would prefer?
4. Do you think the corned beef and pastrami are polarizing (I was never a fan of either even when I still ate red meat, but I know folks who would enjoy them. FW likes corned beef but not pastrami.)?
5. What flavors and/or icing would you pick for the cakes? Me, I'm all about the frosting regardless of type, and I know buttercream will hold up better if it's hot. Also, FW loves the Bavarian cream but I'm concerned about it in heat. (October weather in Ohio is weird.)
6. What do you think about the pizza?

downtondiva

1. Hot tea in addition to iced. 

2. Sure, why not?

3. This is just personal preference, but as much as I love croissants, I like them better on their own (or filled with chocolate, lol). I'd say stick with the wraps. 

4. If you have enough guests who'd enjoy corned beef or pastrami, then go for it. Since you have the roast beef and turkey as well, you should be okay. I'll admit I'd be pretty excited to see corned beef at a wedding since I love it. 

5. My only knowledge of frosting involves eating it in large quantities. You may want to discuss this with whoever is making the cakes. 

6. The pizza depends on the length of your reception, I think. You've got a very nice (and big) selection of food already, so I'm not sure this is necessary. 

ILoveBeachMusic

Totally agree! Your menu sounds delicious. I would definitely offer iced tea. The infused waters would be nice - I drink a ton of water not matter what time of year it is.

debbeau

The food sounds great. There is something for everyone. You might not even need the pizza. Love the infused waters idea. Vanilla buttercream I would eat on any flavor cake. 

missfrodo

1. We pushed the wedding back to October. Should we offer hot tea instead of or in addition to iced?
I love hot tea but not iced--where I live, October can still be pretty warm, so if people are used to iced tea I think it's fine to leave it as is, but I personally wouldn't say no to hot tea!
2. Should we bother with the infused water?
Again, personal preference, I wouldn't need it, but if it's something you like and you can afford it, why not?  
3. I was considering switching to mini croissant sandwiches instead of wraps (except for gluten-free, of course). The costs are comparable. What do you think guests would prefer?
I agree with downtondiva, I only like sweet croissants (or for a breakfast sandwich), but not for dinner.  Unless you're doing a brunch and have sausage in your croissants, I'd prefer the wraps.
4. Do you think the corned beef and pastrami are polarizing (I was never a fan of either even when I still ate red meat, but I know folks who would enjoy them. FW likes corned beef but not pastrami.)?
I don't eat red meat and never really liked either of those, but I know H would love the corned beef!  He'd eat pastrami, but prefer the corned beef.
5. What flavors and/or icing would you pick for the cakes? Me, I'm all about the frosting regardless of type, and I know buttercream will hold up better if it's hot. Also, FW loves the Bavarian cream but I'm concerned about it in heat. (October weather in Ohio is weird.)
I vote for buttercream.  Definitely.  For me, it's the only frosting worth having.  As for the Bavarian cream getting too hot, maybe the venue can store the cakes in a fridge until it's time to serve?  I know what you mean about weather being weird--even up in Maine, it can be 80 or 30 in October.  We can have snow at Halloween or run around in shorts, it just depends.
6. What do you think about the pizza?
Again, I agree with downtondiva.  I always have room for pizza, and I think if you get it from your favorite local place (as opposed to, say, Pizza Hut or another national chain), guests would really enjoy it--as long as they aren't still stuffed from dinner and cake.  

OurWildKingdom

@downtondiva, our ceremony is at 2:00, and our reception will start around 2:45-3:00. We'll wrap up by 6:00 so people can go get dinner if they want. Maybe we'll save the pizza for an after-party if anyone is interested in coming to the house later. The cakes are from the grocery store; I'll ask the bakery staff.

@missfrodo, we're making our own beverages; I'll rent or borrow urns for the coffee and hot tea and a 5-gallon dispenser for plain water, and I often see 1- and 2-gallon beverage dispensers for the cold drinks in thrift stores or on Craigslist. I was thinking a melon-cucumber infused water and maybe a citrus-mint one. The pizza would be from our favorite local place. It reminds me of the pizza I had as a kid growing up in a very Italian neighborhood.

ei34

Looks delish!
The hot tea is very know your crowd- do you have a lot of tea drinkers?  For example, I know my parents only drink coffee in the morning, and then have tea in the afternoon and evening, so if they wanted something hot to drink, it'd be tea, not coffee.  Are a lot of your guests like them?
I'd go for the infused water.  I'd also stick with wraps instead of croissants, which I love but are a bit messy.  The flakes get all over me when I eat one (maybe I'm just a messy eater lol), whereas a wrap holds the sandwich fillings so nicely. 
Like you, I like any frosting, but buttercream is probably the least polarizing.
And to me, pizza is always a nice addition to any wedding (or anything).

ScottishSarah

I love croissants with ham and cheese.  Saying that they are not great to eat in fancy clothes as you get covered in crumbs and butter.

