How to plan a wedding menu

If you’re planning a wedding then you will also need to plan a menu. There are some things you can do to diversify your wedding menu.

• Comfort food (such as macaroni and cheese) is becoming a popular item for wedding menus.

• Ethnic cuisines such as Indian or Italian fare can add flair and personality to your wedding menu.

• Food stations are popular to keep your guests up and active.

• Talk to your caterer about any ideas he or she may have—they want to keep your wedding menu interesting as well.

• Make sure when you are choosing your site that you ask if there is an in-house caterer you must use or if you can bring in your own.

• You should always have a tasting with your caterer to pick which items you want.

• A menu card is a nice way to let your guests know what is going to be served. You don’t necessarily need a menu card at each place setting, rather just a couple on each table.

• In order to save money on your menu, don’t become attached to a five course menu; three courses should be plenty. You don’t have to have soup and a salad. Simply pick one.

• Serve your wedding cake as the dessert as opposed to having a separate one.

• You can save some money by providing your own alcohol if you are at a restaurant or hotel.

• Limiting your bar selection will also help save some money. Remember that it’s better to have no bar at all rather than a cash bar.

LISA: I'm Lisa Birnbach for howdini.com. If you're planning a wedding you're probably also planning a menu no matter what time of day you get married. There's some new trends to get you off the chicken or beef circuit and here to discuss the latest in weddings and food in editor in chief of theknot.com Carley Roney whose new book is The Knot Book of Wedding Lists. Hi Carley. 

CARLEY: Hello.

LISA: So chicken or beef, what will you have?

CARLEY: What's fun in wedding world is that people are kind of busting out. There's comfort food as a hot trend in weddings. Like why have chicken or beef when you can have mac-n-cheese and hamburgers and fun different things. Even ethnic cuisine is fun at weddings. People are having big Italian feasts or Indian feasts to really add some flair and personality to their wedding day.

LISA: Now do you think that looking back a bride and groom will wish they had been more traditional?

CARLEY: You know when it comes to food the reality is that no one really remembers it twenty minutes after the wedding is over. Like we stress about it so much, but honestly they want to know is there an open bar and was there enough food for me to eat. So, you have to work with your caterer. This is their job and I always tell people on knot.com, trust these professionals. This is what they do for a living. 

LISA: Obviously if you go to a restaurant you're wedded to their chef and cuisine. But are there places were you can bring in your own caterer? 

CARLEY:  One of the first questions you need to ask when looking for your reception site is, is it an in-house caterer, can I bring in anything and/or do you have required caterers that you would need us to use. Like some mansions only have the three caterers they like to work with because they know their rules and things like that. Browse their menus online, get a sense of what sites they might work with and it's really a lot easier these days. But, clearly you have to go in and taste the food--

LISA: That was my next question, is it appropriate? Can you say I'd like to try it before the wedding?

CARLEY: You will always have a tasting with your catering, even if you're in a hotel and you can only book with them. So they want to find out, they want to make sure that you're pleased with what's going to be served on that day. So, they are not going to let you taste every single option on their menu, but you will work out a tasting menu. I like these types of things, and taste an alternative. They would sort of give you the three different appetizers and so you do get to taste and make your final choices from there. And if you want to go the, I don't have any options route, you still probably want to have a vegetarian option in the background that only your servers know about. If someone says oh wait I'm a vegetarian you can serve. But, otherwise what you're going to want to do is a surf and turf.

LISA:  Do you recommend at theknot.com that the menu card be offered at every place setting?

CARLEY:  You don't need to have one at every place setting. You could just have them at two places on the table; that's a way to save money as well. Everyone doesn't need their own personalized menu, but it's nice for people to know what's ahead too. You know, should I eat all of this, are there five more courses, are there only two more? 

LISA: They pace themselves. Right. Now speaking of saving money, I heard you say it, what are other ways to have an elegant wedding reception, and serve enough food for people to be happy, enough alcohol to be happy, but save a little money?

CARLEY:  One of the best tips we have is you know don't get too attached to the five course menu.  You know you can have three wonderful course, you don't have to have a soup and a salad. Like pick one. Have a lovely entree and then you know get out. And you also don't have to have dessert and a cake. Just serve your cake. The question is people just want to have enough to eat. They don't want to feel like they have to wait too long to eat; that's the biggest complaint actually. 

LISA: If you can supply your own alcohol and wine, are you going to save money?

CARLEY: Yes, you're going to save some money, but honestly, mostly you're only going to save if you are in a hotel or restaurant enviroment. If you're working with an off-site catering location you're probably going to get a pretty significant deal on that alcohol anyway. The best way to save money on alcohol is to limit your bar. Like you don't have to have every single type of liquor because A-you get charged with every bottle of liquor that's opened. Try to be limiting, but please God forbid don't have a cash bar. It's better to have honestly no alcohol at all. 

LISA:  Thank you Carley. For howdini.com I'm Lisa Birnbach.