Possibly Canceled Caterer

amalama

We just found out that the restaurant we booked as our caterer closed last month. I have talked to them once, and the owner said they were discussing if they could "pull it off" still and would call me back after a meeting he was going into. He has not called back yet (that was this morning). I would like to think that somehow this will work out but I just don't see how they can possibly still do it, and waiting around doing nothing will drive me insane.

In the meantime I have contacted other caterers to find out if they are available for our date (Labor Day weekend, so I am worried it will be tough to find someone). And we have a limited list to choose from (our venue has a preferred caterer list we are required to choose from). One has emailed me back that they are available and asked me some questions so they could send me a quote. I know that they are probably going to be over our budget (ours was a really good deal), but I am thinking I'm probably not going to have much choice. I'm just not sure exactly how to handle it. Should I tell them the whole situation and see if they can give us something similar to the other caterer? Or should I just act like I am just now looking for a caterer?

MoonlightSilver

I'd see first what quote they come up with. If it's above your budget, I'd mention the situation to see if you can get some sympathy points. 

You might also want to ask your venue if they will make an exception and let you use an off-list caterer if you're having trouble finding one within your budget on the list.

amalama

I have called the venue and I'm waiting to hear back from them too, so that is definitely what we are hoping for. I just feel so weird about this whole thing, almost dishonest not mentioning it I guess? Especially since our old caterer hasn't technically canceled yet but I guess if it does end up working out with them it's not like I will have wasted that much of the new one's time to just get a quote.

Angelface225

If their restaurant is closed, they probably won't have access to a commercial kitchen which may be what he meant by "pull it off". That would make me nervous about things like refrigeration and food safety. Just another thing to think about.

swimmy1988

Yes, I would be upfront with a new potential caterer about the whole situation as well. It might get you a better quote. You might also want to contact your maybe cancelled caterer and find out for sure. Because if he was going into a meeting, the thought to call you back might have totally slipped his mind.

Good luck!

amalama

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_possibly-canceled-caterer?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:65af504b-c31d-4be5-bb4f-122af85e3870Post:9e330605-4562-4ce6-af50-7504e9217769">Re: Possibly Canceled Caterer</a>:
[QUOTE]If their restaurant is closed, they probably won't have access to a commercial kitchen which may be what he meant by "pull it off". That would make me nervous about things like refrigeration and food safety. Just another thing to think about.
Posted by Angelface225[/QUOTE]

<div>Sorry, I wasn't clear, but this is exactly what I was thinking about him saying "pull it off". Just the way he said it makes me nervous, like they will do their best but who knows how it will turn out. Not really what we want.</div><div>
</div><div>I haven't heard back from him or the venue yet, but I'm trying to wait until Monday to call again. I'm hoping this other caterer will be willing to work with us (I did explain the situation to them), or maybe the venue can help get someone on their list to work with our price range, or let us bring in someone else.</div>

loca4pook

I would definitely find a new one. If the restaurant closed, there might be some sketchy stuff going on and you don't want to be stranded on your wedding day..

I agree, call your venue and explain situation and see if they can help in any manner. They might be able to get you a reduced rate, as well

reppunzel

We had our original photographer cancel on us because she had an unavoidable conflict on our date (even though we had told her our date from the start).  When we found someone else (which was not easy because our budget is really tight and our photography allowance quite small in comparison with the going rates), we explained that we had been talking with photographer A and asked photographer B whether she could match A's package.  She did, and offered us a second photographer in place of the prints in A's package.

I know it's probably a little different with catering, but it's worth having in the back of your mind. 

MuppetOverlord

There's no way I'd stay with the same caterer. In addition to what everyone else said, they no longer have a reputation to uphold and you may possibly have no legal recourse if things go wrong. Also, you don't want your wedding to be something that was the result of "making it work"

Did you give a deposit? I'd try to get that promptly back if you did.