Chicago Caterers (rentals/wait staff) - Help!

akushn

My fiance and I are getting married in October at A New Leaf. We are now in the process of selecting caterers. We are having a 60-70 people sit down dinner. Our food selections were on the pricier side, so i was expecting higher quotes from the caterers. We asked for quotes without dessert or alcohol, since we will be supplying our own. I was anticipating to be somewhere in the $150/person total, which i thought was more than reasonable (this is for rentals, staff, food and alcohol)

We received a couple of proposals so far from a few caterers and i was shocked at the price ranges. Not so much the food, but the staff and equipment. J&L quoted us $6,400 just for equipment rental and staff. Jewell catering quoted $7,350. Is it really THAT expensive?! $105/person for rental quipment and staff seems ridiculous. If you add in the dessert and the alcohol to that + their quote for the food, that would bring us to $250/person....

Were your rental fees this high? Any recommendations for more reasonably priced caterers?

Thanks in advance for any feedback on this!

Love is Bald

hm, that does seem a little high, esp just for rental equipment.  I've worked with Deli Time, Food for Thought and Food Evolution and had great experiences with all of them.  However, Ive used them for corporate catered events and not weddings.  My favorite is Deli Time though, very reasonably priced and the food quality is outstanding.  If you want contact info, just let me know. 

kreopolo

I had tastings at Limelight and Hearty Boys, and we went with Hearty Boys. I got proposals from Jewell, J and L, Food Evolution, and some of the others as well. Hearty Boys was the least expensive and we loved their food. I'm really happy with our decision.
I don't know if they are on the list for A New Leaf or not, but if they are, you should check them out. We are also providing our own alcohol and dessert, and our venue is Architectural Artifacts- sort of similar in feel and theme to A New Leaf.

skybrie

I went through this with the women's club of Evanston.  My quote (125 people) for staff and equipment was $8,969.  Food was $5,175 and full bar was $2,917 -

I am about to book a country club that does it all for me - but I sent RFP's to a few smaller caterers before I make by decision - but I have gotten 5-6 quotes so far and they werent even close to what I can pay at the country club

skybrie

I just receive a quote for the Kenilworth Club supplies tables, chairs, china, glassware and flatware.

Here is the estimate (without booze)
Estimate Cost - 150 guestsRentals: $650.00Staffing ~ 6 Hour Event: $4089.00Food: $5700.00Beverage: $600.00Total: $11,039.00Tax: $1131.50Total: $12, 170.50$81.14 Per Person

rod7

skybrie- Which comapny provided this quote?

sheikscorpio88

Checkout Wishbone. Very good food they have two restaurants one in the West Loop and one in Berwyn. Very reasonable prices. The highest per person for cateingr is $22! So check it out

thealphabride

We used mario's events in Worth IL. I paid in TOTAL $5,200 for 95 guests including alcohol and desert.
They have meals in all price ranges. I did not rent tables and chairs as my venue provided them.
They provide all china, linen, silverware, glasswear (water and champaigne, coffee cups at each place setting) It was all included in the price of our 26 dollar 5 course dinner. The food was good. It wasn't gourmet, I wasn't going for that.  I wanted to feed everyone and get the services I needed without going broke, We had Fruit cup to start, then greek salad, then greek chicken and roast beef with gravy, we had roasted vegies, oven baked potatoes, and orzo, It was all very good. The cake was tasty and looked good. People only saw the cake for a few minutes during the cutting so I was glad I got it from them. It was simple white buttercream frosting with dots. Kio Kreations decorated it beautifully with flowers.
It was choc and yellow layers with fudge filling. 2.25 a slice.
The guests loved the food and cake. The champaigne they chose was awesome. I had 10 bottles. Paid 100 bucks. Put one on every table and 4 on the family table.
www.mariosevents.com
I think what some charge especially for weddings is outrageous. We had a lovely meal without breaking the bank and there are hundreds of options.

skybrie

Im going to check out Mario's myself!!