I would have both iced and hot tea, like you said October weather is unpredictable!

I would save the pizza for the afterparty or not bother tbh as it's a 3 hour reception.

I also think infused water is a great idea.

Do you and FW have someone to push the on button on the coffee machine? lol

STARMOON44

I'd skip the pizza, but other than that sounds great!

bleve0821

I prefer hot tea to iced.  Question about the iced tea, though.  Is it unsweetened with sweeteners provided or sweetened with additional lemon and sweeteners (I assume nothing anymore...)?

I love the sound of the cucumber-melon infused water!

Wraps, wraps, wraps!  They're easier to eat, less flaky, and just less messy in general.

Corned beef!!!!

I know nothing about frosting, sorry, can't help there.

Your menu sounds wonderful.  Sorry if I missed this, but how are you keeping the sandwich meats/egg salad/etc cold?  I think that would be my biggest concern with the menu, that food getting warm.

charlotte989875

OurWildKingdom said:

Beverages:

Coffee with sweeteners, dairy milk and soy milk
Iced tea with lemon, simple syrup, and artificial sweeteners 
Pink lemon-limeade
Very Berry Refresher
Cider punch
Water with lemon on the side (maybe a gallon or two of infused water in addition to plain)

Food: 

Cheese and crackers tray
Vegetable trays with dip (including vegan dips)
Fruit trays
Finger sandwiches: chicken salad, egg salad, tofu salad, cucumber-cream cheese, pimiento cheese
Wraps cut in thirds: Ham, turkey, roast beef, and roasted vegetable, plus a tray of gluten-free wraps with roasted vegetables
Mediterranean trays with hummus, baba ghanouj, stuffed grape leaves, and tabouli
Antipasti trays
"New York" deli trays with roast beef, corned beef, pastrami, and roast turkey for those who need something gluten-free with meat (I asked the deli manager at the grocery store and found out that all the meat is gluten-free) or just want something different; one with potato salad, one with coleslaw, hold the bread

Sweets:

Chocolate chip cookies (our nearby food service supply store has large boxes of ready-to-bake cookies)
Sheet cakes: one half-white and half-yellow, the other half-chocolate and half-red velvet, both with Bavarian cream filling and either white buttercream, white whipped satin, or Oreo whipped satin (I didn't know this was an option till today) icing
Vegan gluten-free chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing

Late afternoon snack:

Sheet pizza

My questions: 

1. We pushed the wedding back to October. Should we offer hot tea instead of or in addition to iced? I would add the hot tea and agree with @AtomicBlonde above about having unsweetined and having sweetners/lemon available.  

2. Should we bother with the infused water? Sounds like a great addition if you have the budget. I drink a ton of water and would really love the infused flavors you mentioned. 

3. I was considering switching to mini croissant sandwiches instead of wraps (except for gluten-free, of course). The costs are comparable. What do you think guests would prefer? Stick with the wraps. They're easier to eat and not as messy, plus they tend to go with all types of meat and veggie options. 

4. Do you think the corned beef and pastrami are polarizing (I was never a fan of either even when I still ate red meat, but I know folks who would enjoy them. FW likes corned beef but not pastrami.)? I'd go with one or the other and since your FW likes corned beef I think it sounds great. Since you also have roast beef and turkey I don't think you need the pastrami, but I think corned beef would be a good addition. 
5. What flavors and/or icing would you pick for the cakes? Me, I'm all about the frosting regardless of type, and I know buttercream will hold up better if it's hot. Also, FW loves the Bavarian cream but I'm concerned about it in heat. (October weather in Ohio is weird.) Buttercream is a classic for a reason, it tends to go with everything. I think it would be great on all the flavors you mentioned, although Oreo frosting is definitely something I could get on board with. 
6. What do you think about the pizza? Since the reception is 3 hours I don't think you need a late afternoon snack. Given what you've listed here I think you'll have more than enough food. If you are doing an after party I think it would be nice, and that way you can see how many people come over and just order enough for the people that decide to stick around. 

Sounds lovely! My answers are in bold above, but in general sounds like you've really though hard about what most people will enjoy and that what matters. 

