Food dilemma

vanebutterfly

Our wedding was going to be March 2010 during Cherry Blossom week in DC. However, i found out a couple of weeks ago that I'm pregnant (while on the pill!) so we have moved the wedding to next month. Because of the rush in the planning we did not ask our guests their entrees preferences. We will be serving beef medallions with truffled potatos and a vegetable. My Fiance says food is a very personal thing and feels we should give our guests the more variety of food in case they don't eat steak or choosing their entree. So for another $2,000 they either get: 1. Steak and fish entree or 2. Steak and crab cake entree or 3. A card at the beginning of the night to fill what they choose to eat for the entree We will have a cocktail hour with horderves and station platters. Dinner is an appetizer, entree and dessert. Cake will be served later in the night. I feel we don't need to spend the extra money as the hotel will be serving vegetarian to those who don't eat beef and also because we will be having baby expenses soon. My FH says we should. What should I do? Would people be offended if we just serve them the steak without them having a choice? We have 100 guests. I don't like chicken so that's out of the question. Thanks for your input and sorry for the length of the post.

ExpatPumpkin

I wouldn't spend an extra $2,000 for the choice as long as you're offering a vegetarian option. And you said you are. You're right about needing that money for the baby. Take a look at my bio - my menu is listed on the dinner tab. No choice except for veggie option, and it was delicious And no one chose the veggie option

hollieheidi

There is no need to offer another option if the hotel is already offering vegetarian...$2K will buy your nursery furniture......Congrats on baby too!!!!

danieliza1127

I would not spend an extra $2,000.  As long as you have the vegetarian option (something more than just salad and bread), you'll be fine.

megk8oz

If they're giving you the veggie option without making you spend extra, I wouldn't really sweat this one too much, you need the money for other things, and I'm pretty sure your guests would understand all things considered. I'm from the NJ area, and it's almost unheard of to only have one non-veggie entree, but I personally wouldn't be bothered by it if there was only one w/a veggie option. One thing to consider though if you do decide to get the additional option, is you say YOU don't like chicken, therefore it can't be an option. You really need to take into account what your GUESTS will eat (As you're hosting a party for THEM). Just because you like fish and beef, doesn't mean that all of your guests will feel the same way.

dsouldiva

Would people be offended if we just serve them the steak without them having a choice?No.  You are giving them a choice, you are offering a vegetarian alternative.  You can't please all of the people all of the time but it sounds like you are already going out of your way to try and accomodate everyone by offering h'ordoeuvres and platters.Save the money.

jenn.daniel

Don't spend the extar money. I'm oersonally not a fan of steak, but I'll munch on it, and since you have horsderves and stations, it's not like people will be going hungry.

Rob&Rachael

Be careful with the crabcake option... some people are highly allergic to shell fish. That's the last thing you need is someone being rused to the hospital because the person next to them has crab cakes. I think you should stick with your original plan and forget the rest. $2,000 is like 1/4 of my budget so you can just send it to me LOL. Good luck and Congrats!!!

[Deleted User]

I think as long as you have the veggie option you're fine. I'm a veggie and I would be happy.

ExpatPumpkin

[i]Be careful with the crabcake option... some people are highly allergic to shell fish.[/i] Some people will be highly allergic to [i]anything[/i] you may serve. Peanuts, strawberries, shell fish, anything... But restaurants still serve these foods. We had crabcakes at our wedding and no one went to the hospital. Can you imagine putting together a menu that no one could possibly be allergic to? A dish of lettuce maybe?

glam70s

The last wedding I went to, dinner was prime rib. Period. As far as I'm aware everyone loved it - I definitely haven't heard any complaints. There were no vegetarians present, so that wasn't a concern for this event. I wouldn't have been any better off with a fish option, as I can't eat any seafood.I think the quality is far more important than options. As long as it's good steak, even people who don't particularly care for steak are likely to eat it and enjoy it.I would definitely save the money for the baby.

ootmother2

Congrats on the little one :)Other than offering the option of vegetarian meal, I think what you have is fine.

Lasairiona

I would just have them pick when they send in replies. Most people don't like seafood of any kind and won't eat anything that it touches either. Also, your option #3 will be very tricky and won't work in most cases because of the amount of organization that it requires. Also, it would require you to have a full kitchen on site which alot of venues don't have, thus another reason why buffets are popular. As long as you feed people good food, they won't be offended by the choice. A full meal is not a requirement, contrary to popular belief, so the single choice that you would be offering is more than sufficient since guests are supposed to accept graciously whatever the hosts provide. Unfortunately, many people don't follow that line of thinking anymore.

Lasairiona

As far as allergies go, most are actually not fatal. Some are but they are not in the majority. Many things that are considered to be food allergies by some people are actually folks saying they don't like something but saying it's an allergy makes it more dramatic and likely for the couple to cater specifically to them. That may not be true for everyone but it does happen alot more than you think. Anyone who does have a legitimate food allergy or requires a special menu for whatever reason (kosher for religious reasons, etc) will normally make a mention on the reply card. The same as they will with a vegetarian menu since not everyone bothers to list that.

vanebutterfly

Thank you all so very much for your great advice! I had my fiance read all your comments and he's now convinced. We will just be serving the steak and the vegetarian meal for our two vegetarian guests. This was the only thing we could not agree on. Thanks again ladies!