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Hiring "partial caterer"??

CrunchyHippyCrunchyHippy member
First Comment
in Wedding Cakes & Food Forum
Hi all,

So- for multiple reasons spanning from my control freak nature and our mutual love of cooking (bordering on obsession!) to a relatively limited budget, we would like to refrain from hiring a caterer. I was originally thinking of cooking myself, but I know I'm not going to be happy with that choice in the end.

What I'd really like to do is have a "day of" caterer to prepare the dishes we've prepped (e.g., heat things, cook the meat, etc.) but I am afraid proposing this to caterers will be offensive or a nonstarter. The idea of hiring (a group of?) culinary students was also suggested, but that too makes me uneasy.

Have any of y'all every heard of caterers that do something like this? Is it totally out of line to suggest that you don't want a caterer's food or menu but need them to cook YOURS? Or, do you have suggestions for how we can have more control over our food than we'd have with a traditional catering situation?

Thanks a lot for any insight you can provide!!
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Re: Hiring "partial caterer"??

  • Maggie0829Maggie0829 member
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    Have you thought about a personal chef? I know you are on a budget but if food is that important to you then you should put money towards that and maybe reduce elsewhere.

    With a personal chef you may be able to work more closely with them to come up with dishes rather then pick from a set menu.

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  • lc07lc07 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    It can't hurt to try to find a caterer to do this but I'd be surprised if you were able to. I believe the markup on the food is where they make the most of their money. Not on hourly wages to staff. I just don't see how the catering company would make money on it. But you may as well try.
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  • jay788jay788 member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment Name Dropper
    I would think caterers wouldn't agree to serve food that you prepared because of liability issues (the food wasn't made in a commercial kitchen etc). Maybe ask a favorite restaurant if they'd be willing to cater? That way you know you like the food, and they can be less expensive than usual wedding caterers.
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  • hyechica81hyechica81 member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment First Answer
    what about students from a local cullinary school it would cut your cost down and it would give them some experience
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  • ei34ei34 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    msgabe said:

    I am a caterer and my costs are extremely low. I charge usually about 28$ per person unless you have a high capacity of guests in which the price is usually negotiable. 


    @KnotPorsha this user is spamming the Food boards claiming to be a caterer, as well as the NYC boards saying she's a hair and make up artist
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  • AprilH81AprilH81 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited April 2014

    What about finding a caterer that will use your recipes? 

    You get the personal touch of knowing what is going into each meal and the caterer doesn't have the liability of finishing up food someone else has prepped.

    photo composite_14153800476219.jpg
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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its First Comment
    I actually work for a company that does stuff like this. In fact just last night I worked a Passover meal. The hostess left me a list of what needed to be done & what order. I plated the different courses, put the chicken in the oven as instructed, heated up food & steamed the veggies & then also cleaned all the dishes & the kitchen when I was done. This allowed the hostess to enjoy Passover with her family instead of spending the night in the kitchen. We do all sorts of events.  The company I work for isn't a catering service, we a service company and provide help with set up, clean up during and after the event and any help you need with food. The only thing we don't do is provide the food. I would check around your area to see if you can find anything like this. Try looking for servers for hire.
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