Will my guests starve?

Nori82

Ok, based on what we've discussed with our caterer ... We have two passed hors d'oeouvres. Salad A chicken dish ( which I'm sure will be some sort of breast and sauce) Two sides... I dunno the details on these. Since my wedding is November they said my tasting should be later in the year so appropriate food is in season. Wedding cake Candy buffet with chocolates, fruits, yogurt pretzels... But this really isn't a lot if food. I mean, they will get like two mouthfuls of hors d'oeouvres. Salad is nothing... I just don't want them to be hungry and all I have to feed them is candy and cake after... Should I add a couple more hors d'oeouvres ? An app during dinner? A hearty soup, November will be the start of cold weather

unchatenfrance

I would add a formal appetizer in addition to the hors d'oeuvres - and I think soup is a great option because if fills people up, even though it's not calorically dense.

jessicabessica

If it's in the budget to add something, I would.  You could consider a stationary appetizer with the passed ones--cheese and crackers or veggies and dip.  It might be good to have a little more during cocktail hour while people are drinking.  I also like the idea of a soup, and there are some great fall soups (butternut squash, pumpkin, etc.). 

Will there be an entree available for any vegetarian or vegan guests?

PaddysGirl8

Maybe you can add a soup or pasta course.

Peavy

I think that your dinner is fine with salad, a chicken entree with what I presume will be a starch and a vegetable, and dessert.  There will probably also be bread served with dinner.  That's a pretty typical dinner.

But if you are having a full bar and cocktail hour, I don't think two hors d'oeurves is enough.  If you're going to add something, I would do it here, adding a stationary hors d'oeurves to go with the passed, maybe cheese and crackers, etc.

Sue-n-Kevin

I kind of agree with Peavy, that your menu sounds like a full meal. You have a meat, 2 sides, salad (and presumably) some bread or rolls of some type. You also have the candy/desserts. You are not a restaurant, so "choices" aren't needed at a hosted event where you invite people to eat. Don't stress about it.

Appetizers can get expensive due to the fact they are handling each piece. I'd probably recommend a meatless pasta with a red or white sauce served with your meal, depending on the other sides you choose.

Are you having kids at the wedding, or even teens? Some are fussy eaters, which is why I recommend the pasta. It's usually about $1 per person to add a pasta, it's pretty inexpensive.

Another alternative would be to add a late night snack, served about an hour or two before your guests leave, especially considering it's an open bar all night. Maybe pizza, or sliders (ie White Castle type burgers), or maybe a small breakfast bar with coffee .......Dunkin Donut holes, coffee cakes, bagels, etc. This all depends of course on the rules of your venue and caterer.

librababy

If it's in your budget, go ahead. But I personally would not. Most people won't eat much and many might be busy dancing, mingling, or drinking. 

The caterer I am looking at offers: 

appetizers (not sure how many, but I am assuming 3 as that is the standard here)

A hot entree like some kind of dip

Meat (I am lookin gat stuffed chicken in white sauce)

Rice

Salad

Dessert

Plus we will have cake and a candy buffet for the kids.

I don't have room in the budget to add more to the food (if we cater...if we do it ourselves, I'll make sure to have other options). 

BUT we are having a cocktail hour...maybe you could provide heartier fare at the cocktail hour (if you're having one) so that guests won't be too hungry at the reception (which from what I have seen, dinner is usually just 1 hour after the cocktail hour).

Cortney1982

Two passed hors d' oveuvres does not seem like much for a cocktail hour, I thought I was being skimpy on 4 (two hot and two cold).  I would wonder when they were bringing out the rest.  But still, the dinner is definitely enough food.  If you have big eaters, that is their problem.

Sp2012

I think your menu sounds reasonable - but I'm wondering how many servings of hors d'oeurves are provided per person? Do you literally mean 2 per person or just 2 types?

I have a similar menu, 3 passed apps during cocktail hour (a meat, a veggie, and shrimp cocktail).  These are only offered in portions of 100, so with our smaller guest count, offering 4 choices would have been just too much food.  With our 3 choices, there is enough for each person to have around 5 pieces each.

Dinner consists of some sort of bread roll, a salad, choice of entree with veg & starch (surf & turf, fish, veggie, chilld's meal), and we're having a dessert buffet instead of wedding cake.

As a guest usually it's the cocktail hour food that I enjoy the most - so if you want to add more, I think either additional hors d'oeurves or a soup course, or late night snack are all good options!