Catering Help!

Where at in Ohio? Mine is in Ohio and we're using a local restaurant to cater ours, for 50 people it's gonna run us right around $1200, which is incredibly low compared to Maryland where we live which averages $70-100 pp.

$1,000 for 90 people is super cheap. For reference we (in MA) spent $11,000 just on food for 130 people.

Yeah I'm a chef myself and sometimes I even look at the prices theses catering companies charge and it's like wowwww. I remember thinking of doing my wedding at a loft in NY since that's where most of my guests are coming from. Then a catering place hit me with a 22,000 starting budget lol. That was the end of that. Unless you love Olive Garden i would look into non chain restaurants that can do that amount of people because it really isn't a large number.

View Quoted Comment Delaware ohio is where our venue is going to be at

That’s $11 per person. Most restaurants you can’t even get dinner for $11. Yes catering can be expensive for a wedding but it usually includes salad, meal, desserts, servers at the minimum. I would be surprised if Olive Garden came in lower than that.

We are paying 80pp but that includes wait staff and cocktail hour and 4 hour open bar. We are also getting married in Ohio. I would be worried with something like that of all the extra costs. Would you need elegant serving stations? What will you use to keep it warm? Will anyone be there to serve it or if you are doing buffet style who is going to make sure it is kept neat and orderly? Delivery? Where will you keep it at till it’s time to eat? Also what happens if you rub out? From my past experience with business lunches pasta that is not fresh is not very nice esp if they have been sitting out on burners at a buffet station for over an hour. To me it would be worth it to cut the number of guests and ensure the ones who are invited are served a proper tasty meal.

I've seen other people on here who have used Olive Garden to cater. No matter who you use, if you go buffet style its usually a less expensive option.

When you are hosting your guests, you need to think about it as inviting them out to a nice dinner - drinks, apps, main, and dessert. If you wouldn't take someone out to a nice dinner, they shouldn't be on your guest list. Even in the lowest COL areas in the country, you would be hard pressed to find somewhere that you can get a nice drink, app, main, and dessert for $11, or even $20-25+, so I am not sure what the prices were that sounded high to you, but I feel like in most areas, catering is pretty well reflective of the cost of living. What were you quoted & for how many?

I paid about $6500 or so for catering a buffet and cocktail hour for 114 people. Yes, catering is expensive, and yes, some companies charge ABSURDLY high prices, but thing you have to keep in mind is that usually you’re paying for more than the food: you’re paying for the chef, servers, and coordinators, for rentals of things like dishes, linens, and potentially tables/etc., and for other little things that you wouldn’t even think of. My caterer was on the low end budget-wise for my area, but just for her experience and expertise alone she was worth every penny and then some.

And while I went with a more traditional caterer for my wedding, I do have experience with Olive Garden catering. I LOVE the restaurant, but my family used them for my college graduation dinner to serve around 30 people. There was a snafu with our order, and the food wound up arriving cold and sub-par. Keep in mind that even if the restaurant delivers for a wedding, someone will still have to “work” your reception to keep the buffet stocked, food warm, and clean up after. I personally would stick to eating Olive Garden in their restaurant.

We use Olive Garden for a lot of our parties! They are great! The give you sooooo much!

We are in Orlando and paying $3000 for 133 people. That includes Cuban pork, beef carving station, salmon, plated salad, 2-4 appetizers, spanish rice, fried plantains, yucca with peppers and onions, mashed potato bar with both white and sweet potatoes, a veggie and bread. It will also include tea, coffee, and lemonade. Google caterers in your area and give them an idea of what you want and see what they give you as a price.

Catering is always the largest wedding expense, usually around 50% of the budget. I wouldn’t bat an eye at Olive Garden catering, as long as it’s prepared and maintained by licensed professionals. Weddings are special occasions and there is a LOT of involved in catering, which is why the prices are shocking at first. But you are paying for food, staff, dishes, utensils, furniture rentals, equipment, set up and breakdown, etc. Depending on the venue, they may need to build a temporary kitchen. Catering staff work their butts off non-stop for hours before, during, and after weddings, so they deserve every penny they get. It takes a lot to cater an event, so the costs are justified. And when you think about it, a dinner at a restaurant with appetizers, salad, entree, a few drinks and a dessert will not be cheap, certainly not $11 per person.

I would look into other local restaurants in the area to see if they cater, especially Italian, BBQ, or Mexican. The food costs are usually less expensive. Good luck in your search.

I'm from Jacksonville florida. We didn't hire a traditional caterer either. We didn't like the price, or menu selection. We went with a seafood restaurant. Salt life food shack. Very reasonable for 60 people

We are paying close to $3,000 for 70 and its a cocktail style reception. Bar, dessert, taxes and fees are not included in this price. But remember food is expensive (think about how much it costs when you go grocery shopping), so is all the display and serving items, all the equipment to cook the food, wages for cooks and waitstaff, plus caterers are a business and ultimately are aiming to make a profit.