Those curious about how to cater your own wedding should simplify the task into two steps. This guide will share tips on catering your wedding stress-free, and we’ll even teach you the best ways to serve food if you’re self-catering.
And if you decided to do this because you’re on a budget, why not check how to plan a wedding on a budget of $1000 as well? You can cut some wedding costs by taking the roles of other wedding vendors such as the caterer.
Everything To Know About How To Cater Your Own Wedding Stress-Free
- The most crucial step of catering your own wedding is deciding on the wedding theme and menu
- First, what is the time and place of the wedding? Use these factors when crafting the type of menu and theme you’ll serve your guests
- Decide whether you’re doing plated meals, a buffet, serving stations, or hiring other people to serve your guests
- Once you have the type of menu and theme for your wedding caterer, consider if you’ll be making the foods, buying them from another restaurant, or you’ll assemble them yourself
Step 2. Plan the setup of your wedding catering
- After you have the menu and sources of your food laid out, the next step to cater your wedding with finesse is to plan how you’ll set them up on the wedding
- Be realistic that you won’t be going to be as hands-on during the mealtime at the reception, especially it’s your own wedding
- Have someone oversee the food arrangements and serving and make sure that whoever you choose wants the task and is responsible enough for it
- Besides the main person overlooking the catering on the wedding day itself, you must create a group of people for other tasks; they include people that will assemble or cook the food items, people that will arrange the meals on the reception, and people who will serve the guests, whether in the buffet line or at each table
- From here, you can occasionally check with your helpers to know if everything is going smoothly without you sacrificing too much of your time away from the happenings in the wedding itself
Is It Possible To Cater Your Own Wedding?
It is possible to cater your own wedding with careful planning and budgeting. It is even an affordable solution for couples, especially if they’re having a small wedding anyway and passionate about cooking and food.
What is the best way to serve food at a wedding if you’re catering it yourself?
There are many popular food service styles at weddings, so you must select what will help you since you’re the one catering for your own wedding. That being said, here are the most effective ways to serve food at a wedding when you’re self-catering:
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Buffet style
If your wedding reception is being held in the evening, you’ll be serving your guests dinner. The best way to self-cater this type of reception is with a buffet.
You can order meals from a restaurant or do them yourself since it will only be a dinner menu. You also won’t have to worry about wait staff since the guests will serve themselves.
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Cocktail style
If your wedding reception won’t serve a full meal and you’re focusing more on the drinks and party, a cocktail-style reception is your best option when self-catering. You only need to prepare hors d’oeuvres and appetizers that the guests can take themselves in between mingling and dancing.
And for the drinks, you can read about how to stock a bar for a wedding reception to ensure that you’ll have enough.
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Station style
Do you want an interactive food wedding service? You can have various stations in the reception where guests can construct their own food.
Some examples are pasta bars, taco bars, or even dessert bars. Read how to make a s’mores bar for a wedding if most guests are a sweet tooth.
Is It Better To Cater Your Own Wedding?
Catering your own wedding is advantageous for small weddings and couples on a budget. But if you want a plated sit-down reception or family-style reception, you’ll have a hard time catering your own wedding.
In a sit-down reception, you’ll be serving multiple courses. A family-style reception can also be challenging because you’ll need servers, which are usually unavailable in self-catering weddings.
What Should I Cater For My Wedding?
The menu you’ll serve at your wedding depends on the time and type of wedding you’re having. A tried and tested menu for catering your wedding includes a salad, protein, vegetables, pasta, and rice dishes if you’re unsure.
You can even offer at least two options for these meals to ensure that your guests have what they want. But, is it cheaper to cater your own wedding?
If you have a simple menu and bought the ingredients yourself, it will be cheaper to self-cater your wedding. However, complex meals will be laborious, so hiring an experienced caterer is more reasonable.
Conclusion
And that’s it! You just learned how to cater your own wedding by planning the menu and setup of the food.
The key is to have someone overlook the tasks at the wedding itself since you’d be busy as the bride or groom. You can also consider a buffet, cocktail, or station-style reception for your convenience.