Buffet style

DanielleAndKirby91011 · December 2010

Hi everybody! I'm new to the site, and just starting my 9/10/11 planning. Has anybody had a buffet style wedding? Did it cut your cost? Do you think it's tacky?

TEA&Co · December 2010

Hello! I'm not planning a buffet-style wedding, but in selecting our reception venue, we looked at a variety of package options in our search. In my experience and in my area (near suburbs of Chicago), buffets/stations were either comparable or more expensive than a plated dinner. It depends on your area/venue. I think it comes down to a matter of price and then preference, if plated vs. buffet offer similar pricing. My preference is a sit-down, plated dinner so it would not have been worth it to my FI and I to shell out extra money to have stations/buffet. Look at your venue's or potential venues' options and package details.

I don't think that a buffet is tacky, but for whatever reason it stresses me out to wait until it's my table's turn to get in line, then wait in line, then pick through whatever is leftover, and then manuever with my plate back to my table. I know, however, that picky eaters sometimes prefer a buffet option to ensure that they fill their plate with food that they enjoy.

Good luck!

kaesha · December 2010

Not tacky at all and not necessarily cheaper.

fallbride1109 · December 2010

At my venue, buffet was definitely cheaper (by about $5 pp, so in our case over $500). Even though I had a formal hotel wedding, it went fine. Ours was set up in stations so people could move around the room freely rather than standing one by one in a long line. It worked fine for us.

I Want Cake · December 2010

We're doing buffet-style because it's about $3/person cheaper, and I like the idea of giving people a reason to get up, even if only for a few minutes, and talk to other people than those sitting next to them. In our case, we're getting a whole lot more food for our money, since our venue makes enough to give every guest one of each entree. It's not tacky, either. We're doing a mansion-style reception and they've already got the setup for it.

In addition, with plated meals, I have to wonder how long they sit on a counter waiting to be served. At least with buffet, the food is kept hot and replenished frequently.

janicejab · December 2010

We wanted plated or family style. It was actually cheaper for us to have a plated meal than a buffet, so that's what we went with. I don't think buffets are tacky, but they can be a pain. I don't like waiting in lines. Nor do I like carrying my food across a crowded room when I'm all dressed up- I'm clumsy and will spill/drop food.

DanielleAndKirby91011 · December 2010

thank you everybody, i appreciate the feedback!!

kwrecks · December 2010

I work at a golf club that hosts receptions every week un the summer, and we've done our fair share of both plated and buffet style meals. In our case, plated can be cheaper depending on what you want. We charge per person and it usually includes rolls, salad, a protein, and 2 sides. Buffets are charged per person as well, and usually include rolls, salad, a protein and 3 sides. If you want more than one protein on the buffet, we add $3 pp, so that can often get pricy, and depending on how many options you want to give your guests, plated can sometimes be cheaper, but in our case, a buffet gives you one more side option than plated does. Just make sure to check all the details and figure out which one is more cost effecient for you.

SSaltzman87 · December 2010

I don't think having a buffet is tacky and/or too informal for a wedding, although brides from other parts of the country may beg to differ.

I'm thinking of going the buffet route, it doesn't cost any more than plated at the venues I'm considering.

golden1215 · January 2011

I like buffets when I go to weddings because I can take more or less of things I want/dont want and feel like I waste less.

And they can be very nice with the right food.

doeie04 · January 2011

We are doing a buffet style. I dont know if it is cheaper if you pay someone. We are doing homecooked. So it will be much cheaper.

AbbeyS2011 · January 2011

A co-worker of mine recently attended a wedding and she said they had a buffet dinner with a twist - the tables were in a U shape and there were 3 food buffet stations, one on the left, one on the right, and one at the bottom of the U, so the guests could serve themselves and they avoided the long lines. It was all the same food at each place. I really like this idea and I will have a similar set up at my reception.

Thumper1148 · January 2011

We are having a buffet. It is $2 a person cheaper then family style.

I think 90% of the weddings I have been to have been buffet, so I don't see anything tacky in it.

Buffet style

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