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Haley 03/20/12 |
Dear ellen. I have a sister who is a chef. A very accomplished one at that. I asked her to cater my wedding and asked her how much she would cost. (she also works in a facility that has large cooking appliances) She said she said she wouldn't charge labor, just the cost of food.. my food budget is around $2000. The amount of people expected to come is about 200, but of course that could change. I was thinking, small steaks, asparagus and garlic mashed potatoes. The non red meat option being chicken and the vegetarian option being a pasta dish, with vegetables. The invitations and rsvps would also include what they were eating so we have an accurate amount made before the reception. I'm trying to decide if this is a reasonable budget for my reception? |
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ellen 03/20/12 |
Haley, sorry to report, not for steaks. First, it is a VERY good idea to have the food choices RSVP'd, good planning. Second, a seated dinner for 200 people requires at least 3 people in the kitchen (if VERY experienced and a sensible menu) PLUS 12 experienced servers at least to set up, serve and cleanup. Even if your sister donates her services, you are looking at paying $100-150 per person for about 15 other people. Third, the rental for tables, chairs, linens, glasses, china and silver has to be factored into the cost. Also the cake, liquor, and related desserts. Wedding cake alone can easily be as high as $2-3 per person. And an appetizer or nibble table, which will run $3-4 per person, is awfully important for a meal service reception, especially if there will be children. Costs are somewhat lower for buffet service, but steaks aren't practical for that either. For 200 people, this level dinner, you are looking at more like $4-5K with the chef donated. It would be at least 2 to 3 times that catered. You do need to increase the budget to have a plated dinner meal. You have some options, discussed in the wedding dinner article;
Trim the guest list If you decide to stick with a dinner, you must budget in all the stuff discussed above, consider buffet service, and simplify the menu. Glad your sister wants to help, and hope you have plenty of time to figure out what you want to do. |