Wednesday, April 29, 2009

food, schmood

Okay, discussion question of the day.

For your wedding, either eventual or actual, would you/did you have a buffet dinner or a sit-down dinner with two or three plated choices?

I've been to weddings with both and they all had their advantages and disadvantages. I know a lot of people find buffets to be tacky for various weddings, but I've been to a few where there was a buffet and it was amazing. To be honest, the one wedding that Steve compares all other weddings to, was a buffet! It was GOOD. Okay, it helps that her father is a chef... :)

I don't know what I will do for my eventual wedding, I suppose it would depend on many factors. Since I am not engaged, I don't think I need to worry about it for now!

So, what did/will you have? Was it an easy decision? Why did you go with that? If you are already married, were you pleased with it, or do you wish you did something else? If you had a plated meal, what were your options for your guests? If not, what was on the buffet?

PS. edit- what about a carving station? how do you feel about those, perhaps along with the buffet? does that make a buffet "nicer" in your opinion?

12 comments:

Brittany Bankhead-Kendall said...

we are from texas, and a big thing that was up and coming when we got married a year ago was "family style." it was a sit-down dinner, but then in the middle of the table we had nice "arrangements" of food to be passed- kind of like a family at thanksgiving or a fun holiday. it really helped our guests to connect and interact and saved on money too!

Brittany Bankhead-Kendall said...

p.s. i am with the kendalling love website... this is just my personal email :)

Jackie said...

We had a sit down dinner (filet or strawberry kiwi encrusted snapper) and it was fantastic. I wanted a seated meal because our wedding was pretty formal, and that is what our planner recommended. I think that either choice would have been fine, it's the actual quality of the food that counts.

Janssen said...

We did a sit down lunch (with only one option, I believe) and then we had an evening garden reception with a crepe buffet. The crepes were to die for, seriously. Both Bart and I say our biggest wedding regret is that we only ate one crepe each.

Jess said...

We had a buffet. It just made more sense, logistically and financially, and it seemed to me that it would be nice for people to be able to pick and choose what they eat. Still, it wasn't a big deal to me and either way would have been fine.

Anonymous said...

We did sit down which worked for our wedding. However; one of the best weddings food-wise I went to was family style (as mentioned above). It was a Viatnamese wedding and I loved the family style dinner. It was a great conversation piece and it was fun trying out all the food.

Kate Coveny Hood said...

I got married at the St. Regis in DC - so I knew the food would be excellent. We chose to have the full sit down meal. BUT we did dinner first THEN dancing. I find the gettting up and down in between courses to be kind of tedious. And you're sort of trapped with the people at your table whether you like them or not.

But I do also like buffets when there isn't assigned seating and you can just eat when and where you want.

For me - it comes down to the food. There are some venues that aren't known for fabulous food (country clubs are often in this category). So if you picked your site for the amazing gardens, views, etc. - why keep people hostage at their tables? If the food is five star quality - then don't let anyone miss out because they're so busy mingling.

For me - the best option was the seated dinner with lots of time for dancing and celebration afterward. But it's all so personal.

Mel said...

I think I would do the family style or buffet that way everyone can choose what they eat.

Then again I am not engaged either.

Lacey Bean said...

I think a buffet works if its a smaller wedding. Ours is looking to be 150 people, so we're doing sit down. Because if you order buffet, they have to order more food. We're also having 2 carving stations during the cocktail hour, and 1 has to be the suckling pig option, per my father and fiance. Oh men. :)

Anonymous said...

i'm gonna try to answer the questions in the order you asked...
-we're having a buffet style with passed hors d'eourves during cocktail hour (i'll be posting our final menus once we decide on them, i can't wait)
- yes, very easy decision
- our wedding is more fun than formal and we wanted to keep everything kinda light, felt the seated plated served dinner was too stuffy for the affair we're having
- our buffet will be varied (again, will post final menu) but if it gives you any idea we're staying away from carving stations as it will be late summer and my one requirement = french fries

i think the decision for served/buffet totally depends on what you're comfy with. i've been to all kinds of weddings and the food has always been good. but for me and M, seated just isn't our style, to us it feels like prom. we are more into a casual mixer-style event than what most people would consider a "wedding reception". it's all about what you like and what works for you. all of the decisions we're making seem to go together well and are just reflective of us, our outdoor friday event for 75 just goes better with a causal buffet dontchathink? : )

Carmen said...

i prefer sit down dinners, but I think it depends whether the person lkes more or less formal.

BonBon Rose Girls Kristin said...

I had a buffet. We had our wedding in a ballroom at the University of Tampa. I think the elegant surroundings helped with the cheesiness factor. And the food was amazing!