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At home reception? Menu ideas??

onlyjamielynnonlyjamielynn member
100 Comments 25 Love Its Name Dropper
in Wedding Reception Forum
Hello, I posted on here a while ago when I first got engaged...annnnnnd then plans changed.  We are now having a small ceremony at a local wedding chapel in our town with immediate family attending.  About 15 people (10 adults, 5 kids).  The issue is our wedding is scheduled for Valentine's Day.  I know I know...However, with a bunch of conflicting schedules this was one of the rare days that worked.  We plan on doing the ceremony earlier in the day and have a small gathering afterwards.  Where we live it is either very high end restaurants that don't open for lunch (and definitely won't be open this particular day in preparation for Valentine's dinner crowd) or chain restaurants (Chili's, Hurricane Grill, Cracker Barrel.  So we were thinking of doing something at our house (we are the middle location for both of our families).  I wanted to do something nice because after all, this is the day we wed.  But I don't want to be stuck in the kitchen either.  For an early afternoon (and we will need to feed them because it will be right around lunch time) what would you suggest???
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Re: At home reception? Menu ideas??

  • plainjane0415plainjane0415 member
    1000 Comments 500 Love Its First Anniversary Name Dropper
    It's perfectly fine to do a reception at your home. What you want to avoid is having a potluck type meal of any kind. The reception is supposed to be to thank your guests for attending your wedding, so you don't want family to have to worry about cooking on that day.  One thing that I think would work perfectly would be to look into one of your local restaurants catering the event. You could probably get a very nice meal at a decent price for 15 people.  Good luck!
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  • onlyjamielynnonlyjamielynn member
    100 Comments 25 Love Its Name Dropper
    Yeah we're definitely not doing potluck.  I have contacted some of them about off site catering and the issue tends to be that with it being Valentine's Day it is just not working out too well.  And some of the people that are strictly "off site" caterer aren't interested in a 10 adult 5 kid meal. We have an Olive Garden locally and I might check out to see what they offer, but I was hoping for something more substantial than pasta.  Like a surf and turf or chicken chesapeake kind of thing.
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  • Maggie0829Maggie0829 member
    Eighth Anniversary 10000 Comments 500 Love Its 25 Answers
    edited January 2015
    Have you thought about hiring a personal chef for the afternoon?

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  • wrigleyvillewrigleyville member
    2500 Comments Fifth Anniversary 500 Love Its First Answer
    Do you live near a college with a culinary program? You might be able to hire one of their students for the day.
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  • southernbelle0915southernbelle0915 mod
    Moderator 10000 Comments 500 Love Its Fourth Anniversary
    Ditto everyone's suggestions above. 

    If you're on a tight budget, you could make a couple of crockpot dishes - like soups, chili, BBQ pulled pork, etc. Serve salad and rolls on the side (which you can make ahead of time).
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  • onlyjamielynnonlyjamielynn member
    100 Comments 25 Love Its Name Dropper
    It's not about being on a budget.  I'm fine with spending money, etc.  It was more so about the fact that because of so many conflicting schedules we really didn't pick the best date.  And being in a rural type area, that doesn't really help either.  lol  
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  • hellopighellopig member
    10 Comments 25 Love Its
    Check out grocery stores in your area. One of my friends had a party catered by Marsh supermarket and the food was AWESOME. The person who delivered did all the setup and cleanup as well as maintained the spread during the party.
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  • wrigleyvillewrigleyville member
    2500 Comments Fifth Anniversary 500 Love Its First Answer
    Would any of those local restaurants be willing to set up a pick-up order? You could grab everything on your way back from the ceremony.
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  • southernbelle0915southernbelle0915 mod
    Moderator 10000 Comments 500 Love Its Fourth Anniversary
    onlyjamielynn said:
    It's not about being on a budget.  I'm fine with spending money, etc.  It was more so about the fact that because of so many conflicting schedules we really didn't pick the best date.  And being in a rural type area, that doesn't really help either.  lol  
    If it's not about budget, then definitely hire a private chef or two. Just book it now. 
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  • kristenonekristenone member
    Knottie Warrior 10 Comments 5 Love Its
    Do you have a Costco nearby? I would check out what catering items they have. I know they do lunch type items so you could get some sandwiches etc. and supplement them with some fancy desserts or pastries from a local bakery. Also, a lot of big chain restaurants have to-go or party trays available, even on valentines day. You just need some advanced notice. If you are serving hot dishes I highly recommend investing in some disposable chafing dishes. It is so much easier than trying to keep things warm in the oven.
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  • MobKazMobKaz member
    Knottie Warrior 5000 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers
    southernbelle0915 said:
    Ditto everyone's suggestions above. 

    If you're on a tight budget, you could make a couple of crockpot dishes - like soups, chili, BBQ pulled pork, etc. Serve salad and rolls on the side (which you can make ahead of time).
    This is where my thoughts were headed as well.  Coming back to some delicious warm soups, a beautiful salad, fresh fruit, and amazing breads would sound wonderful to me.  You could even get some of the soups from a caterer the day prior, and just warm them the morning of the ceremony.  There are also many delicious chicken recipes that lend themselves to crockpots.  You could have some sangria waiting for you, or have a "ready to go" Prosecco bar.  Have the prosecco chill, and have some berries, sugar cubes, bitters, juice nectars and/or syrups ready to go!
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  • jacobsmawedding15jacobsmawedding15 member
    10 Comments First Anniversary Name Dropper 5 Love Its
    Do you have a Costco in your area? They have really big tray of food that serve a lot of people you just have to heat up. We do their lasagna at Christmas-it's delicious and feeds a ton of people. 
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  • LondonLisaLondonLisa member
    Eighth Anniversary 2500 Comments 500 Love Its 5 Answers
    edited January 2015
    If it is afternoon, why not do afternoon tea? You can pick up finger sandwiches, cakes, fruits, cheeses, scones, macaroons, pies and tarts. It is very low maintenance, and a lot of it can be ordered inexpensively and directly from bakeries. Also, see if there is someone you could hire to be your 'waiter'. They would be in charge of plating, making sure everything stayed replenished, making tea, refilling glasses etc. This wouldn't be expensive and it would really allow you to relax and enjoy your guests. 

    Serve tea, lemonade and champagne. It will be very low fuss and can look really beautiful, especially if you hire some Victorian China, cups and saucers, and tiered cake stands:
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