Looking for expert wedding catering advice? We asked nearly a dozen local caterers for advice on creating the perfect wedding-day menu. From popular trends to kid-friendly options to dessert choices for those who don’t like sweets, these wedding pros cover everything. Here are their best tips and tricks for festive food and drink.
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Make Menu Planning Easy
Pick one delicious entrée that you feel happy serving your guests. That way you don’t get overwhelmed with how many want fish or beef or chicken. Your caterer will help with alternatives for dietary restrictions. —Craig Currie, Root & Stem Catering
Keep Waiting to a Minimum
Have drinks passed during cocktail hour to avoid long lines at the bar. —Lauren Upton, Ken’s Creative Kitchen
Hospitality Is Key
Don’t forget the guest experience! Often, your guests will remember being thirsty, hungry, or bored long before they remember your napkin color or your centerpieces. —Casey Gardella, RSVP Catering
Get Personal
Incorporate a recipe that represents your culture, a favorite childhood meal, or a dish from your life experiences or travels. Make the menu memorable by telling a story. —Andrew Gerstel, Windows Catering Company
Cocktail-Hour Convenience
Don’t skimp on the café seating and standing cab tables during cocktail hour. Guests appreciate a place to set a glass or cocktail plate so they can chat and mingle. —Amy Lewerenz, Ridgewells Catering
Offer a Healthier Choice
Start things off with a kombucha cocktail. Kombucha brings healthy fermentation and a delicious carbonation to beverages. Try switching out the ginger beer in your Moscow Mule for ginger kombucha. —Gina Cristiano, Purple Onion Catering
Double Up
Use an edible cookie as a place card. —Stacey Benefield, Susan Gage Caterers
Trends To Try
Vertical food buffets, hanging cocktails, and suspended wine vessels where guests can help themselves to a glass of wine. —Bill Homan, Design Cuisine
Don’t Skimp on the . . .
Staff! The proper amount of staff will make your guests feel welcome and taken care of. —Amit Gulati, Spilled Milk Catering
Remember the Mocktail
You’ll have some guests who aren’t drinking for any number of reasons. You still can give them a taste of the caterer’s creativity in drinks.—Craig Currie, Root & Stem Catering
Popular Provisions
Three of our experts suggested interactive stations or rolling food carts at cocktail hour, a fun way to make sure guests aren’t ravenous by the time they sit for dinner. “Adding something a little more substantial where people can graze without having to search for food is always appreciated.” —Abbey Lupien, RSVP Catering
A Cocktail-Hour Idea
Switch things up with cocktail flights in small or unique glassware. —Stacey Benefield, Susan Gage Caterers
A Money-Saving Meal
Forgo the steak and serve something more interesting. —Amit Gulati, Spilled Milk Catering
Don’t Forget the Kids
Have some kid-friendly food and drink options, and account for children in your seating plans. We love when couples go the extra mile and provide care packages with activities for kids. Taking care of the little ones at your event goes a long way toward increasing the enjoyment of their parents! —Amy Lewerenz, Ridgewells Catering
Nostalgic Food With a Modern Twist
Who says your tastes have to grow up just because you did? How about pop tarts for dessert or grilled cheese sandwiches loaded with Havarti, caramelized onions, and fig jam? —Glynis Keith, Catering by Seasons
Don’t Like Sweets? Try These Savory Options Instead
Along with providing wedding catering advice, we also asked our experts for dessert ideas for those who don’t like sweets. Their responses have us (almost) thinking twice about the cake.
An action station where chefs slice fresh fruits (melons, pineapples, dragon fruit, peaches, figs, kiwis, and berries) to create colorful, made-to-order fruit cups that guests can finish with a splash of elderflower, cassis, or simple syrup. —Amy Lewerenz, Ridgewells Catering
We recommend a Prosecco and savory cotton candy station. Marry the sweetness of cotton candy with the spice and zest of tamarind and Tajín, and dollop it into your bubbly for a sparkly surprise. —Margot Jones, Purple Onion Catering
Designer pretzels or an assortment of flavored popcorn. —Bill Homan, Design Cuisine
Goat-cheese ice cream sandwiches with ginger-spiced sponge cake. —Amit Gulati, Spilled Milk Catering
Opt for a stacked cake of cheese wheels decorated with grapes, figs, and berries. —Lauren Upton, Ken’s Creative Kitchen
A great alternative to sugary desserts is a refreshing, low-sugar sorbet station. Keep it interactive by letting guests build their own sundaes with a variety of toppings and garnishes.—Kim Schanzer, Windows Catering Company
This article appeared in the Summer/Fall 2019 issue of Washingtonian Weddings.
Amy leads Washingtonian Weddings and writes Style Setters for Washingtonian. Prior to joining Washingtonian in March 2016, she was the editor of Capitol File magazine in DC and before that, editor of What’s Up? Weddings in Annapolis.
