Tip Catering

abussen

 

Hi All, 

I know that someone just asked about tipping, but my question is a bit different. My catering company is providing everything....including tables, chairs, linens, flatware, china.... the whole nine yards. My venue doesn't have any of that stuff. 

The only thing that I am able to provide myself is the alcohol. So that is a huge money saver. 

I am just not sure how to tip the catering company. 

Here is a list of who is working the event:

- Wedding Coordinator

- Head Chef

- Four Assistant Chefs

- Four Servers

- Two Bartenders

*The cost of that is $3,372.50

There is an on-site catering truck fee of $400. The food is $4,950 and the rentals are $2,300.

Any suggestions? All are welcome… I am just kind of lost since most people don’t have all the rentals in their quotes. If I add a flat 18 or 20% on my bill we are talking about tons of money. I am just not sure how to handle it.

Also do you divide the money yourself or do you just give it all to the coordinator and let them divide as they see fit?

Thank you so much and sorry for the long post,

Ashley

 

lyndausvi

We were in a similar situation.    We had a few less asst chefs, but we had some dishwashers/stewards instead. We paid $30 per hour, per person for a minimum of 8 hours (they worked more than 8 hours).   

We gave the bartenders $200 each. The servers each got $90 each.  Everyone else (except the coordinator) we gave $50.  We didn't have to give the chefs or dishwasher anything, but our wedding was unusual as it was under a tent in a almost hurricane.  Everyone went above and beyond so we wanted so say thank you.

We gave the coordinator a good tip also. 

 Our food and rentals were a lot more than you were paying so it's all relative.

We put the tips in individual envelopes and had the coordinator give them out.

abussen

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_tip-catering?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:a6c7bbf2-1d0d-4f41-8bfe-d3339ef0d485Post:220da0b3-8134-4104-b8c9-e8e2ff78e880">Re: Tip Catering</a>:
[QUOTE]We were in a similar situation.    We had a few less asst chefs, but we had some dishwashers/stewards instead. We paid $30 per hour, per person for a minimum of 8 hours (they worked more than 8 hours).    We gave the bartenders $200 each. The servers each got $90 each.  Everyone else (except the coordinator) we gave $50.  We didn't have to give the chefs or dishwasher anything, but our wedding was unusual as it was under a tent in a almost hurricane.  Everyone went above and beyond so we wanted so say thank you. We gave the coordinator a good tip also.   Our food and rentals were a lot more than you were paying so it's all relative. We put the tips in individual envelopes and had the coordinator give them out.
Posted by lyndausvi[/QUOTE]

<div>Great info! Thank you. </div>

Avion22

Industry standard in most places is around 18%.  In fact, most caterers add an 18% gratuity to your total bill (excluding rentals) so you don't have to worry about it.

We tipped our caterer about 24%....their service was absolutely fantastic (like, unbelievably amazing in every possible way).

It's a lot of money...but it's about what you'd pay in any restaraunt. I would wait until after you event and assesss the level of service that you received.  For normal service I would tip 18% of the food/service bill (exclude the rentals).  You can give it all to the caterering company -- just make sure they know it's gratuity -- and they will divide it all up.  If you received really good service from one individual, I would be sure to name them.

abussen

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_tip-catering?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:a6c7bbf2-1d0d-4f41-8bfe-d3339ef0d485Post:084c596e-bf5d-4d14-a078-7b5299b9b223">Re: Tip Catering</a>:
[QUOTE]Industry standard in most places is around 18%.  In fact, most caterers add an 18% gratuity to your total bill (excluding rentals) so you don't have to worry about it. We tipped our caterer about 24%....their service was absolutely fantastic (like, unbelievably amazing in every possible way). It's a lot of money...but it's about what you'd pay in any restaraunt. I would wait until after you event and assesss the level of service that you received.  For normal service I would tip 18% of the food/service bill (exclude the rentals).  You can give it all to the caterering company -- just make sure they know it's gratuity -- and they will divide it all up.  If you received really good service from one individual, I would be sure to name them.
Posted by Avion22[/QUOTE]

<div>Thanks for your help! I hope I am able to say the same as you about my company being "unbelievably amazing". That's wonderful. :)</div>