Whilst weddings are known for being one of the best days of many a blushing bride’s lives, they can also be quite stressful, and a large part of that stress comes in the form of how expensive weddings can be to arrange.  Nobody wants a wedding disaster and many people throw money at the problem in order to ensure everything runs smoothly, yet if you don’t have the luxury of heaps of cash lying around or don’t fancy putting everything on zero interest credit cards, you might need to get a little more creative.
Custom cake table decorations for wedding
Whether you’re looking to save on the often extortionate cost of wedding catering or simply want your guests to enjoy the personal touch of offering home cooked food, the idea of catering your own wedding can be a recipe for mayhem unless you do things right.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Often, our attention goes straight to what we’re going to serve with less consideration for how we’re going to make the food, keep it warm at the venue, serve it, store it, and so on.
Most importantly, you’ll want to consider how to keep the food you’re serving warm; as an example if you’re serving a buffet with pulled pork as a feature, then slow cookers (also known as crock pots) are a great way to keep the food at a safe temperature with low maintenance… and most of your friends will have one lying about somewhere at home!
A RUSTIC BUFFET
A rustic themed wedding can open the door to a more relaxed and collaborative effort; some weddings even encourage guests to get involved with bringing a particular dish like a street party.  The great thing about offering a rustic buffet is that the food tends to be cold, meaning all you need to do is keep it chilled and then have people set it up in less than thirty minutes.  In terms of equipment, a few paper plates large serving bowls and tongues is all you’ll need.
BBQ
If you’re planning a summer wedding, what better way to celebrate than with a barbecue – the smells, the tastes, the camaraderie of it all.  Gas barbecues are by far the easiest and it offers a very convenient way to cater larger weddings; all you’ll need are a few tables of interesting salads as a buffet, a variety of sauces, and a few cooler boxes packed with meat to be grilled in the afternoon.
FOOD TRUCKS
Okay, technically this isn’t catering your own wedding… but it’s a low-cost equivalent that will save you heaps of time and be quirky.  Now, this is your wedding day so there should be consideration for hiring a food truck specializing in gourmet cuisine and perhaps a boutique ice cream van rather than the local bog standard ice cream van that kids chase around the neighborhood… the prevalence of gourmet food trucks that offering anything from burritos to hog roasts and specialist burgers with all sorts of weird and wonderful meats such as ostrich, buffalo and even crocodile – can be a very quirky way to feed and entertain your guests.
In summary, remember that this is your wedding day; it’s a celebration of the love between you and your partner – it’s not a day to be running around after people in a kitchen apron.  If you’re thinking about catering your own wedding then the best approach is to look at how you can pre-prepare the majority of the food so that you’re free to enjoy your special day.
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