Satisfy My Curiosity: What’s On Your Menu?
I’m curious about what foods you’re serving your guests at your reception. What’s on your menu? Are you DIYing any of the food?
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BBQ!!! Tri-Tip, Pulled Pork, Baked Beans, Mac n’ Cheese, and Coleslaw… and then some Rosemary-Lemon Chicken and grilled seasonal veggies for all those naysayers who think BBQ isn’t appropriate at a wedding
We got a great deal on catering from Bad to the Bone BBQ in San Juan Capistrano, CA. The food is amazing and it’s sure to be a hit!!
We are actually going to be having a cocktail party instead of full meal since this will be for a at home reception after our wedding in the Riviera Maya.
BUT we are going to serve tapas (Spanish finger foods), sangria, mackinaw island fudge(where we got engaged), different Mexican sweets and of course a cake.
My FI will be doing a lot of the cooking for the tapas. I am in charge of the deserts. The only thing we are having made by someone else is the cake.
Completely Vegetarian – Caesar Salad (with vegetarian parm dressing), butternut squash soup, 4 kinds of cold salads, veggie lasaugna, grilled veggie ratatouille over polenta cakes, wild mushroom strudel, greens and beans (white beans with swiss chard in a light cream sauce) and broccoli gratin… it was a super hit. Everyone loved the food.
No DIY food. Ours will be an afternoon reception starting around 12:45 pm. Cocktail hour cold appetizers: fresh veggies, hummus, pita, cheese and crackers, tapinade, summer sausage/smoked meats. Meal will be Buffet-type stations: carving station with turkey and roast beef (complete with kimmelweck rolls, true to FH’s Buffalo heritage); salad station with iceberg, field greens, and pasta salad with asparagus and terragon vinaigrette; mash-tini bar (MYO mashed potatoes with fixins, served in Martini glasses). Beer and wine only bar (though if we have below 140 guests we may upgrade to full bar.) Cake for dessert (though we may forgoe the traditional wedding cake and just get several different cakes in a varity of flavors.) God I’m hungry now!
I love to cook, but a caterer will keep us more sane! We have enough to think about already.
Mostly vegetarian buffet – green salad, focaccia bread, green beans with lemon, stuffed eggplant, cheese manicotti, and spinach-stuffed chicken with roasted red pepper sauce. Self-serve keg of beer and wine, no cocktails. And PIE instead of cake!! (Pie is a family tradition)
The only DIY food is the chocolate drizzled madeline cookies to be given as favors.
We’re serving Paella, Smoked Salmon, Chicken Skewers, Moroccan Roasted Vegetables, Spanish hard and soft cheese with berries and a selection of filled cupcakes. Oh, and lots of sangria.
Ahhh seeing as our wedding is going to be mostly friends, we have decided to do our reception potluck, so i don’t know what kind of food is going to be there.
A long way out from the wedding, we’re planning to DIY it all. That may chanage as the date gets closer though…
The plan is a BBQ, hopefully with a Mexican theme (fajitas, corn on the cob with spices, salads, tortillas, corn chips, dips) and punch (along with beer, wine etc.) for drinks.
To me, it’s perfect, but I’m a little concerned about some family members. And also about some of the logistics…
We’ll see though, eh?
I was married a hear and a half ago and to save money for our reception, we asked the women in my husbands family to make a double batch of their token dessert. Aunt Ruthie’s mini cheesecakes. Grandma K’s apple pies. Lots more to go with that too that complemented our main course, a big freezer of ice cream! Perfect for our late summer (hottest day of the year) outdoor reception!
The club that hosted us even make little signs to credit the women who contributed. It was cheap and personal touch. All of my husband’s aunts and grandmother’s loved to contribute too!
i would like DIY cupcakes or something, but i do not know if its ambitious for me at least. in singapore, people rarely DIY and depend solely on caterers/hotel chefs. our menu will be international bbq buffet. oh i’m SO excited!
Completely DIY!! My stepmom is doing the catering and will be serving Traditional (or not so) Southern Appetizers. Southern sushi, crawfish ettoufe, pickled shrimp, cheese straws, Chick Fil A nuggets… just a few to get your taste buds working!
