We picked our venue for several reasons but one of the most important was the amazing food they're known for. That being said, our ceremony starts at 7:30pm on a Friday night. It'll be over after 8pm and we are thinking about skipping a "cocktail hour" to get straight to the party since the reception is scheduled to end at midnight (or 1am if available).
My fiance thinks 8-9pm is too late for people to want to wait for dinner on a Friday night so he was thinking open bar plus dessert stations they offer and cake, etc. Then closer to the end they can set up "street food" stations like tacos, burgers, dogs, chicken & waffles.
I'd prefer a buffet dinner because their food is so good, but do you think 8 or 9pm is too late to serve dinner after a ceremony?