Weddings can be lengthy affairs and while you might be focused on the right dress, venue and guest list, catering is one of the most important aspects of the day. Hungry guests are grumpy guests and you don’t want that on your big day!
Even when most of your menu is taken care of by a company like Martin’s Caterers, you will still need to think carefully about what you want to eat, when and how much. Having a few snacks throughout the day is a good option, especially if you are moving around a lot.
So, what are your options?
Wedding Breakfast
The biggest meal of the day will be your wedding breakfast. This is usually a large formal meal at the reception after your wedding ceremony but this doesn’t mean that you have to be traditional if you don’t want to. For example, you might decide to host an earlier wedding and then hold a wedding brunch.
As this is usually the main meal of the day, you need to make sure that everyone has enough to eat. There are all kinds of ideas you could go for, from DIY burritos to food trucks with everything from hot dogs to mac and cheese. If you want a truly unique wedding, don’t be afraid to pick out your favorite foods and do something different!
Canapés
Weddings are long affairs but offering canapés at strategic points throughout the day will keep everyone happy. The theme of your wedding might influence the canapés you offer. For example, if you are hosting a sophisticated wedding, you might like to look at some fancy canapés to go with your day.
When you are planning canapés, bear in mind the various dietary requirements of everyone you have invited to your wedding. Putting out a selection of vegan and vegetarian canapés as well as meat or fish is good practice but you might also consider gluten-free and nut-free options depending on your party. As a general rule, you should offer a minimum of 3 different options.
Kids Food
If you have invited children to your wedding, you need to think about how your day looks from their perspective. Young children tend not to understand the reasoning behind waiting for tiny canapés but equally might not fancy filling up at your wedding breakfast either. With this in mind, you do need to think about what the children will want to eat on your day.
Creating a lunch bag for each child you invite is a good way to ensure that they can eat when they’re hungry and have the food they will enjoy. Putting a couple of sandwiches, a piece of fruit and some crisps in is a good start but you could also add cake, candy or other treats for them to enjoy too. Indeed, the lunch bag is a lovely idea for park weddings too.
However you choose to feed everyone, the most important thing is that no-one is hungry during the day and everyone can find something they will enjoy.
