10 Ways to Save on Catering Your Wedding

I've found that on www.CaterBid.com you can post your wedding details for free. Include your budget, location and menu options. Caterers will then bid on your event and you can choose the best one for you. CaterBid supplies you with menus, customer reviews and ratings so you're not in the dark with the caterer you choose. This allows you to not only find the most affordable caterer but to relax at home or use your phone to find them while your on the go!

I went to a wedding where everyone brought food. The couple ordered some food from an Indian restaurant (wife was Indian). Since some of the non-Indian guests may not like Indian food, we also brought in sandwiches and a fruit tray. I picked up a cake at the whole foods, that was very good.

I am sure the whole wedding reception was under $500 and the bride and groom only paid for part of it.

It doesn't have to be complicated. Our wedding was a simple garden-party on a hot summer day. We prepared most of the food ourselves (my husband, myself, his mother and his sister): It was several types of sandwich toppings with home-made buns, several salads, cold cuts, cheeses and fruits. My mother made a few types of squares as dessert. Most people didn't feel like eating a heavy hot meal on such a hot day. They didn't have to wait either: They could nibble all day. Plus, it felt special to be personally involved in preparing food for our family and friends to celebrate. It was also a great way to relax and keep our feet on the ground. Then again, our loved-ones are not high-maintenance divas. We all just wanted to share a good time and it worked.

As a caterer who specializes in small budget weddings, I can tell you that most folks just want to have really good food at a low price! Believe it or not, serving a buffet dinner is a lot cheaper than serving lots of appetizers! Cupcake towers, cookie towers and take home wedding cake slices are the craze right now! Saving tons of money! Shaving the full bar down to a few beers & wines can also help the wallet.

these tips are ok (except #8!). i have no problem serving pasta at my reception. our budget for the reception is $5500 (for about 40 people) which is 1/4 of what most budgets are for my area. we don't have family with houses that we can use so we're going with a hotel. i think people would be surprised at how willing the hotels are to work within your budget. their packages include a wedding night room for us, the cake, food, the tables and chairs with linens and all the serveware. we're trimming the costs by not having alcohol other than wine with dinner. we're not big drinkers anyways. we're also going with a buffet because you get more food for your money and it's less formal than a sit down. also, having it on a friday in the winter makes it cheaper. bottom line is if you need to stay within budget there are always things that can be cut out or substituted for something less costly.

I'm saving by using an all-in-one venue with on-site catering. They're letting my buy my own alcohol from a wholesale distributor and charging me about $6 a guest for the bartenders, juice, soda and mixers. Way better than the $18.50/guest another place wanted just so my friends could have beer and wine, plus I don't have to rent every table, chair and fork!. I have a friend volunteering to DJ, a photographer friend and one in the floral department who's helping me make my own decorations!

It's gonna be one hell of a party for 100+ guests that going to look like we spent double what it cost. BOOYAH!!!

Inviting people to share my special day, it would only be fitting to honor us all serving something comparable to what I would serve them as a guest in my home for a huge event in life. I am with the if you can only afford pasta and a tower of brownies, time to cut back. No wine with dinner? The significance of marriage should be commemorated with beautiful food and beautiful wine.
I'd rather a pot luck than cheap food.

Geez, if you're not going to serve cake on your wedding day, when would you? I say if you can't afford a better meal than pasta and a tower of brownies, cut back on your guest list!

My wife and I decided to keep our wedding simple and relatively inexpensive so we would have more money available to us as we started our lives together. As I look back on it eight years later, I think that was still a very good choice.

We had two receptions because we were from two different states, and we had families and friends from both places. One of the cakes was provided as a gift from a close friend of my wife's family, and the other one was part of the gift from my parents. We had light sandwiches and fruit at one, and heavy appetizers (meatballs, casseroles, salads) at the other one, courtesy of our families as gifts in both locations. Some of the fancy serving dishes my mother in law used were also given to us as gifts. My mom made some inexpensive table decorations which we got to keep.

A fun thing we did to remember our guests (in addition to a guest book) was to have a disposable camera on each table where guests could take pictures of each other at the tables. Many of the people in attendance took well to this concept, and we ended up with some fun and memorable pictures as a result.

Both receptions were held in church gymnasiums free of charge, with decorations and food being about the only real expenses, and that was pretty nominal.

I disagree with you, catmama. A simple meal of pasta and a dessert of brownies is totally fine in my book. I don't got to a wedding for a dining experience. I go to show my love and support for the couple. Why invite fewer people you love in order to serve a more elegant dinner?!

As a caterer in a very competitive area, we have seen it all. From over the top elaborate, to foam plates and plastic cutlery. Definitely check with your venue on their policies for bringing in outside food. Most venues charge a fee to be on their preferred list and check references. This practice is to insure party goers will enjoy a delicious and properly prepared meal. We don't allow anyone else's food on our buffet, or served to the guests without proper insurance. If guests get sick, was it our food? Or Aunt Sally's undercooked food? I am guessing Aunt Sally doesn't have insurance to cover the 200 guests that became sick. Plus, the guests will only remember they became sick after going to "that" venue. I am all for saving money, but this is not a chance I will take. Here are some tips I recommend:

-Generally, Fridays and Sundays are less expensive, as are winter months.
-The easiest way to reduce your budget, is to cut your guest list.
-You would not believe the amount of cake that is wasted at virtually every wedding I have ever been a part of. Approximately 20% of your guests will not eat cake. Another tip is to have a "fake" cake. Have only the cutting tier be real, the rest fake. Order sheet cakes for the rest of the servings.
-Ask the caterer if they have another wedding that day. If you choose the same menu, will they reduce the price?
-Don't go overboard with Appetizers. If they fill up on hors d'oerves, they won't eat their meal.

I don't understand this compulsion to break the bank on weddings. A wedding can be beautiful and elegant without doing this. You can save money and have a beautiful without borrowing on the equity in your house. That is just foolish. What are weddings about anyway? Is it about sharing the most special day in your life with the ones you love and who love you, or is it about showing off?

Have your wedding right next to a McDonald, so the people can go and eat.

Check with your location before trying to bring in dessert. Many places include a clause which prohibits anything not prepared by a licensed cater from being brought in. I've even seen contracts which state if they discover any carry-ins or non-cater food they have the right to stop the event and kick everyone out...so be careful!

Most of these are good, solid tips, and Rachiti's right- go over your contract with a fine-toothed comb before you get creative! However... #8? Borrow someone's serveware? Are you serious? I don't know what the person's age has to do with it, but I do know this is asking for trouble. Do you really want to deal with all the "that woman still has my casserole dish" that will follow?

I agree that serving a simple menu makes more sense than spending what could be a down payment on a house to "show off". After everyone has gone home, you may wish you had been a bit more practical. Also , Katherine D-J, the "under 50" refers to the number of guests, not their age. Though I agree that borrowing could be dangerous. Someone is not going to get their dish back or it may be damaged.

One way to save on catering at your wedding reception: Is to have friends help you serve, have a simple menu if thats what you want, friends that are true will help you make dishes,you can also have things better organized. Family will also help with dishs if you ask I am sure salads and what not. After all it is your special day. Make it a party ! Everyone should pitch in to help save money that is what true friends do.! Pass on the good works what goes around comes around!

Or perhaps have a family member or friend cook for you as their wedding present to you.