Choosing a Wedding Caterer

You have met the person that you want to spend the rest of your life with and the proposal have been given and accepted. This is a wonderful time in your life! You are now beginning to plan your wedding. Hopefully, this will be the only one that you will ever have, so you want it to be the fulfillment of all your dreams, right? This might be more difficult than you think with so many things to consider. One of the areas that you will be planning is the food to be served at your reception. Hiring a catering service is a great solution as it removes one of the burdens from you, the happy couple.

When choosing a catering service, there are many things that you should consider. Be prepared to take your time and speak with several different catering companies before making a final decision. Go to the interviews equipped with a list of the questions that you have and take notes as you go. This way, you won’t be confused about who said what and which company was which by the time you get back home to go over the aspects of each and make your choice. The following is a list of things that you will want to consider as you select a catering service for this important day.

*Are they going to charge you a package price based on an estimated number of guests, or will they be tallying the number of attendees as they go? Although all caterers will need to know approximately how many people they should be prepared to serve, some will count as they go while others will just give you a package price on the amount of food they are bringing.

*Is the cake included in the price of the catering package? This is often not a part of the deal so you will need to know that in advance in order to arrange a bakery to do this. How about beverages? Is this included in the price and is it offered?

*Will they provide your guests with a choice of entrees or is there just one for everyone? Because of food allergies and individual preferences, it is much better if there are at least two choices for your guests. Be sure that you include this on your RSVP cards and stress that you need to have them back by a certain time to give them to the caterer.

*Will the meal be served to your guests by waitstaff or is it to be done buffet-style? Some catering services will allow you to choose which way you would like your meal presented, but there is usually an additional charge for waitstaff.

*Who is responsible for set-up and clean-up? Will the caterers be doing this or do you need to make seperate arrangements.

When you select a service based on the answers to your questions, you need to draw up a contract. Do not leave this special day to chance! Have everything on paper, down to the last detail and be sure that it is signed and dated by yourself and the caterer. This will help to ensure that there is no misunderstanding about what is expected on either side. Have a wonderful wedding day and a happy rest of your lives!