not happy today..my first wedding drama

GeminiRN2

Everything has been so easy that OF COURSE something has to go wrong, right?
I'm about 3 weeks away from my wedding and get a letter in the mail today telling me that my catering company at my venue (Wolfgang Puck@Springs Preserve) has been replaced by the Culinary Academy of Las Vegas.  That's right...I just went from a gourmet catering company to STUDENTS catering my wedding.  I am so bummed and upset.  I don't know what to do.  I already emailed my wedding coordinator voicing my concerns but now what?   The letter never said anything about prices being cheaper (which you would think they very well should be considering this was a financial decision by Springs Preserve to save $). 
What would you guys do?  Freak out?  haha.
Oh yeah, and check out the article..
http://www.lvrj.com/news/puck-out-culinary-academy-in-at-springs-preserve-129345113.html

LilMissScareAll

If you're 3 weeks away from your wedding, I don't see how this affects you. The Culinary Academy isn't going in until October.
Any rate, check your contract. They should offer you some sort of compensation/ discount  considering you were paying a premium for a name.
Although I think the food quality would be the same either way. It's not like they use new students. The ones that would be catering would have years of experiance under their belt (and probably already be working as a chef at another high end restaurant)
It really sucks for this to happen so close, but I'm sure it will work out fine for you.

GeminiRN2

Acutally, the day that they start...is our wedding day.  October 3.   I also found out that I lost my wedding coordinator (who was AWESOME!) as she also worked for Wolfgang Puck.  It would have been nice if the new people would have contacted me so we can talk this out, rather than sending me a letter dropping this bomb with no other information.  Ugh.

LilMissScareAll

That sucks. I would definitely call and ask for a discount.
And they sent a letter in the mail? I find it strange they didn't call or email you about the change.

GeminiRN2

Nope, it was handled very poorly.  See above, I just edited my post. 

AJF021410

I'd be so pissed....

verucasaltytoo

At this point all you can do is adopt a stiff upper lip attitude and press on. I don't think you will get the worst students, not a top chf but they probably will be pretty good. Otherwise yea check your contract and try to move if you wanna deal with that or ask for a discount.

mizutamababy

I would ask for a discount for the unprofessional way they handled things and for the downgrade in caterers but at the same time if you press too much it might put them in a bad mood for dealing with your wedding...  So I guess if you pursue it, go after them as kindly as possible.

vegasgroom

What does your contract say?  Ideally they're in breach of contract and you can negotiate something new or bring in a third party caterer if you're not confident they can deliver on your requirements.

GeminiRN2

OK, OK so the coordinator called me tonight so I have a little bit more info.  We're going to talk more tomorrow about the details but she did tell me that they are NOT run by students and that they are a professionals.  She said that there are a lot of rumors and misconceptions out there regarding their company (basically a lot of drama with the takeover of WP) but they are affiliated with the hospitality students in other ways.  They are supposedly honoring all of my menu requests and prices that were negotiated with Wolfgang Puck as well.  I guess when you send someone a letter in the mail with no follow up, you kind of set a bride up to freakout and they may get false infomation from other places.  With no acutal human to talk to, the only place I could turn was the web.  Anyways, I'm sure everything is going to be fine.  Just a minor freakout today but I'm sure you all know how I feel:) 

wildstyle

Gemini - I had my wedding at SP (although back in 2010) and there were some changes that went on there too right before our wedding -  if it makes you feel any better, everything was taken care of and ended up great.  I'm sure the food will still be excellent too.

MeatAuditor

I still think you should get a discount.  WP food is so expensive b/c of the name.  Now the name is gone.  No reason you should pay for the name.

Sara191431

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_nevada-las-vegas_not-happy-todaymy-first-wedding-drama?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:91Discussion:6d7a67f6-9391-4575-a001-46447cbd72dbPost:83f5f3ed-6096-468b-aaf9-0229ae7f1e26">Re: not happy today..my first wedding drama</a>:
[QUOTE]I still think you should get a discount.  WP food is so expensive b/c of the name.  Now the name is gone.  No reason you should pay for the name.
Posted by MeatAuditor[/QUOTE]

Agreed, I'd still want some compensation too, then again you may just not want to deal with it right now since you're so close. Good luck!