2 months ago 30th Sep 11:18
Choosing menus and drinks for your buffet or sit-down wedding meal is not easy. Many couples, though conscious of how varied their guests' tastes in food might be, desperately seek to avoid the 'rubber chicken' type of dull, dreary menu that so often is chosen by large groups for precisely that reason.
There are two points to make here. One is remember whose wedding it is; pick a menu that will please you and your immediate family and friends. Don't feel obliged to choose something you happen to hate, just because it's widely acceptable to others. The second, is that there need not be more than a few definite no-nos unless your religion or culture has specific rules. The following points should, if observed, satisfy most guests at a modern wedding.
No pork; some religions don't allow it.
No shellfish; some religions don't allow it, and many people have shellfish allergies.
Include a vegetarian alternative to starter and main course.
Avoid very heavily spiced food unless there are cooler alternatives available.
Avoid alcohol, obviously, if your religion does not allow it.
If alcohol is permitted ensure you offer plenty of non-alcoholic drinks for those who prefer them and/or are driving.
Sit-down meals are often favoured by families and certainly offer guests a more substantial option, but these meals do have their problems. Not only are you obliged to arrange seating plans for sit-down meals, but also the meal concerned is more difficult to arrange.
Many families send out menus with the wedding invitations, asking guests to specify what choice they would like from a selection of options. The returns from this exercise are particularly helpful because they will tell you and your caterers what should be allowed for across conventional tastes, vegetarian options, religiously-orientated options, etc. With large wedding receptions, accommodating everyone's whims can be quite a daunting task, but most wedding caterers are used to that and can cope.
Although less formal, buffet-style meals probably are the preferable option when you have an eclectic mix of guests. With this format you avoid the extra fiddle-factor of asking people to choose their menus beforehand, or the need for you to make painful choices of what to serve at a sit-down dinner. Here you can offer a far wider selection of dishes amongst which nearly everyone will find something they like. The preparation and serving of a buffet meal is also simpler (and therefore should be cheaper) than a sitdown meal for a large number of guests.
These are a popular choice for summer weddings, but remember that weather can be an issue here, especially in the good old UK . Most professional venues will allow for the possibility of wet weather, but if you do your reception at home or in another private place, find a way to get the barbecue devices under (non-inflammable) cover if the need arises. The other important thing to remember about barbecues is that the classic foods we cook on them here in the UK are not normally vegetarian-friendly, and are probably not religion-friendly for a multi-cultural guest list. That's not the end of the world though. Within the barbecue choices you can include some delicious veggie kebabs and other things.
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