Quintessential Events’ founder, Sarah Quinlivan, was recently interviewed by The Independent, Kansas City’s society magazine, for its yearly Tie the Knot edition. This is the second year in a row the magazine has interviewed QE for this feature. This year we focused in on one of our favorite topics, food!
This fun-filled article focuses on the latest food trends at weddings. From the article:
“Wedding Planner Sarah Quinlivan of Quintessential Events said, “People want food that matters to them, whether it’s an homage to their childhood or as a couple. At our first meeting, I will interview the couple and ask them where they grew up and what they like to do as a couple or separately. For instance, one groom was from St. Louis and we served fried ravioli. Then we brought in Ted Drewes frozen custard as a snack. It not only provided an experience for the wedding guests, but it helped to tell the couple’s story. In 2021, one bride is Lebanese, and we are going to have a food station with Lebanese food. At another wedding, we had key lime flavored cotton candy because the bride went to school in Miami.
Food is one of the three things that guests remember from a wedding. Sadly, too often couples and their families don’t put too much thought into what is being served. Why serve the usual buffet chicken when there are so many tastier options out there?
The key to serving amazing food at your wedding is to ensure you properly budget for it at the beginning. Plated meals start around $45-$50, and go up from there. While that might get you a nice dinner at a restaurant, it is low in the catering world. The reason being, this also includes staffing, equipment, and all the meetings and tasting that have to occur to properly prepare for your wedding day.
If food really matters, we suggest budgeting $100 at minimum per person for food. This will allow you to have some wiggle room to have fun. This could include delicious appetizers like lamb chops and a tasty entree like mahi mahi. Everyone expects food at weddings to be so so. Why not impress?
We love it even more when, like the article stated, the food is meaningful to the couple. If you are Italian, serve some of your Italian favorites. If you are Greek, why not provide baklava to your guests? The key is sharing what you love. Your wedding is the reflection of you, and your story. Every element of the wedding should be something you enjoy.