Vegetarian Reception?

Re: Vegetarian Reception?

• peanutty2 member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  Ha, well i'm a vegetarian so i'm probably biased but i think it sounds good :P  finally, a wedding i could eat good at!
  
  I think you just have to be concerned with finding crowd pleasers for omnivores.  Stay away from too much "weird" veggie food (ie tofu).  Have options that just happen to be veggie that people may order anyway, even if they're not vegetarian.
  
  I'm thinking things like for appetizers: bruschetta, butternut squash soup, mozzarella caprese (i think that's what it's called mozzarella, tomato, basil), spinach & artichoke dip, hummus & pita & veggies, spanakopita
  
  for meals: eggplant parm/rollatini, pasta primavera, mushroom risotto, pumpkin ravioli (any ravioli really!), roasted vegetables, vegetable lasagna
  
  You can use soy meats and make dishes like mini meatballs, "meat" pasta sauce or pasta with "sausage", etc.
  
  Sorry, these ideas all lean italian but of course, there's plenty other ways you could go.
  
  If your okay with serving seafood, that would add a lot of options too for your guests.  You could do like a shrimp cocktail or crab cake appetizer or a fish meal.  But if you want to stay completely vegetarian I think you can find enough options. 
  
  Check out your local board too!

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• KelmitTheFrog member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  peanutty, those are excellent suggestions! Thank you! I'm ok with Italian Or Middle Eastern, or Greek, and now you've given me ideas I can think of more good examples from each of those.
  
  Yeah, we're definitely not serving seafood. Aside from being vegetarian and Jewish (my side, anyway), my mom has a deathly allergy to shellfish. Who knows how that happened.
  
  What is a food board?? I have so much to learn!

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• peanutty2 member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  <----- On the left side here under "special topic wedding boards" is "local wedding boards".  click there and then you can find your region (DC area it looks like) and some people there might be able to help you locate a caterer in your area. 
  
  Glad I could be of help! Good luck!

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• KelmitTheFrog member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  Thank you!

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• skantrowitz

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  I'm not a vegetarian, but I've been to a lot of veggie-only parties and potlucks. I think if you stick to the kinds of things the PP mentioned, you'll be fine! Personally I'm skeptical of tofu and "veggie-meat," but if you were to serve me pasta, mushrooms, eggplant, etc. I would be very happy.

  

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• juma1111

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_vegetarian-reception?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:23Discussion:33571c8e-135f-4061-8090-67f54a3642f7Post:2bf90249-3fe5-438d-b8e8-d42072aa0cee">Re: Vegetarian Reception?</a>:
  [QUOTE]I'm not a vegetarian, but I've been to a lot of veggie-only parties and potlucks. I think if you stick to the kinds of things the PP mentioned, you'll be fine! Personally I'm skeptical of tofu and "veggie-meat," but if you were to serve me pasta, mushrooms, eggplant, etc. I would be very happy.
  Posted by skantrowitz[/QUOTE]
  
  This exactly. I'd rather have veggie lasanga and eggplant parmesian and stuffed mushrooms & pasta primavera than anything with "veggie-meat"

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• TurtlesAllTheWayDown member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  We had a vegetarian reception!
  
  It was kind of stressful and hard to pull off "things we can/like to eat" and "things that our general crowd will eat." We had people coming from all over the country and we didn't really know what they liked. Also, my husband and I are adventurous eaters and... not everyone is.
  
  Unfortunately, it wasn't any cheaper, though if you go with a caterer/venue who upcharges for things like steak and shrimp, obviously you won't be paying more per plate than the basic amount.
  
  We were careful to look for caterers who provided GOOD food. Everyone we talked to said they could do it (it's not hard - especially in LA), and the guy we ended up going with has trained in TONS of awesome restaurants and his mother used to own a vegan restaurant. We also knew if we went with a place that was known for good food, the food would be good, period, regardless of the fact that it was meatless. ;-)
  
  Anyway, we had 4 passed hors d'oeuvres, all off the venue's menu: feta stuffed piquillo peppers, brie and apple quesadillas with chipotle crema, vegetable croquettes, and tofu satay w/ peanut sauce. We weren't so sure about the last one, but my husband really liked it. One of the toddlers at the wedding apparently ate tons of the tofu skewers - she LOVED it.
  
