Did you know that the reception of your wedding will take up almost half of your wedding budget? It’s true! When you have to rent out the venue, the tables, chairs, linens, flatware, and also feed and provide alcohol, the cost of having a full blown reception grows quickly.
You don’t have to blow your budget on feeding your guests or providing a ton of drinks. Here are some other ideas for your wedding reception that you may want to consider.
Luncheons
If you have a morning wedding, then a luncheon is a great way to celebrate the wedding afterwards. Not only will it fill your guests when they are going to clearly be hungry, but it is also quite a bit less expensive than a sit down dinner or a buffet. You aren’t only stuck with a ham and egg sandwiches either; you can choose from pasta salads, potato salads, Chinese foods, Thai salads, potatoes, fruit salads, coleslaw, and a number of other foods. You can ask your preferred caterer what they are able to serve and plan out a whole luncheon menu for you and your guests.
Cocktail Reception
These receptions are great if you had a wedding at 11 to 5pm, or an evening wedding, and you want to celebrate, but you want to skip on paying all of that hard earned cash on a dinner. Cocktail receptions usually include drinks (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) as well as hors d’oeuvres. These are becoming increasingly popular as not so many bride and grooms are able to treat their guests to a full meal, but they still want to take them all out for a drink (or two, or three, or four’)
Dessert Receptions
These are becoming all the rage these days for anyone with an afternoon or evening wedding. Dessert receptions will still give your guests a bit of a treat, you can still have your cake cutting ceremony, and you can serve drinks if you would like. They are also very affordable when compared to a sit down or buffet dinner. You can choose a number of different desserts and cakes as well, so don’t think that a dessert reception means only serving up your wedding cake (though almost everyone is going to want a piece!)
Tea Receptions
A tea reception is a reception that would be held between 2pm and 4pm in the afternoon. Coffee and tea is provided, as well as a variety of small decadent tea sandwiches, tarts, scones, and other pastries.
Cake and Punch Receptions
The most simple of all of the wedding receptions is the cake and punch reception. These receptions are all about the cake cutting ceremony and drinks. These types of receptions usually work best either mid morning or mid afternoon, though some also hold these types of receptions after a late evening wedding too. You may also choose to put out other sweets as well, and offer coffee and tea.
Remember, if you do choose to do anything but a full meal reception, it’s important that you specify this in your invitation. Otherwise you are going to have a room full of grumpy, hungry people!
Tags: wedding catering
Categories: Reception