Our reception is at a restaurant in Dana Point and we’re having a buffet. There will be prime rib, orange glazed salmon, pasta pomodoro, mashed potatoes, creamed spinach, plus a salad bar. We briefly considered DIYing the cupcakes, but none of us are expert bakers so we vetoed that idea.
We’re DIYing a cold buffet, salads, sides of salmon, that kind of thing. My H2B’s father is organising the bulk of it. We’re hoping to do a couple of hot dishes too but I’m not sure what yet, we’ll be discussing that with him over Christmas.
And assuming I can find an electric oven (his dad has an Aga, but we think his Nan might have an proper electric oven) or if it turns out they freeze OK, I’ll be making a couple of hundred cupcakes and a normal cake for the top tier.
We are using caterers for the main meal, which will be something simple and filling – at the moment we are thinking bangers and mash. Then we will have a DIY potluck dessert table.
No DIY and nothing formal….Our reception hall has wonderful food, but to lower our cost, we’re having appetizers. Meatballs, Chicken Tenders, Fried Mushrooms, Veggie Trays, Fruit Trays, Little Sandwiches, Cheese Balls with Crackers, etc…..not to mention Beer and Wine!
Barbeque also!
The whole shabang is going to be DIY.
We’re renting a BBQ and serving skewers of chicken/fish/tofu and veggie skewers. As well, there will three types of bread/bunss, many salads, BBQed potatoes and roasted corn. The cake is about the only thing that won’t be DIY, and that’s because I don’t trust myself/friends to bake anything that’s not bread or cookies.
No DIY at our reception but still very budget. We are planning a quiet registry (city hall in the US) ceremony which in my home town of Sydney is located in Chinatown. Then off for a family Yum Cha (or Dim Sum for you northern hemisphere people) for about 40 people in a private room at a fancy chinese restaurant. Still only $20pp!
We’re having an Asian/Pacific fusion buffet (catered):
Beef nagamaki skewers, Thai chicken and lemongrass croquettes, shrimp toasts, star-anise and ginger-lime salmon, chicken baked in banana leaves, pork satay, pan fried tofu and jasmine rice. Yum.
We’re DIY all of the beer. Brewed our first two batches (an oatmeal stout and a traditional ESB) last month…three more to go
Looks like we may be DIYing the cake after all. My sister experimented with cake balls recipes and apparently they were a pretty big hit.
We’re having a subtle Italian theme for our wedding, so we will be serving all Italian food: meat and cheese ravioli, gnocchi, and fettucini with two or three different sauces, baked chicken and Italian sausage. The dinner will be catered but we’ll DIY the desserts: Italian cookies like pizzeles, my mom will be making the cake, and we’ll be making mini cardamom cakes for our favors.
No DIY here, just good, cheap, Chinese food from a local Chinese Buffet. We have our choice of 3 appetizers, 5 entrees and white and fried rice for just around $6 a person. Not bad since our guestlist is currently over 200!
We’re only DIYing the desert, because we’ve found a great caterer.
ICEBOX CAKE
My husband-to-be has a family icebox cake (mainly chocolate pudding) that will be made by random family members. A small icebox cake will be place at each table family style!
Planning a late evening wedding and we are thinking of a wine and cheese “tasting”. Along with various cheeses we’ll include some fruit, nuts, tapas and crostini with various toppings. For dessert possible an ice cream sundae station and/or creme brulee/cupcakes/individual cheesecakes all DIY
We are having a cocktail hour, and the venue we chose are allowing us to bring our own food for the cocktail hour. They are even allowing us to use their refridgerator if needed. We are going to be serving cheese and crackers, my fiance’s moms famous meetballs, veggies with dip and other finger foods. FOR the menu we are serving chicken and pasta with a white whine sauce or Salmon with a balsamic vinegar glaze both served with garlic mashed potatoes and green bean almondine.
