Or five hundred, or fifty, or whatever amount of guests you happen to be having at your wedding. Of all the costs involved in a wedding, this one is the highest. But it doesn't have to be.
When I typed in my $5,000 limit into the "wedding budget calculator", it told me I should be spending almost $2,000 of my precious funds on food and drink (even with an alcohol-free wedding). I knew there had to be a better way, and I set out to find it.
Caterers are notoriously expensive. With most simple meals starting at $20 a plate, costs soar rapidly out of control.
I didn't want to skimp and serve my guests finger foods - I'm planning an evening wedding and they deserve dinner
What about self-catering? While I realize this isn't an option for everyone, it may be easier than you think.
We chose to self-cater a buffet style sit-down dinner, with traditional Albanian style foods (both my fiance and I grew up in Albania). My menu is as follows:
Cocktail Hour: Spinach Filo Purses. Stuffed Grape Leaves. Bruchetta. Mini pizza pies.
Dinner Hour: Stuffed Tomatoes and Peppers, Traditional Bean Soup, Arabiata Pasta, Cream Penne, Greek Salad, Cabbage Salad, Roasted Rosemary Potatoes.
Dessert Table: 20 types of International Cookies, Blueberry Cupcakes, Mocha Cupcakes, Butter Pecan Cupcakes, Cream Puff Towner.
Drinks: Old-Fashioned Glass Bottle Sodas (Root Beer, Ginger Ale, Cream Soda, Orange Soda, Strawberry Soda, Grape Soda, Birch Beer, Coca-Cola)
After three hours in the grocery store with a notebook calculating exact quantities needed and prices, my food and drink budget came out to - $325.00.
It's possible.