  For the meal we had a salad with watermelon, goat cheese and lemon-tarragon vinaigrette. A little weird, but at our tasting, it was the best salad, so this time we went with what we liked. Second course was butternut squash soup. Third course was a choice of pasta - mushroom ravioli w/ parmesan and olive oil or penne with pesto and seasonal vegetables.
  
  We didn't spread the word that it would be meat-free, though a lot of people figured it out eventually (lol). But with your family, you probably won't have "issues" with that. We also got a TON of compliments on the food. A lot of people said it was the best wedding food they'd ever had.
  

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• jessicabessica member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  We had fish (salmon and halibut, also Jewish and DH is from Alaska) at our reception because it was a good compromise for us, but our cocktail hour was almost entirely veg, and we had several veg entrees.  The chef at our venue appealed to us because she takes pride in working with local and sustainable ingredients and she had experience working in a vegetarian restaurant.  

  
  

  Cocktail hour: 

  - Cheese and cracker station

  - Sushi station (veg and fish)

  - Veggies with red lentil hummus

  - Bruschetta

  - Fallen goat cheese souffles with tomato chutney

  - Mini spanikopita

  - Cold fruit soup shooters (strabwerry and blueberry)

  - Caprese skewers

  
  

  Soup: gazpacho 

  
  

  Salad: mixed local greens with cayenne cashews and maple viniagarette (I think, the dressing was pretty mild)

  
  

  Buffet options:

  - White sauce lasagna with spinach and artichokes

  - Porcini mushroom purses with marscapone cheese

  - Vegetable strudel (vegan)

  - Green and yellow beans

  - Roast potatoes

  - Grilled vegetables

  - Asparagus prepared three different ways

  
  

  Our venue charged a per person price that they would not alter depending on the foods we chose.  

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• ElisabethJoanne member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  If you're OK with dairy products, one idea might be to look for kosher caterers. They'll be very used to planning meat-free meals, because kosher food can't have meat and dairy in the same meal, and people often have dairy luncheons, etc.

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• jessicabessica member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_vegetarian-reception?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:23Discussion:33571c8e-135f-4061-8090-67f54a3642f7Post:5177339b-4c64-4746-a9bd-423d9da16cde">Re: Vegetarian Reception?</a>:
  [QUOTE]If you're OK with dairy products, one idea might be to look for kosher caterers. They'll be very used to planning meat-free meals, because kosher food can't have meat and dairy in the same meal, and people often have dairy luncheons, etc.
  Posted by ElisabethJoanne[/QUOTE]
  
  <div>I don't think that it's that hard to find caterers that can prepare a good vegetarian meal.  Kosher caterers are generally more expensive because of the cost of being certified kosher, so I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to find a kosher dairy caterer if I didn't need the kosher aspect.  </div>

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• KelmitTheFrog member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  Thank you all for your input!!
  
  I already got two quotes from caterers, both said veg would not drop the price. I don't get how, when most of their sample menus are very meat- and seafood-heavy. That has to be more expensive! (I was looking at brunch reception menus and the vegetarian entrée was scrambled eggs with cheddar and chives. How does that end up the same price as lobster eggs benedict, or tenderloin?)

  
  

  I agree on the Kosher caterers-- I know for sure they'd do a meatless meal, but I also don't need to pay the premium for the kosher cert.
  
  (The watermelon / goat cheese / tarragon dressing salad sounds like EXACTLY the sort of thing I want at my reception.)

  
  

  
  

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• jessicabessica member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  Maybe you can try to negotiate some extras if they won't drop the price for a vegetarian meal.  I'm thinking about extra hors d'oeurves, an extra course (maybe soup and salad), or something like that.  

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• RikaAndLoran member

  

  August 2011 edited December 2011

  As an omnivore, I love lots of the ideas posted above.

  Don't be too hard on the caterers for not giving you a discount for vetetarian. Fresh, quality ingredients are expensive, meat or not. Plus, the same chef/cooks are making it, and they won't expect less pay for leaving meat out either.

  

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