5 Catering Points To Consider Before Saying “I Do” To Your Dream Reception Venue
Thursday, March 17, 2011
When you go to an established, well-run restaurant for a meal, nothing feels out of place. The decor, the staff, right down to the food and drink all fits and everything is cohesive.
When you visualize your wedding it's no different but sometimes it's really hard to think about the logistics. In fact, most brides don't realize that their catering will impact their venue and vice versa. So, you want to think about them both as you are hiring.
Here are five things to consider when choosing your wedding location, especially as the decision relates to catering, from Chef's Market.
As an off premise catering company who’s been in the wedding industry for the past fourteen years, we’ve seen our share of venues. Whether a reception is upscale or casual, downtown or in the middle of nowhere, one thing is true; the venue a bride & groom choose to continue their celebration in after the ceremony is important. It needs to fit not just their style, guests and budget but also their vendors. So how does a couple go about finding the right place for their event? Well when it comes to catering, Chef’s Market has you covered! Read our 5 catering points we think every bride should consider before saying ‘I do’ to her reception venue and you’ll be that much closer to finding the perfect place to party!
1) Research Your Venue’s Preferred Vendor List: There’s a reason caterers make a preferred vendor list but that doesn’t mean all the homework is done for you. Take the time to research each company, talk with their catering department and brides that have used their services. Get a feel for who fits your style, personality and budget best. Make sure you check that their company is licensed and insured. This means they will have a business license, be licensed with the health department, have a health department approved production facility and be insured against any unforeseen damages that might occur during an event or production.
2) Space: When checking out possible venues remember that you’ll need space for both your guests and for your caterer to work. You don’t want to try and squeeze 300 people into a venue made for a max capacity of 150 and you also don’t want your caterer to be serving food from a broom closet. That being said, most caterers will not need an onsite kitchen to work in; however they will need adequate room to move around in, plate food, set up/break down etc and good lighting (essential at outdoor receptions).
3) Service Style: You’ll also want to tie in the venue with the style of food service you desire and the formality of the event itself. Will your venue be large enough for a plated dinner or will passed hors d’oeuvres work best? This definitely ties back in with the space issue. If you’re having a lot of guests in a smaller venue, a reception where they can mingle and move around would work better for both the guests and the service staff than one in which they are seated for the majority of the time. Different food items will also change the look and feel of a venue (think passed sliders vs. plated salmon). If you keep this in mind when checking out venues, putting a menu together for your reception will be super simple!
4) Site Visit: Make sure your caterer will do a site visit to your venue before the event or has previously catered events there and knows the layout of the venue. A good caterer or one who is part of a preferred vendor list will already have done this, but it doesn’t hurt to double check!
5) Bar: Ask your venue manager whether or not they will allow you to bring in your own alcohol or if you have to use their in-house services. If you can bring in your own beverages, talk with your caterer about organizing the bar setup for you. An experienced caterer will help you coordinate everything from providing certified bartenders to bringing mixers, ice and glassware. At Chef’s Market we’ll also assist our brides in calculating how much alcohol to purchase and where to buy it.
It’s easy to think of everything but catering when you’re first visiting a venue. You’ll be busy looking at the dance floor, the venue location, the price, the antique light fixtures etc. However, food is a central part of wedding receptions so it will benefit you in the long run to take catering into account when you’re out finding the perfect space for your reception!
Genna Dufault is the Marketing Assistant at Chef's Market & Catering and is choc full of great ideas and advice when it comes to catering. Visit the Chef's Market website for more catering options and be sure to bookmark their blog for more tips that could help make your planning so much easier.
All images courtesy of Chef's Market.
About the Author:
Tabitha
Blogging is something I’ve enjoyed doing for years. My interests lie mostly in lifestyle related topics like fashion, style, design, food and weddings. When I heard Ashley was looking to bring on new members to the ABG team, I jumped at the opportunity - I can’t think of a better way to stay involved in weddings than to write about them and to stay in touch with the trends and new ideas. Lucky for me, Ashley likes my blog and trusts my experience to bring me on and so far, it’s been a blast.
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Posted on March 17, 2011 |
Filed under: Advice & Planning, Cakes & Catering
