Venues with in house cantering

Our venue provided in house catering and we didn't have our tasting until a few months before the wedding which meant that we had to pay a deposit plus additional payments prior to trying their food. Most places will not hold a date with a deposit and signed contract with them which includes provisions about canceling if you decide not to go with them. Tastes are typically done after the fact.

My venue does in house catering and they had two dates to pick from to come to the tasting, they had the reception space all set up with the colors of the table linens all couples picked out -so it wasn't a private tasting. But you book first and then tasting is after you book.

None of the places we looked at offered this, but I'm not sure if they would allow you to do a tasting during that time. That would be a question you'd have to ask the venue. Our tasting was free, but they might charge you to do the tasting since you won't have a signed contract with them which locks you in with them.

All of the venues that we toured with in house catering did not offer tastings before booking, unfortunately. You could possibly ask if you could pay for a tasting upfront? We definitely took a chance and put down a deposit without tasting the food and we ended up doing the tasting around 5 months before our wedding date. Thankfully everything was absolutely delicious!

My venue has in house catering but what really set them apart was when we went to tour, they brought us tons of food to try..before we even decided to book! We have our official tasting 2 months before our date, though.

That said, before going to the venue, I looked up their reviews & specifically searched their reviews on food so if we went into it blind, we could have some confidence.

Due to COVID restrictions and certain venues not yet reopening since early 2020, we were not able to get any tour tastings. My FH and I were given sample menus prior to tours and used those to determine what would work. We liked one nice venue, but realized we had to add costly options to elevate the menu, so ultimately passed. I would also specifically ask options for vegetarian or vegan entrees, and ask if the chef is experienced with a strong veg-based menu.

No, we just booked it, but food was not a top priority for us. I went with overall venue vibe, menu sophistication, and ability to centralize out of town guests. All menus should provide options which you and your partner can narrow down at the actual tasting, e.g. choose 6 hor d'oeuvres from a list of XX. It sounds like this is a big priority for you and your guests, so perhaps you can choose caterers first and find a venue that is a blank canvas. Go with your instincts.

My venue does in house catering but is unique in that it is a working farm that so happens to have an incredible chef. They are a seasonal venue and typically host 2-3 "farm dinners" every year. Typically, once you book them, you get four tickets to a farm dinner, so you and your future spouse can attend two different dinners to sample various foods. They don't do individual tastings though.

Because of Covid, none of that has happened for us. We never had any of their food prior to our elopement (they made us a cake) and won't have tried any of their savory food before our wedding celebration next month. However, literally anyone we have ever met who has had their food raves about how good it is, so we are very confident in the outcome without ever having tried it before!