Food Help!!!

Re: Food Help!!!

• LauraT25

  

  March 2011 edited December 2011

  First I would ask your venue if they allow people to bring food or make it in their kitchen, without being professionals.  If it's ok, I would still think about some of the logistics of this - it will be a lot of work for you and your FI, and you will have to worry about not only preparing the food in the (very stressful) days leading up to the wedding, you will also have to consider how to keep food at the proper temperature and find people to serve the food.   You may have friends and family volunteer to help, but it's best not to have your guests working at your wedding, and there are potential liability concerns if anyone gets sick from the food.
  
  It's not impossible, but there are a lot of things to consider.
  

  
  

  Report0 Reply
• Ljacks87

  

  March 2011 edited December 2011

  150 is a lot of people to cook for!  It would probably take the whole day before and morning of the wedding to get everything done. Not to mention all the prep work (figuring out how much to buy, ordering food and equipment, etc). You probably could save money, but I don't think the stress is worth it. In fact, it will probably backfire on him because you will be cranky from all the stress and you know what they say: "unhappy wife means unhappy life"! lol. 

  Report0 Reply
• Aholton88 member

  

  March 2011 edited December 2011

  I should of said that we are allowed to bring in our own food becasue it is a nature center. But trust me I am all for letting someone else worry about all the logistics!

  

  Report0 Reply
• RebeccaB88 member

  

  March 2011 edited December 2011

  Cater it.  Do you really want to be running around refilling platters in your wedding dress, when you should be greeting guests?  Don't you want your parents to be able to visit with everyone, and not be stuck in the kitchen unwrapping and refilling things?  Also, food for 150 is a HUGE amount of food.  You really don't have an idea about it until you try to do it.  You'd still have to hire people to set up, serve, and clean up after, which the caterer would normally do.  Not to mention the liability of not keeping food hot or cold enough - last self-catered event I went to, everyone got food poisoning, and my mother a concussion when she passed out while throwing up later that night.   Your FI has no idea what he's getting into by self-catering.  You could probably have a local barbecue restaurant cater for not much money, plus cleanup, and it would really fit in with your nature center theme.

  Report0 Reply
• GoodLuckBear14 member

  

  March 2011 edited December 2011

  In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_food-cakes_food-6?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:23Discussion:366335cb-9468-4bf8-9a1b-cb519bb98faePost:012ed186-4665-4e25-9a3f-32d5a82c7f58">Food Help!!!</a>:
  [QUOTE]So FI and I are on two different minds when it comes to catering. I want to have it catered while he wants to do it our selves(He thinks we can save more money doing it our selves)... we are having 150 people at our wedding. Can you ladies give any advice please!! Oh wedding and recption will be at Woldumar Nature Center and they have a small kitchen  which is why FI thinks we can do it. TIA
  Posted by Aholton88[/QUOTE]
  
  Is he out of his ever loving mind??  Caterers get paid what they get paid for a reason.  There is way more that goes into these meals than people realize and how exactly does he propose the two of you cater it?  Buy all the ingredients and food at retail prices and spend about as much as you would for a caterer?  Get up at 3:00 a.m. the morning of your wedding to cook everything and then reheating it at the site? Bringing the food yourselves, scooping it into chafing dishes while wearing your wedding dress?  Good luck keeping things cold without babysitting the food. 
  
  How about the clean up afterwards?  Yeah.  Can't think of anything I'd rather do after my wedding reception than clean up the plates, silverware and glasses from 150 people, not to mention all the serving pieces and dealing with the garbage.  And that's before you're loading up the car to take home the leftovers and containers you brought everything in. 
  
  Personally, if my FI were this damn cheap, I'd consider calling off the wedding.  This does not bode well for the future. And don't even let him suggest having family and friends help.  I'll need a couple glasses of wine to work through that answer without losing it.

  Proud to be an old married hag!!

  Report0 Reply
• Aholton88 member

  

  March 2011 edited December 2011

  You ladies are so RIGHT!!! I would rather have someone else worry about it. And yes he does want family and friends to help... I guess it has been done on a couple of time on his side... as to how to do the food., He is a farmer and we do animals and produce. So he was thinking we would save more money on the food then anything else. Plus he could control the quality of everything everyone eats.
  
  Now I have asked a catere if we could use our own meat to A. Make him to feel better about having it catered and B. possibly drop down the price by a bit per person which would end up being a good amount when it comes to 150 people.
  
  Now my master plan it to show him all of your advice becasue with you ladies already going through this much earlier then we are, maybe he will change his mind. Even if he doesn't then im sure my side of the family will convince him.
  

  

  Report0 Reply
• sb9411

  

  March 2011 edited December 2011

  I feel like catering is the best money you could spend for your wedding. Why worry!

  Report0 Reply