Now that you’ve narrowed your options down to two or three choices, don’t book just on price, but on taste! A catering tasting is one of the fun vendor meetings during the planning process. You get a tasty lunch and a chance to meet the caterer face-to-face. During the meeting, the caterer should be interested in discussing the menu (be honest about what you do and don’t like), the details of the day, the formality of the event, and the timeline. If they are not taking notes about your opinion on the food and the details of the wedding, be wary.

You should also take note of how the food was presented: Was their plating sophisticated or simple? Did it come out in a timely manner? Did they offer you water? Was the table set attractively? Did they clear dishes smoothly and efficiently?

Some of my favorite questions are: Will the individual running the tasting be at the wedding (sometimes it may be a party manager or other event coordinator)? If not, may I meet with the person who will be managing catering at my wedding? How long has your floor staff (servers and bartenders) been working with you?

If the staff has been working with that caterer for a long time, that is a very, very good sign. Floor staff have a pretty thankless job, so if they like working with a particular caterer it means they are being treated right, the behind the scenes organization is on point (so no drama can occur in the kitchen), and they have a good time working with the caterer. Believe me, if your floor staff are having a good time working your wedding they will take very good care of your guests.

If all your questions are answered, the food was great, and you just generally get a good feeling about the caterer, book them. Most catering companies are on the small side and can only book a certain number of events a day, so don’t wait to sign a contract and give them a deposit. And congrats! You just checked off a huge to-do on your list.

And now some tips for making your caterer a happy vendor:

Do a walk through with them at the location. This is for both your benefit and the caterer’s. It will firm up the layout and timeline and it will give the caterer a chance to look at the load out area and kitchen. If they tell you that you need to add more time for setup because it’s a hard load out, believe them. Yes, it is more money for labor, but you don’t want them sweating timing as soon as they get there. Also, listen to their logistical suggestions and concerns. They have done a lot of parties and know how people congregate at the bar (don’t put it by the entrance), if there is not going to be enough power, if you need additional bathrooms, and so on.

If you do nothing else, remember to give catering a FINAL guest count a week in advance. If that means over-estimating the final count, do it. Catering is not like a restaurant where you can add 5 people to the reservation the day of the event. All food has to be ordered in advance and then prepped. So, be kind to the caterer and the chef; don’t give them a heart attack by adding 10 guests the day before your wedding.

And don’t forget to tip!!! The floor and kitchen staff work very hard to pull off your event. There are no hard and fast rules on tipping, but generally take 10% of the total bill and divide it among the staff. Assign someone you trust to do this at the end of night (preferably someone who doesn’t drink) and if you can, thank the caterer, chef, and floor staff, in person. And finally, after the wedding, don’t forget to send a thank you note!!!

Photos from Feastivities Events based in Phildephia.

Tags: Kelly Oshiro Events, picking a wedding caterer, santa barbara wedding, santa barbara wedding caterer, Santa Barbara wedding planner, wedding blog, Wedding Blogs, Wedding Planning Tips

This entry was posted on Friday, July 18th, 2008 at 2:48 pm and is filed under Food & Beverage, Wedding Planning Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.