Wedding Catering FAQs
Your No-Nonsense Guide to Feeding Your Guests
Planning your wedding catering can feel a bit overwhelming, right? From timing the wedding breakfast to figuring out who needs a meal and whether to include canapés, we’ve got your back with straightforward answers to the most common catering questions.
D&A photography
How much time should we allow for the wedding breakfast?
Here’s the food service lowdown:
3 courses = around 2 hours
2 courses = about 1.5 hours
1 course = still around 1.5 hours (yep, it takes longer than you think!)
If you’ve got 100+ guests, add some extra time just to be safe.
Pro tip: Chat with your caterer, they know their stuff and can give you the best advice for your specific menu and guest count.
2. Do we always need evening food, even if we’re eating late?
Short answer: Yes!
Long answer: Weddings are marathon events with lots of standing, dancing, and drinking, people get hungry. If you want your guests to party all night, you’ve got to feed them. Plan to cater for about 75-80% of your guests.
Pro tip: Serve evening food during band or DJ breaks when the dance floor clears naturally.
3. How do supplier meals work and who needs one?
If a supplier is with you all day, they definitely need feeding. No packed lunches allowed! There’s nowhere to store them, and it’s a logistical headache. So feed your crew, it keeps everyone happy and focused.
How it usually works:
Caterers offer a simple supplier meal
Suppliers usually eat while guests are busy with their own food, so no key moments are missed
Typically includes photographer, videographer, planner/coordinator
Heads up: This doesn’t apply to venue staff who are fed as part of their job.
4. How important are canapés?
Crucial. Life-saving (just kidding but not really). But honestly, we’d choose canapés over starters any day. If canapés aren’t your thing, grazing boards are an awesome alternative and always a crowd-pleaser.
5. Should we have a tasting?
If your caterer offers one, yes, absolutely! It’s a delicious, fun excuse for a date night and means no nasty surprises on the big day. If they don’t offer tastings… maybe ask yourself why.
6. Alternatives to a sit-down wedding breakfast?
If a formal sit-down isn’t your vibe, here are some crowd-pleasers:
Sharing platters
BBQ buffets
Food trucks
Grazing tables
Live cooking stations
7. Tips for cake cutting?
Timing is everything:
Cut the cake right after the wedding breakfast to gently move guests out of the dining room, or just before the first dance
Make sure you have a cake knife ready!
Plan who’s serving the cake after the cut… want to save some for later or get it all out to guests?
8. Wedding caterer red flags?
Watch out for:
Vague pricing or hidden costs
No flexibility for dietary needs
Slow or poor communication
No tastings or reviews to check
Menus that don’t feel like you
9. Advice on sharing courses?
Make sure tables have enough room, no one wants to play culinary Jenga.
Be clear with dietary labels since sharing means food travels.
Sharing meals can take longer, so add time to your schedule.
10. How to work food trucks into your wedding timeline?
Some things to keep in mind:
Decide their role: main meal, evening snack, or post-ceremony bite?
Plan for 1-2 hours of set-up time (parking, plugging in, prepping).
If they’re doing the main meal, make sure guests know how it works (consider a table-by-table call to avoid queues).
Slot evening food between music sets when the dance floor clears.
Location is key: place the truck somewhere obvious and accessible.
Check power and lighting needs, especially for winter or evening weddings.
Coordinate with your planner to keep things running smoothly and guests informed.