I would scream if I wasn't at work!

Kate2dance · July 2011

Ok, so I posted recently about my catering woes... we are having the reception at my fiance's church because we thought we would be saving money by just bringing in a caterer and not having to pay for the actual venue. I have so far had 2 VERY bad catering experiences and I am nowworking with 2 other caterers... they are awesome at responding to me, but they both cost around $6000! We could've had our reception in an actual venue for that! By the time we rent tables, chairs, linens, etc. it really adds up. I know $6000 may not seem like much since I know people spend way more, but we didn't think it would be $6000 in our own venue! The church doesn't have enough resources for us to use, hence the reason we are renting. AND we went with the cheaper food... like a pasta buffet!
I am just venting... but words of encouragement are welcome

Did anyone else freak out at their catering cost?

MissOwl · July 2011

yup. also, so did mr.owl. when i told him it would cost us about $10K for the reception (rental, food, bar, service charges, etc.) he spit his drink out. it's very easy to do though huh? chin up lady! you're doing great! and just think about how relaxed you'll be because you're working with a caterer that you TRUST. i don't like to pay for convenience if i can do it myself or something but i will pay for peace of mind.

Kate2dance · July 2011

<img src="http://cdn.cl9.vanillaforums.com/downloaded/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-wink.gif" border="0" alt="Wink" title="Wink" />In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_ohio-columbus_would-scream-wasnt-work?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:112Discussion:4fcb5384-ca71-46dd-8878-232b2eb3cbbdPost:c617c05c-aa2d-4116-a0e7-bb36119f47b1">Re: I would scream if I wasn't at work!</a>:
[QUOTE]yup. also, so did mr.owl. when i told him it would cost us about $10K for the reception (rental, food, bar, service charges, etc.) he spit his drink out. it's very easy to do though huh? chin up lady! you're doing great! and just think about how relaxed you'll be because you're working with a caterer that you TRUST. i don't like to pay for convenience if i can do it myself or something but i will pay for peace of mind.
Posted by MissOwl[/QUOTE]

Amen to the peace of mind thing :) I am one of those who likes to keep things completely organized and stress free... and if I get food brought in by unprofessionals I will probably be freaking out. I can see myself not enjoying my wedding because I am worried about everything else! (My fiance does a good job of calming me down... bless his heart!)
I even tried going with a finger food/appetizer buffet and that's expensive too! Maybe I will just buy a bunch of bags of chips... people like chips right? hahaha

BMDunlap01 · July 2011

I totally understand the stress about a tight budget and money for the reception. I'm trying to do the entire wedding for about $7k with a 200 person guest list. It's been a challenge! Hang in there lady! What MissOwl said about having vendors you can trust is key in this whole process. It's so overwhelming and busy you don't have the time to keep checking on them or worry about them. Don't worry hun, you're making the right choice. Hang in there

KellyRVT · July 2011

Why not change your reception venue site? You still have plenty of time to do it. Check out Clintonville Women's Club. Great space, reasonably priced. I think it was around $45/pp with all taxes etc. included. And, you get to bring in your own alcohol.

Otherwise, I have heard fantastic things about Lori with Boardwalk Catering being extremely reasonable.

tiffanydaniels · July 2011

Did you try Laura's catering they are cheap from what i hear and they have good reviews

jnkreager · July 2011

*hugs* I understand that stress. So many items seem to be about 5% more than we budgeted for. On each item it doesn't seem so bad (I think, "ok so my dress was about $75 over budget, but in the course of a wedding, $75 won't really make a difference"), but it definitely adds up!

We have found some ways to save though. For example, we had a graphic designer friend design all of our invitations and and STDs (based off some that I loved on Esty but could not afford) and had them printed at a local printer. It cost us roughly $150 as opposed to $800+ it would have cost us otherwise.

Also, I bought most of our centerpiece stuff from a past bride from here!

Just prioritize what is the most important to you and scrimp in the other areas!

Kate2dance · July 2011

Thanks everyone!

Our venue is actually at the church itself! We are getting married there and having the reception there so it's only costing us $100 to use the church for everything.

We met with a caterer a few weeks ago that was not good... but it was SO cheap. I had my hopes up that they would work out because it was literally $7.00 a person for a huge buffet of food. After we met with them I was like, "Oh well now I understand why it was only $7 a person!" LOL So I had my heart set on something very inexpensive... *sigh*

dorian430 · July 2011

We are using boardwalk catering. Laura is great and very reasonable. She worked with us to stay in our budget!

I would scream if I wasn't at work!

Re: I would scream if I wasn't at work!

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