Food truck

ellamber · December 2016

I'm looking into caterers (still no venue at this point, just canvassing the prices for things) and I'm not that impressed. I'm not a fancy meal person, so we were thinking along the lines of BBQ. Anyway, a friend mentioned that you can get a food truck (or two) to cater weddings. Has anyone seen this? What is your opinion? I've only seen food trucks at horse shows and they are right up my alley, but that's a horse show and not a wedding.

cowgirl8238 · December 2016

amberdaisy1005 said:

I'm looking into caterers (still no venue at this point, just canvassing the prices for things) and I'm not that impressed. I'm not a fancy meal person, so we were thinking along the lines of BBQ. Anyway, a friend mentioned that you can get a food truck (or two) to cater weddings. Has anyone seen this? What is your opinion? I've only seen food trucks at horse shows and they are right up my alley, but that's a horse show and not a wedding.

I think having your entire wedding catered via food truck is a potentially bad idea. The main issue I have heard of with this is TIME. The amount of time it takes people to wait in line, order, and be eating is typically too long. If your guest list is really small (like 25 or less maybe?) than this wouldn't take too long...but most of the time this isn't the case.

I would start looking into venues before you get too set on anything. There are a lot of venues, that in my experience, have a set caterer or list of caterers that you are permitted to use. If you find a venue that allows for outside catering I would opt for a simple meal that is buffet style to feed your entire guest list rather quickly and then have a food truck or two come in for a late night snack option. This can be done in lieu of or in addition to a dessert course.

lnixon8 · December 2016

Ditto figuring out venu first.

Food trucks are super trendy right now. But you don't need them to get good, tasty food that isn't your standard beef/chicken, broccoli and mashed potatoes.

Look into bbq places, look into restaurants that you like (Italian, mexican etc.) They will be more likely to be able to produce large amounts of food quicker than a food truck.

charlotte989875 · December 2016

I think if the company is used to catering for a large group of people all at the same time it can be great. But, many food trucks are not set up to handle 100s of people all at the same time. If you go this route be sure to ask about how they plan to have everything ready at once.

ellamber · December 2016

Great, thanks guys. Two of the venues I'm interested do allow outside caterers, the third is all inclusive. I found a company that essentially sources food trucks specifically for weddings, so I imagine they could handle a large volume of people but the logistics is what I was worried about. I don't want anyone having to wait in line for food.

I do like the idea of having an late night food truck or maybe an ice cream truck in lieu of dessert. We aren't planning on having a wedding cake but were thinking of a dessert table or maybe cup cakes.

SP29 · December 2016

If there is a restaurant that you like that serves BBQ, I would look into having the restaurant cater over a food truck.

Food trucks are awesome, but are best reserved for the cocktail hour or late night buffet. The logistics for feeding a large number of people a main course is a bit of a nightmare. The main issue is they can only prepare so much, so fast.

Think about horse shows- how many people are in line at one time? How long does it take still? DH and I go to rib fests a lot in the summers, and they usually have the meat mostly cooked but throw it on the BBQ again to heat it through with sauce. The line ups are very long and you can wait 10-15 mins just to order and another 5-10 mins for your food.

Jen4948 · December 2016

I think food trucks only work for very small, casual weddings held out of doors.

I know that as a guest I do not want to stand in line beside a food truck and be served through a small window, which I then have to carry back to a seat while dressed up-especially if the weather isn't good. As PPs have noted, having to do this in a line of 100 or more people makes this even more annoying.

downtondiva · December 2016

I agree that this sounds like a logistical nightmare. Food trucks are fun for casual, outdoor events, but do you really want to make your wedding guests wait in line for half an hour to get their dinner?

I think you'll find there are restaurants in your area that cater, including BBQ restaurants. Look into that if you're not liking what you see from caterers. You'll be getting something a little different without sacrificing the comfort of your guests.

jacques27 · December 2016

Generally speaking, you'll want a minimum of one food truck per 75 guests. So if you're expecting 200, you'd need three food trucks.

Also, it generally works out better if the truck has items that are prepared ahead of time and then served sort of buffet style - which really sort of defeats the food truck vibe unless you just really happen to love that truck's food and/or they are the only option in your budget. The weddings I've been to that have had food trucks as the main caterer with made to order items were horrible with respect to food. People were waiting 30-45 minutes or more for food (many just gave up and some tables just sent one person to stand in line) and eventually they couldn't keep up with demand so they just focused on one menu item at a time. I stopped at Taco Bell on the way home.

It really is something that is much better suited to a cocktail hour where not everyone may partake and you're not kept to a schedule (other than the start of the reception) or a late night snack (where many people have already left so it's smaller volume and again not everyone will partake and they aren't kept to a schedule).

