Backyard weddings are characterized by unique charms, togetherness, and a touch of minimalism that aims to maintain family cultures. The type of catering service you choose for your backyard wedding must reflect this vibe.
Choosing a catering service for a backyard wedding, just like any other wedding, can sometimes be a brainer. This is especially true if you do not have adequate insight into the available options to choose from. Fortunately, this article gives 5 delectable catering services that will not only tantalize your taste buds but also make your big day unforgettable with memories.
Food Stations
This is a great service for a backyard wedding since it is an improved buffet service.
Meals On Table A Part Of Natural Wedding Ceremony Held In Nature
With this style of service, guests get an opportunity to witness their menu choices come to life. The waiting is utilized in chatting with other guests and the newlywed couple. It is a great way to show your commitment to cultural diversity since special dietary needs are catered for. The interactive nature of the service fosters interpersonal relations, filling the wedding with great memories from the long engaging chats. However, the service comes with some limitations such as the long wait time. It also increases food portions and consumption, which may exert a strain on your budget.
Buffet-Style Service
Also a great service to foster interpersonal interactions is the buffet style of service that works perfectly for backyard weddings. A variety of dishes are set up on several tables in line. Then guests follow each other in line and they come picking dishes of their choice, one after the other, depending on their taste buds and dietary preferences. It is a great service for a backyard since it bolters interactions because people will be forced to chat between themselves when lining up. It also offers a variety of menus and individuals with special dietary needs feel valued. On the other side, the service encourages more consumption in bigger portions. It also leaves behind massive waste, which is not very financially prudent if you are working on a budget. Moreover, it can create lots of disorganization if the buffet lines are not properly managed.
Family-Style Service
Just as the name suggests, a family style of service invites a warm communal setting. With guests seated, service staff set different large platters with distinct dish menus on the tables and guests serve themselves. It is also a great way of enhancing interpersonal relationships that translate to memorable moments. The reduction in consumption and portion size offers an opportunity for a warm communal feeling on a tight budget. However, guests do not have much to say when it comes to the choice of dishes; they have to go with whatever is on the platters. This does not reflect very well with cultural diversity considerations since special dietary needs are not catered for. With this catering service, you will need very big tables to accommodate different platters.
Plated Dinner Service
Just like with family style of service, plated dinner service also takes into consideration a culture of warm communal setting. With guests seated at their tables, catering staff pass around offering plates full of different dishes. Again, in this service, guests do not have much say in the choice of their dishes. However, special dietary needs can still be incorporated when they are communicated early enough. It is a great way to save on money since it reduces consumption and portion size. Less food wastage also translates to increased financial consciousness.
DIY and Potluck
For a very intimate budget-conscious option, you may decide to prepare the dishes by yourself. This is the best option when the couple wishes to introduce their family culture into their big day. Alternatively, you may request your guests to bring dishes to share. To achieve well-balanced and sufficient catering, you could ask each guest to bring a specific meal and in specific amount. In addition to cost effectiveness, it is a great hack to bolster relationship bonds and leave some long-lasting memories. On the other side, this style of service is a little less reliable in terms of variety, hygiene, and sufficiency. It also calls for a lot of coordination, which might be challenging when you have other aspects of the wedding to attend to.
As you may have noticed, each of the above discussed service styles comes with its benefits and limitations. It therefore implies that for you to settle on one, you have to factor in several considerations such as cost and budget, amount of space in your backyard and family culture.