After choosing the bride’s dress, food is one of the most relevant details of a wedding. Choosing what you will offer to eat to the guests must be within the budget and at the same time, it must demonstrate your good taste and the intention to serve your friends and family. When calculating the cost of food for a party of 150 guests, you will need to consider whether or not you will have a reception that includes hors d’oeuvres, a no-cocktail buffet, and a limited bar, or if you prefer to offer a regular multi-course meal with an open bar and hors d’oeuvres distributed around the place for the guests. These decisions are very important when planning your wedding, to know if they are possible within your budget.
Step 1
You must choose the location for the wedding reception. Inform yourself about the local rules regarding food vendors and alcohol consumption.
It is important to select a location that fits your budget and what you want, but at the same time gives you the freedom to choose the food provider that you like the most and that at the same time offers you different options regarding alcoholic beverages.
You must bear in mind that in some places such as churches with adjacent rooms they will not allow alcohol to be served in their event rooms, therefore you must plan your wedding according to the circumstance.
Step 2
Calculating food costs will help you decide exactly what to offer your guests. According to the Bridal Association of America, as of 2009, the average cost for a wedding reception for 150 guests was $ 12,790; a banquet that includes food, drinks, cake, and service, which would be an average of US $ 85 per person.
You can reduce the cost to about US $ 20 per person if your celebration is held in a Chinese restaurant or a barbecue restaurant. In general, you should plan a budget per person of about the US $ 30 to US $ 70 which covers appetizers, salads, and a bar that only offers wine and beer.
If you plan to have your wedding reception in a five-star hotel, a country club, or a summer resort, And serving appetizers plus a regular multi-course meal in addition to offering an open bar will cost you an average of $ 125 to $ 350 per person. As you can see, the place where you decide to have your wedding reception radically influences the cost of foodservice.
Step 3
When you are clear about these values, you can make a more accurate budget for your wedding after visiting at least three banquet service providers and a few restaurants. You can meet in person with at least two of your best vendor options. In your meeting ask what is their menu and the price range are. Make sure the plates, silverware, glasses, and tablecloths are included in the final estimate per person that the supplier gives you. Find out the price difference between a buffet or a regular multi-course meal.
Step 4
Compare the cost difference between an open bar, where you pay for the liquor, and a bar with drinks for sale where your guests pay for their drinks. You can also see the option of using a ticket system that consists of giving one or two valid tickets per drink to each of your guests.
If you don’t want to serve alcoholic beverages, find out how much the banquet caterer may charge you for the sodas. Many of the vendors in the market provide water and iced tea as part of the cost of the meal.
Step 5
Clarify everything with your wedding caterer, what their policies are regarding tips, and add this to the food budget. Some providers automatically add a 15% to 25% tip to your bill, while others will give you the option to decide how much you want to give. In any case, you must take this additional cost into account when you calculate the cost of the food for the reception.