One of the most exciting and fun parts of wedding planning is thinking about your favorite foods and crafting the perfect menu with your wedding caterer. Your wedding day should be perfect, which means the local caterer you select to do the catering for your wedding must have top-notch service and capabilities to execute an exquisite menu. The professionals at Made by Meg Catering want to create an incredible dining experience on your wedding day that both you and your guests will never forget. Now that you are happily engaged, here is what’s next for catering your wedding.
First, Choose a Theme
First Up, Choose Your Overall Wedding Theme & Style
Before you can truly hand-select your menu items for your wedding day, you need to decide on a theme for your wedding so that your wedding food matches the overall feel. If you are going for a more casual wedding, you may want to take advantage of the plenty of food stations we offer so guests can grab and go and continue to dance the night away. If you want a formal sit-down dinner for a more upscale theme, such as a formal or black-tie wedding, you can choose a menu that works well with a multi-course plated style and can offer larger portions. Once you know what type of wedding you and your partner want, the decisions on menu items will be much easier, and, of course, we will be there to help you every single step of the way.
Made by Meg Catering offers the following types of wedding catering menus and services:
- Server Passed Hors d’oeuvres for Cocktail Hour
- Plated Sit-Down Multi-Course Dinners
- Seated Family-Style
- Buffet Tables
- Grazing Stations for Cocktail Receptions
- Prepared Dinner Stations
- Live Action Cooking Stations
- Dessert Tables
If there’s a service style you’re looking for that isn’t on the list above, please let us know and we’ll do our best to see if we can accommodate.
Second, Taste the Food!
Second, Taste the Food from Your Caterer – Make Sure You Love Every Bite!
Once you know which type of wedding catering you want for your big day, the real fun part begins. Your designated representative from Made by Meg’s team of experienced catering professionals will set up a special private tasting session for you and your fiancé/fiancée to taste-test the variety of different menu items you are considering for your special day. We will be there in person to answer any questions you have on the presentation, ingredients, flavor profiles, and expected day-of setup. Tastings are held at our Torrance headquarters during business hours Tuesday to Thursday, typically one hour in duration and priced for 2 guests, with a charge of $100 for each additional guest.
This is the time to ensure you are completely in love with the menu options for your special day. Taste everything and let us know of any major or minor adjustments so that we can create the most ideal menu for your special day.
Here are a few of our favorite main course entrées from the Made by Meg Catering menu:
- Seafood: Grilled Salmon with Meyer Lemon and Basil Pesto
- Beef: Fig and Carneros Petit Syrah Braised Short Ribs
- Poultry: Pinot Gris Braised Chicken Thighs with Roasted Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes, Burrata Cheese, Balsamic Creme, and Fresh Basil
- Vegetarian: Mediterranean Cauliflower Steak with a Roja Chimichurri, Zucchini, Cherry Tomatoes, and Lemon Citrus Quinoa
Third, Decide on the Number Guests
Third, Decide on the Number Guests You’d Like to Have at Your Wedding
One of the most critical parts of choosing the wedding catering menu is knowing how many people you will need to serve. When sharing numbers with your caterer, start with an estimate based on the number of invites sent and responses received thus far, and be prepared with a hard cut-off closer to your event so that we can ensure that perfect amount of food. Your final guest count is due two weeks before your wedding date to ensure our team can order the accurate number of ingredients and staff accordingly. By communicating your guest count with your caterer, we can ensure we’re prepared with the correct quantities and that the palates of everyone attending your wedding are fully satisfied.
Some couples choose to stagger their invites into tiers, with their A list receiving the first round on invitations with RSVP cards. The A list includes anyone who you cannot imagine having your wedding without, and typically consists of your closest family, friends, and wedding parties. After the majority of your A list’s responses are received, couples repeat with a separate B-list of the people who you would really love to have there if possible, and potentially even a C-list of backups who you would like to share your day with if space allows.
The RSVP cards often include a space for recipients to mark their main entrée selection if you’re moving forward with the Plated Sit-Down Multi-Course Dinner service style (unless you’re planning on serving duos with this service style, where each guests receives two types of protein on the same plate), along with any dietary restrictions or allergies that we as your caterer will accommodate for.
Full Service – We Can Help With It All!
Full-Service Catering Means We Can Help You With It All!
Made By Meg is a full-service wedding caterer, meaning we don’t just prepare and serve the food. We are deeply involved and assist in many other ways on your big day. We set up the tables, chairs, and all place settings, we help coordinate rentals, provide the wait staff and bartenders, serve the food in a timely manner, clean up all of the dining areas and kitchens, pack up all leftovers, and we get rid of all of the garbage so that the venue is as spotless as when we arrived.
When you hire Made By Meg as your wedding caterer, you are not only entering a business relationship, but a true partnership. We’re involved in every part of your wedding day, from the tastings to sticking to the timeline. We want all of your wedding dreams to come true.
Premier LA Wedding Caterer + Premier OC Wedding Caterer
Voted South Bay’s Favorite Caterer by The Beach Reporter and Daily Breeze, we do everything we can to make sure we’re also YOUR new personal favorite. We strive to make your wedding cuisine and service so memorable that you want us to return to cater your anniversaries, showers, and birthdays for years to come.
Made By Meg provides exceptional catering services for weddings throughout Los Angeles and Orange County, including Malibu, Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Palos Verdes, Long Beach, DTLA, Manhattan Beach, and more. Our wedding catering services include an exciting menu design, knowledgeable staff, and varying styles that will accommodate any type of wedding reception.
Your SoCal Wedding Catering Partner!
We Are Here To Help As Your Southern California Wedding Catering Partner
Contact Made By Meg Catering today to set up a consultation to discuss your perfect wedding menu. As your premier Los Angeles Wedding Caterer, we can’t wait to help make your special day both perfect and tasty. Check out our press and media page for additional information on weddings and events we have catered, and feel free to give us a call at (310) 376-8600 with any questions you may have. We are excited to be a part of your wedding day!
