Buffet dinner?

wheatney22 · February 2010

Hello Ladies,
So FI and I are thinking of ways to cut costs for our wedding since we are also trying to get a place by the end of the year.
FI thinks we should go with buffet dinner which will save us $20per person. I don't like buffet dinners cause it reminds me too much of high school and college cafeteria. And I don't really like the idea of having folks wait in line for their dinners (no offense to those who are doing this). I also am afraid of the state of the food by the time they get to the last table. The food is very important to me because I have been to LOTS of weddings where the food was so-so and I always said I'd make sure my wedding doesn't turn out like that.

What are you doing? Do you think a buffet dinner is tacky? Or in your opinion, do people usually care about these things?
Thanks.

PS:
I also posted this on the AAW board incase any of you also go to that board.

dparisi · February 2010

I think buffets are fine if they are done correctly. You know, food available from two sides instead of one. To make it a little nicer, you could always have the rolls on the table and the salad served. I do find it a bit hard to carry the salad, rolls and dinner plate.

LoveAdopted · February 2010

First, I would double check that the buffet is in fact less costly than a plated dinner. A lot of times, the buffet actually costs more becaues they need to prepare more, which I had been surprised to learn. I don't think it's tacky at all- I agree with you though, I don't really care for the feel of standing in line at a more formal event. It might be worth it if you are ok with it, and it saves you a considerable amount of money. I would make arrangements for someone to serve elderly guests/ families with children. Also, maybe your venue or caterer could serve a plated salad so people aren't juggling too much.

We are having our meal served family style. I'm not actually sure what the cost difference is, but it sounds like it would be in between the cost for buffet/plated.

jonchrissy · February 2010

I think this also depends on how many people you're planning...it you have too many it will take forever for everyone to get their food, even if they serve it from both sides.
Personally, I'm not a fan of carrying the salad, rolls and dinner plate while wearing heels but if you could somehow have the rolls at the table and plated salad it would help.
Also, I recently went to a wedding that was buffet and they stuck it in the far corner so we had to navigate through tables to get the food and bring it back. I would ask where they place the buffet.

MeaghanandMichael · February 2010

First off, let me say that some of the best and worst wedding food I have eaten has come form a buffet. If you have a good chef, an expediant staff, excellent bus service and enough food, there is absolutely nothing tacky about a buffet. If a buffet is bad it is generally a staffing issue and not a taste issue.

Aside from what other people have already said, you will want to take into account older guests and guests with mobility issues. If you have a lot of people who fit these categories (grandparents, great aunts etc.) you may want to rethink this for their comfort.

Whatever you do, do NOT put a limit on food refills. A wedding I went to this fall did this and they literally had a staff person standing at the steak chafing dish, refusing to let people have more than one. They were tiny too. (Which bring up another point, make sure you know how big the cuts of meat will be - if it is a 4oz. cut, no wonder you are saving money). Limiting food is pretty tacky.

LexiMS · February 2010

I think a pretty displayed buffet is great! Also, my very pickey FI is always happy with a buffet. That being said, like Meaghan, I have had some pretty bad buffet food. If you do buffet I would highly recommend that you have a plated salad and have the cake brought to the tables. I dont think there is anyway to make a buffet table full of cut peices of cake look nice.

megandjay · February 2010

I don't think a buffet is tacky, however the only 2 buffet weddings I went to I was unhappy about because there was not assigned seating and there were not enough seats for everyone. I guess the reasoning of the couples/venue is that people will sit down and eat and then walk around and mingle/dance. Well, this is not how it works, the first people in claim seats, and the later people in eat standing up. It sucks. I would be very careful that you have enough seating for every guest!

(This is also why I am a fan of seating charts- since even if you have enough seats, when people seat themselves the tables are often uneven and people are left pulling chairs from other tables, or again- standing).

MandahGirly · February 2010

I don't think a buffet dinner is tacky - In fact, we were originally going to go with a buffet but our coordinator said that a sit down dinner would be faster (We want to get on the dance floor ASAP) so we went with the sit down dinner - It wasn't much of a price difference either

CCBelle · February 2010

I, too, am surprised that your buffet price was cheaper. I used to work for a caterer, and our buffet/stations prices were always more as they have to estimate on how much food is needed - and you always err on the side of caution. Perhaps you can investigate a less expensive plated option? Personally I'm a fan of plated dinners as I feel like they are more elegant, but a buffet can be perfectly great if done correctly. Have two sides (and more than one buffet depending on your guest size) and make sure people are served by waitstaff - and the waitstaff can explain what they are serving.

noodle_oo · February 2010

We're doing a buffet, but that's because we're doing Indian food and that is how they do it. We did this at my sisters wedding and it was great! However, the caterer is experienced in doing this, so they know how to do it well.

I went to a wedding recently that was buffet and it was horrible. Here's why:

1) they didn't order enough food, so they ran out of half the dishes.
2) the room was too small for all the guests, so the tables were VERY tightly packed together. the guests had a very hard time navigating around the tables with their food.
3) not sure why this happened, but there was a HUGE line for the buffet. No fun to wait in line for 20 mins for your food.

It was really too bad! FI and I want the buffet, but we're making sure there is tons of extra food, plenty of space in the room and we're hoping to have rolls/salad on the table so that people can munch on that and not have to wait in line to eat.

EKobrenski · February 2010

Everyone else made great points, but honestly, it sounds to me like it's something you aren't comfortable with. I think you need to think about whether $20pp is worth it if you are going to stress about it until (and maybe during) the day of.

That said, I think there's a way to do it where you can save some money vs a plated and feel ok with it. What about more of a station style set up rather than a buffet style? It might change the type of food you serve, but I don't think certain stations would cost much more or require much more staffing than a buffet. For instance, carving stations, the stations with mashed potatoes and mix ins, etc. Or you could mix stations with a TON of passed hor douevres, cocktail reception style.

wheatney22 · February 2010

Awesome. Thanks ladies! I went back and looked at their site. They have a buffet option and a station style option. Both options are actually more expensive than the plated dinner. I guess I was just looking at the cost per person for the buffet which was $41 and neglected to compare that to the site down option which I thought was $62 per person. But turns out the $62 is for the package. The actual cost for the dinner within the package which is outlined is $33 - $42. So it really isn't cheaper to go buffet style.
Thanks again ladies. I really appreciate the feedback.

EKobrenski · February 2010

Perfect! I love when that type of thing happens

Buffet dinner?

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