Catering Help Please

kjerl

Hi Ladies,

When we were searching for venues, my FI and I took the opportunity to try out Kelly's. After all of the reviews and research, I was sure that we'd use them.

I just got an email saying that most menus start at $45 for full service. I was pretty shocked. Is this normal?

We are planning on doing a buffet and providing our own alcohol to cut down on costs. Any other tips or caterers that might be a little less expensive?

jendem8

Hello,

We're going with Kelly's.  Their proposal was equal to or less than most others that I received.  I'm not sure if your price includes staffing or not, but if it does, $45 is very low.  They also don't have "extra" fees and include all glassware, silverware, plates, and linens (which is pretty rare, so there's another expense and hassel that you don't have to worry about).  You can also talk to them about bringing your own alcohol - they don't charge extra for bartenders (we're going with this).  I found them to be extremely easy to work with so far.  I would say that Ortegaz was cheaper, but that was because they used lesser ingredients or completely took out items that I wanted.

jendem8

Also, a few other positives: 1) they only require $300 down and you have until 6 months before the wedding to change your mind and cancel - you get the full $300 back unless you had a tasting, then you get part back 2) they collect the remainder after the wedding, and they're the only vendor I've come in contact so far that does that.  Personally, it''ll be a relief to have one less check to write the month/week/day of the wedding.

ksj10032782

Hi- while I'm not familiar with Kelly's, while down at the Outer Banks, we met with Red Sky and Coastal Provisions, both of their packages were around that price as well for several appetizers, entrees, sides and salads. Have you selected a venue yet?

RussoWill

$45 is pretty normal. We spent exactly that per person, including service, delivery, tax etc. We were aiming for $25 pp, but that was definitely not happening. I've heard good things about Kelly's and both Red Sky and Coastal Provisions. Coastal Provisions catered my SIL's wedding and the food was great. We went with Lone Cedar Cafe, which was also awesome.

OBX2011

We used Coastal Provisions and food was delicious!  I still hear people talking about how good the crab cakes were.

For food and beverage we paid about $49 per person.

kjerl

Thanks everyone.

I have send Kelly's some options that we are interested in to get a better idea of pricing.

jendem8- that is good to know that they only need a $300 deposit! I feel like once you start planning deposits are required right away.

I will have to ask about bartenders. We are buying our own alcohol at the PX.

keb2482

Oh!  KJERL - where is FI stationed? OR are you in the service?  I guess it was wrong of me to assume.  LOL.  We are buying all of our alcohol on base as well.  FI is at Fort Meade, but we live in Northern VA.

We are going with Ortega'z.  They came in at a great price for us and we loved the food.  We are specifically going with a southwestern theme though for our food, and they are a southwestern restaurant

littlemsmagic138

Costal Provisions also has a Family Feast menu which starts at $10/person. We're doing BBQ and the fix-ins and then we'll add on appetizers. Much better than the usual wedding menu quotes - $30, $40, or $50/person, delicious, and perfect for a beach wedding IMO.

canadianpeapod

I had Ortegaz for my wedding and our food was according to many other guests, the best wedding food they'd ever had. Nothing about it was southwestern and they were so sweet and helpful the week of the wedding. We paid $49 a head and had mahi mahi, and steak as our 2 main entrees. Kelly's seemed to be cheaper but the woman there didn't believe I was an actual bride for some reason and was extremely rude. Maybe it was a bad few months for her because I'd heard great things and my husband who is from the OBX loves their catering. Hands down I'd go with Ortegaz again. I want to plan another party so I can use them again haha!

slindell85

hey there,

im going through the same thing with caterers. my goal was to stay around 30pp, looks like thats not going to happen. i'm waiting on a proposal from THE GOOD LIFE GOURMET. i emailed ortegaz but they're booked on my date.  i'm not using coastal provisions for my catering, but i am using the event house they own Pelicans Landing and the owner Nina is really nice. i'm looking to have a little BBQ flair in my menu  but not everything.

kjerl

Thanks everyone. We decided to go with Kelly's. The fact that they provide linens really helps with costs. I hope we made the right choice!