OurWildKingdom

@AtomicBlonde, the tea will be unsweetened, and we'll rent "fill and chill" tables. You pour ice in and set anything you want to keep cold on top of the ice.

drglitter

OurWildKingdom said:

Beverages:

Coffee with sweeteners, dairy milk and soy milk
Iced tea with lemon, simple syrup, and artificial sweeteners 
Pink lemon-limeade
Very Berry Refresher
Cider punch
Water with lemon on the side (maybe a gallon or two of infused water in addition to plain)

Food: 

Cheese and crackers tray
Vegetable trays with dip (including vegan dips)
Fruit trays
Finger sandwiches: chicken salad, egg salad, tofu salad, cucumber-cream cheese, pimiento cheese
Wraps cut in thirds: Ham, turkey, roast beef, and roasted vegetable, plus a tray of gluten-free wraps with roasted vegetables
Mediterranean trays with hummus, baba ghanouj, stuffed grape leaves, and tabouli
Antipasti trays
"New York" deli trays with roast beef, corned beef, pastrami, and roast turkey for those who need something gluten-free with meat (I asked the deli manager at the grocery store and found out that all the meat is gluten-free) or just want something different; one with potato salad, one with coleslaw, hold the bread

Sweets:

Chocolate chip cookies (our nearby food service supply store has large boxes of ready-to-bake cookies)
Sheet cakes: one half-white and half-yellow, the other half-chocolate and half-red velvet, both with Bavarian cream filling and either white buttercream, white whipped satin, or Oreo whipped satin (I didn't know this was an option till today) icing
Vegan gluten-free chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing

Late afternoon snack:

Sheet pizza

My questions: 

1. We pushed the wedding back to October. Should we offer hot tea instead of or in addition to iced? Iced tea seems like enough to me unless you have many guests who love hot tea, or it's very cold that day.
2. Should we bother with the infused water? If it's hot, then I think this sounds great. I'm also getting married in October, in Indiana, so our weather is similar. I understand it could be snowing, or it could be 90. Can you decide the day of whether you want to infuse it or not?
3. I was considering switching to mini croissant sandwiches instead of wraps (except for gluten-free, of course). The costs are comparable. What do you think guests would prefer? Wraps.
4. Do you think the corned beef and pastrami are polarizing (I was never a fan of either even when I still ate red meat, but I know folks who would enjoy them. FW likes corned beef but not pastrami.)? I think one or the other sounds good, and since FW loves corned beef, I'd go with that.
5. What flavors and/or icing would you pick for the cakes? Me, I'm all about the frosting regardless of type, and I know buttercream will hold up better if it's hot. Also, FW loves the Bavarian cream but I'm concerned about it in heat. (October weather in Ohio is weird.) Buttercream is amazing.
6. What do you think about the pizza? It pains me to say this because I have never met a pizza I didn't love, but I think you could skip the pizza, or have it at an after party.

My answers are in bold above. I'm glad to see that you're back to planning!

OurWildKingdom

@drglitter, I can start infusing the water first thing in the morning, if not the night before. 


This is what the "chill and fill" tables look like, if you haven't seen them. I think we'll need at least three or four, but they're not that expensive to rent.

http://www.abcpartycentral.com/equipment.asp?action=category&category=51&key=TABFILL

labro

How about hot apple cider as a warm drink option instead or in addition to the tea?

OurWildKingdom

labro said:

How about hot apple cider as a warm drink option instead or in addition to the tea?

I love hot cider -- great idea!

kahluakoala

I think if you're having coffee you should have hot tea - just set them up together. It's like having coke and diet coke, they kind of just go together.

I think if you're having pizza you should have it out with all the other food. If I had sandwiches and cake for lunch I'm not going to be hungry like 2 hours later, BUT if it was "sandwiches or pizza" I might have 1 slice of pizza and a half sammie or something. 

Also, wraps for sure!

southernbelle0915

Are y'all self-catering this? That influences my answers. So assuming you are self-catering since that's the vibe I'm getting, I answered that way below:

1) offer hot tea instead of iced tea (you already have a bunch of other cold options); and I like @labro's suggestion of hot cider instead of cold cider. If you do that, you have 3 hot options (coffee, tea, cider) and 3 cold (lemonade, refresher, water).

2) No, you already have a bunch of options

3) I LOVE croissants so I'm biased here. But wraps are probably less messy/crumby and more of a crowd pleaser.

4) For simplicity, one or the other, but not both.

5) I think you can do buttercream frosting and still have Bavarian cream as a filling.

6) Skip it

In general, if you are self-catering, I would skinny down some offerings so you aren't super stressed in the days before. How many people are on your guest list?

OurWildKingdom

@southernbelle0915, we are not self-catering for 110. Thought about it for a day, then realized neither my kitchen nor my sanity are built for it  (Chili and macaroni and cheese for 25 are all I can handle.)

The food is coming from two different grocery stores (a natural grocery that does catering and our regional chain), including the cake. The only thing we're making ourselves are the beverages. I like the three hot beverages, three cold beverages idea.

southernbelle0915

OurWildKingdom said:

@southernbelle0915, we are not self-catering for 110 (thought about it for a day, then realized neither my kitchen nor my sanity are built for it  (Chili and macaroni and cheese for 25 are all I can handle.)

The food is coming from two different grocery stores, including the cake. The only thing we're making ourselves are the beverages.

Cool - ok. So that said, my answers to everything stay the same except for #6. Have the afternoon snack if you can afford it!

