# Budget for wedding caterers



## Louisa Henderson

I’m getting married by the end of this year, and I’m struggling with the planning! Do you have an idea how much should I prepare when hiring professional caterers? What amount is considered too cheap or too expensive? One of my sisters suggested this San Diego catering service to me, but I just want to be sure about the costs before proceeding. Thanks!


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## pineywoods

Louisa Welcome to SMF I unlinked your link we don't allow them but people can and will google it.
We have members who do catering maybe not in your area but they should be able to get you in the ballpark for prices. Your menu of course will determine a lot of the cost pulled pork is a lot cheaper than prime rib and both are very good smoked
Personally I'm doing a wedding for 250 next month but it's family and free so not much help


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## dernektambura

From my own experience, some 30 yrs ago....open bar - less food....but that was 30 years ago...


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## DustyJoe84

I catered BBQ for my rehearsal dinner a year and a half ago. I think we had roughly 60 people. Let me dig around and see if I can find what I paid.

**EDIT**

So with tipping the caterer I paid about $550 for approximately 60 people. We had 2 meats and 2 sides I believe. I think it was around $8-9 per person. We had plenty of leftovers too! If you have any questions, let me know and I'll do my best to answer.


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## gary s

Depending on the part of the Country you live in I'm sure prices vary, I would think 8 to 10 bucks a head would be about average unless you are really going formal and high dollar eats.
I cooked for my Grandson's wedding around a 100  probably was about 8 - 9 bucks a head.
I did Brisket, Pulled Pork, Ribs, Chicken, Sausage and Beans

Gary


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## gmc2003

dernektambura said:


> From my own experience, some 30 yrs ago....open bar - less food....but that was 30 years ago...



Open bars are really nice at weddings, but be prepared for a lot of waste. Folks have a tendency to leave their drink somewhere and instead of going back and getting it. They just go to the bar and get another one. Been there done that.

Chris


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## SamPeaket

I had the same situation at the wedding as described above, a lot of drinks were thrown away.


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## SamPeaket

SamPeaket said:


> I had the same situation at the wedding as described above, a lot of drinks were thrown away.


There were also other organizational problems at the wedding. Many guests adhere to a vegetarian diet and therefore had to make a special menu to please both. We also wanted to install a stage, custom set design, and rent a large LED screen. Of course, I would like one company to do this, so that everything was exactly done on time and with high quality. And my friend who got married earlier recommended this company to me ontourevents.co.uk the services that he himself used at his wedding. So I did and I am completely satisfied, because everything was incredibly cool and I remember this day for the rest of my life.


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