We’re getting married in the late morning, so our around-noon buffet is kinda-brunchy-ish–we’re having a buffet with egg frittata, home fries, sweet sausage and bacon, garden salad, baked rigatoni (we’re from pittsburgh, there has to be pasta of some kind at the reception), and a carved roast beef station. We’re also having fruit salad, fresh cut veggies, and cubed cheese and pepperoni for appetizers. We’re getting married in a state park–no booze allowed, so we’re doing coffee, iced tea, and sparkling cider/juice for the toast
We’ve hired a caterer for the Mexican-themed main reception/lunch (margaritas and tapas during the cocktail hour, followed by a full bar and a few buffet stations) but will be continuing the festivities at my parents’ house with a DIY barbeque (all the neighbors are pitching in by lending their grills and skills). I’ve also crazily decided that I’ll be baking my own cupcakes for the 160+ guests. I’m trying to keep the flavors summer-drink-themed: strawberries and champagne, raspberry lemonade, mimosa, margarita, etc. It will be challenging but fun!
We’re serving guests a selection of tapas served family style and their choice of marinated tilapia w/ lemon butter sauce or Lamb Chops w/ a sun dried tomato rosemary herb sauce over couscous. Since we’re having 300 guests, we’re leaving the cooking up to the professionals at our reception venue, A Spanish tapas restaurant in the Chicago burbs. The groom’s name is Stewart, so I’d like to serve Stewart’s Soda at the reception in Strawberry, Orange and Birch Beer (for the kids). We’re still working on a signature drink in either red or orange. Ideas welcome!
No DIY here..was thinking of a dessert but I don’t want to make anyone sick!
We are having a dual plate of a meat and a fish – not sure what yet..need to go to the tasting. We are offering a vegetarian meal as well.
Mexican Food!
Pork Chile Verde, Shredded Beef, Rice, Beans, a Taco Bar and chips and salsa!
For drinks we will be having Margaritas and Sangria
Best of all, Mexican food isn’t expensive at all!
The catering costs all came out under $2400
For our wedding of 150 in May, we’re renting grills and grilling line caught whole fish, polenta, baby potatoes, corn, endive, and fresh fruit, and serving it all buffet style with sides and bread. Lots of family members have offered to take turns at the grill. I plan to make and freeze the cake, which will be thawed and assembled at the location, and we are inviting local guests to bring an offering for the dessert buffet.
We’re having an outdoor, relatively casual day (focusing on having FUN!) in August in Oregon. We’re doing everything DIY! During our cocktail hour, we will have served cucumber slices with red pepper hummus and kalamata olives, toasted bread with pesto/mozz cheese/tomatoes, and sweet chilli prawn skewers. We’ll also have other things set out on a table – veggies, hummus, crackers/cheese, etc.
We’re doing “gourmet BBQ” for dinner. We’re renting a BBQ trailer and doing flanken style ribs (sliced thin, off the bone, and in an incredible marinade), 1/2 chicken breasts (probably two types of marinade or rub), grilled veggies, BBQ beans (family recipe), potato dish (still deciding), spinach/cranberry salad, pesto pasta salad, and garlic clove bread. It’s making me hungry just thinking about it! Mmmm…
We’re having a beach wedding with the reception at the same location just inside of a vintage beach house. Chicken skewers, lots of vegetarian dishes: hummus with cucumbers, chips and pita, black bean salad, open faced mini sandwiches, fruit… the Nook will be doing our catering of the event – they are a great local cafe.
roasted pear salad, filet and salmon, marinated asparagus, basque potatoes gratin. mediterranean appetizers during the cocktail hour (i’m italian) and cases of guinness for my boy (he’s irish). wedding cake and groom’s blackberry pie.
I would like to DIY but the wedding is where we met and went to college (3 hours north of my parent’s home) so there will be no DIY food.
We too are doing a buffet brunch because most of the guests will have driven in for the wedding.
The cake as desert
Coffee, Tea (Hot and Iced), Juice, Water
Pancakes/French Toast, Hashbrowns, Bacon, Sausage, Spinach Quiche, Muffins, Fruit Salad with Coconut (not frozen)