ScottishSarah

I would say with the spread you're offering, I personally would be more than satisfied.  However, if I then attended an after party I would really appreciate some pizza so I could stay during dinner hour.  Like pps have said, probably best to order that as required during the afters. 

Xxx

OurWildKingdom

Oh, FW changed her mind and wants cupcakes instead of sheet cake. We'll have a choice of red velvet, yellow, and chocolate. The icing they use isn't a true buttercream, but it's not the whipped satin either. She wants the icing in rainbow colors, which they can do. I have several DIY cupcake displays pinned. 

lovesclimbing

1. Meh, I wouldn't care. I don't drink tea. Some people might like hot tea though. 

2. If it's cheap or free or isn't a bother to do, sure and it'd be a nice touch, but it's not necessary or worth extra stress. 

3. Both! I like both kinds! Some people might prefer the less bread in wraps though. 

4. I don't know, maybe. I do know I have always hated pastrami since I was a child, but the rest of my family really likes it. I will say you have turkey and then three somewhat similar meats. If you are able to, I'd maybe switch out one of the meats for ham or something else. If not, I'd make sure to order extra turkey because I think it could go fast just because it looks different. 

5. The buttercream. 

6. Pizza is always good! But not necessary if you're looking to save money. 

OurWildKingdom

@lovesclimbing, there is a deli tray with ham, turkey, roast beef, and corned beef. We may go that route instead.

MesmrEwe

In regard to the cake - The whipped icing (if it's Rich's) depending on the type is going to hold up better than the buttercream in the heat.  Knowing it's grocery store cake and there are 300 different varieties of buttercream out there, I'd opt for the whipped unless it's homemade and buttery rich goodness.  The Rich's brand of whipped icing is also GF/DF which is nice. 

OurWildKingdom

MesmrEwe said:

In regard to the cake - The whipped icing (if it's Rich's) depending on the type is going to hold up better than the buttercream in the heat.  Knowing it's grocery store cake and there are 300 different varieties of buttercream out there, I'd opt for the whipped unless it's homemade and buttery rich goodness.  The Rich's brand of whipped icing is also GF/DF which is nice. 

Our chain is Giant Eagle, and their whipped icing seems like it would melt easily. That said, I'm not sure that we have a choice of icings with the cupcakes.

sparklepants41

This menu looks amazing!! My responses below in bold.

1. We pushed the wedding back to October. Should we offer hot tea instead of or in addition to iced? I vote for @labro's suggestion of hot cider - yum!!

2. Should we bother with the infused water?  Definitely!

3. I was considering switching to mini croissant sandwiches instead of wraps (except for gluten-free, of course). The costs are comparable. What do you think guests would prefer? I love both, but I think wraps are more universally crowd pleasing.

4. Do you think the corned beef and pastrami are polarizing (I was never a fan of either even when I still ate red meat, but I know folks who would enjoy them. FW likes corned beef but not pastrami.)? UO: Pastrami!!!! Love it. 

5. What flavors and/or icing would you pick for the cakes? Me, I'm all about the frosting regardless of type, and I know buttercream will hold up better if it's hot. Also, FW loves the Bavarian cream but I'm concerned about it in heat. (October weather in Ohio is weird.) I love Bavarian cream - ditto PPs suggestion to see if it can be refrigerated. I also vote for buttercream.

6. What do you think about the pizza? I love pizza. Echoing PPs comments about ordering from a local favorite vs. a national chain, however.

southernbelle0915

Honestly, I wouldn't do rainbow icing. Food coloring in icing like that stains teeth and mouths...kind of a turn off for guests. You could work the rainbow in somewhere else. Like rainbow baking cups for the cupcakes, or rainbow plates or rainbow flags you put in the top of each one. Just something that's not a ton of food coloring.

OurWildKingdom

southernbelle0915 said:

Honestly, I wouldn't do rainbow icing. Food coloring in icing like that stains teeth and mouths...kind of a turn off for guests. You could work the rainbow in somewhere else. Like rainbow baking cups for the cupcakes, or rainbow plates or rainbow flags you put in the top of each one. Just something that's not a ton of food coloring.

Good point, @southernbelle0915. I'll get some little rainbow flags to put in the cupcakes.

debbeau

I was at an engagement party recently where the couple purchased a rainbow cake topper from etsy and had their names placed on it. It was beautiful. 

OurWildKingdom

Taking @southernbelle0915's suggestion of three hot and three cold beverages, I'm now leaning towards coffee, spiced hot tea, hot cider punch with cranberry and orange juices, pink lemon-limeade, Berry refresher, plain water, and maybe an infused water or two. I'm also going to split up the deli trays so that one is the New York style and one is the International with ham, turkey, roast beef, and corned beef. 

ETA: I'll save the pizza for if we have an after-party, unless it looks like we might be running low on food. If that's the case, I'll order pizza.