If you want BBQ, there are many restaurants that cater or more casual caterers (the type that would do graduations, open houses, corporate picnics) that often offer BBQ options. Caterers aren't all formal dining meat/veg/starch options only.

ellamber · December 2016

Ok, so no food trucks. I was a little unsure of how it would work myself, so I wanted to see if anyone had seen it/tried it. I could imagine it might cause me a bit of stress if people are standing around waiting and I don't want that. So, back to regular caterers. My mom and I saw some venues today that I had liked and vetoed the one I was thinking of food trucks for anyway! Works out perfectly. Thanks!

MesmrEwe · December 2016

amberdaisy1005 said:

Ok, so no food trucks. I was a little unsure of how it would work myself, so I wanted to see if anyone had seen it/tried it. I could imagine it might cause me a bit of stress if people are standing around waiting and I don't want that. So, back to regular caterers. My mom and I saw some venues today that I had liked and vetoed the one I was thinking of food trucks for anyway! Works out perfectly. Thanks!

There are caterers who will do your BBQ idea as the meal, so don't limit yourself out in that regard in relation to the menu. However, PP have covered it - Food Trucks are a logistical nightmare especially if you live anywhere that isn't sunshine and unicorn farts 365.

The thing to remember with caterers is do your homework ahead of time. One that is more expensive but doesn't have 80 tacked on fees may in the end save you money. OTOH, you do need to plan for and ask about any added fees which can raise the cost substantially (Service fee, venue fee, taxes, gratuity, etc.)... Also, caterers do offer a budget friendly option. Typically it's a fried chicken/chicken breast meal, or pasta, or "you get what you get and you don't throw a fit" meal (the venue/caterer we used for my parent's anniversary offered essentially this, for $13/pp it was their Saturday 2-meat buffet or for $21/pp we could have what we wanted on the buffet)...

ellamber · December 2016

Yes, I've gotten a few proposals from some caterers that spell everything out. Some refuse to send anything since I don't have a date or a venue yet which I understand. I want to book my venue and my caterer right about the same time so I'm not stuck if I wait and they get booked up. In an ideal world I'd like to just find a venue that does their own catering, but I haven't found one quite yet that I really liked.

Linzrene · December 2016

I know the OP already concluded food trucks were out, but I thought I'd mention this in case anyone else considering food trucks was reading.
Not only are the logistics of feeding 100+/- people at a time a concern, but weather is too. DH and I planned an outdoor wedding and reception but we had an indoor space if rain decided to show. What would you do if it was pouring rain and your guests had to trek outside to order their food? Umbrellas and even tents from the building to the truck would would still have their issues for your poor guests. You'd have to be in an area that is pretty consistently dry during that time of year. NE Ohio is unpredictable, so we ruled it out.

OP, you mentioned wanting BBQ, we did this. We bought precooked rubbed ribs, raw chicken, and hamburgers. Then my cousin (who is a private event planner for a local country club) hired an associate to run the grill and heat/cook everything. We paid her $200 to run the grill (we doubled the original agreement because she stood for hours over a grill on a 97* day). We also hired two servers to set up and keep the buffet stocked. Our immediate families offered to make side dishes, but I know many of the local grocery stores make their own pasta salads, fruit salads, veggie trays, etc. They could cover your sides if you don't want to do it yourself. There are ways to make it work if you don't have a venue with their own catering.

ellamber · December 2016

Linzrene said:

OP, you mentioned wanting BBQ, we did this. We bought precooked rubbed ribs, raw chicken, and hamburgers. Then my cousin (who is a private event planner for a local country club) hired an associate to run the grill and heat/cook everything. We paid her $200 to run the grill (we doubled the original agreement because she stood for hours over a grill on a 97* day). We also hired two servers to set up and keep the buffet stocked. Our immediate families offered to make side dishes, but I know many of the local grocery stores make their own pasta salads, fruit salads, veggie trays, etc. They could cover your sides if you don't want to do it yourself. There are ways to make it work if you don't have a venue with their own catering.

Yes, luckily I'm in an area where BBQ is huge, so there are some "specialty" (I suppose?) caterers that bring their whole set up and will grill right there. A few of them quoted me outside my budget which is why I thought of the food trucks. We are going to keep looking. The venue I loved was a logistical nightmare, besides just the food aspect (outdoor bathroom, not handicapped accessible, renting heat/ac) so no matter what, unless the weather was PERFECT, I'd have to negotiate on a major aspect of guest comfort and I don't want to do that. I'll have to go back to the drawing board but it gives me time to save up some money anyway.

ahoywedding · December 2016

Linzrene said:

I know the OP already concluded food trucks were out, but I thought I'd mention this in case anyone else considering food trucks was reading.
Not only are the logistics of feeding 100+/- people at a time a concern, but weather is too. DH and I planned an outdoor wedding and reception but we had an indoor space if rain decided to show. What would you do if it was pouring rain and your guests had to trek outside to order their food? Umbrellas and even tents from the building to the truck would would still have their issues for your poor guests. You'd have to be in an area that is pretty consistently dry during that time of year. NE Ohio is unpredictable, so we ruled it out.

-snip-

I couldn't resist!!

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