BBQ style reception?

reignbows_92

First off, my fiance is very, VERY, VERY laid back, down-home, country boy. I mean, I'm lucky I'm going to be able to get him into a tux! Me, I've very much about comfort and style mixed together. I want to get out of my dress right after the ceremony (I will buy a seperate dress for the reception). And I'm a picky eater. 

Between how laid back he is and how picky I am, we want to have a BBQ style reception. More of an informal party than a fancy dinner. My dad agreed to cooking (with some help from my fiance's family, who have volunteered to make a few things), and he can vacuum seal some of the stuff (like pulled pork BBQ). 

We're still going to do the cake, keep the wedding colors, dance, all that stuff. Just more relaxed than the normal reception.

Cute and fitting, or tacky?

Avion22

I think a BBQ reception sounds awesome.  Just please be really careful about how the meat and side are prepared, and make sure they are kept at the correct temperature up until serving time.  Cooking for a wedding is generally a lot more food than cooking for your friends, and it requires some planning to make sure that everything is kept safe.  Caterers are good at this -- average home chefs might not be.  The last thing you want is for guests to get sick at your wedding.

Have you priced local BBQ joints to see what they would charge to cater?  I've hired these for work/company BBQs before and it wasn't expensive...this would fix the safety issue, and it would keep your family members from having to prepare massive ammounts of food while they should be enjoying your wedding weekend:-)

alithebride

how many guests are you thiking of? prepping for a ton of people is far different than afew and if someone doesn't know whayt they're doing or how to store, serve, keep the food hot there's a great chance people will get sick.
imo-hire professionals.

RebeccaB88

I've been to a couple of these types of receptions, and they all were a great time.  Food was great too. But...

ITA totally on having it catered, even if your family has vounteered to help.  Food safety is a big reason. It's too easy for some of that stuff to get a shade too cold or too warm and nobody notices.  Professionals will have the right serving containers and refridgeration to make extra sure that doesn't happen.  I'm not saying your family will purposely poison your guests.  But they will know without a doubt how to handle all that, and if someone does get sick, they take the liability, not you. 

They can also calculate the amount of food that you need, and more easily prepare what's required.  For instance, if your aunt's potato salad recipe serves 8, and you have 150 guests... that's a LOT of potato salad to make, keep cooled to the right temperature, transport, etc.  It's also expensive for your aunt to pay for.  You'd probably want to reimburse her for the cost of the ingredients and the time she spent making it. 

Caterers will also be able to provide you with staff to set up, clean up, and monitor the buffet so your relatives can relax and enjoy the party.  Maybe even a bartender.

If you guys have a favorite BBQ place, get a quote from them and see what you think.  It would really be so much easier on all of you and probably cost less than you think.

reignbows_92

There really aren't any BBQ places where we are. 90% of resteraunts are just the food sold at bars. 

I also should have mentioned that my dad went to school for culinary arts and has catered before, just not on his own. That's why he would start cooking now and vacuum sealing stuff. 

The one thing I'm not sure about is the stuff that my fiance's family offered to help with. Just because I'm not sure if they are so used to cooking for large, large numbers of people.

Chels&Jimmy

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_reception-ideas_bbq-style-reception?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:5Discussion:a59b370a-a80d-4d81-afed-5a3511e4c88bPost:665bead4-9199-45f7-947e-614a22cbc7e0">Re: BBQ style reception?</a>:
[QUOTE]There really aren't any BBQ places where we are. 90% of resteraunts are just the food sold at bars.  I also should have mentioned that my dad went to school for culinary arts and has catered before, just not on his own. That's why he would start cooking now and vacuum sealing stuff.  The one thing I'm not sure about is the stuff that my fiance's family offered to help with. Just because I'm not sure if they are so used to cooking for large, large numbers of people.
Posted by reignbows_92[/QUOTE]

<div>Honestly, I would not leave something as important as the food at my reception, up to family members. Even though your dad is a professional with catering experience, you stated that he has never catered an even before on his own... not to mention that your fiance's family has never cooked for a large number of people, either. IMO it would be much better to hire someone who has all of that experience and knows exactly what they are doing. </div><div>
</div><div>You mentioned restaurants in your area; have you tried researching catering companies in your area? A lot of caterers can usually cook a wide range of food. FI and I are doing a BBQ reception too. We are having our favorite BBQ place cater, but I had contacted a number of caterers that did BBQ.</div>