Skip to main content
Weddings

WhoaNelly! Catering Reviews

WhoaNelly! Catering View more information

Reviews

4.9 out of 5 rating
4.9 out of 5 rating
15 Reviews
98% recommend it
  • Quality of service
    4.9 out of 5 rating
  • Average response time
    4.7 out of 5 rating
  • Professionalism
    4.9 out of 5 rating
  • Value
    4.9 out of 5 rating
  • Flexibility
    4.9 out of 5 rating

Awards

15
  • I
    Ivana C. Sent on 08/14/2023
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating

    Amazing food

    My husband and I are big foodies - we knew the food at our wedding was really important to us going into the planning process. WhoaNelly was incredible from their tasting all the way through our wedding day. The team was so helpful and attentive - and the food was beyond. From the tasting until our wedding day my husband and I would bring up how excited we were to eat their food at our wedding! Our guests raved about the food too! They're going to be our go-to caterers for events from now on, we really loved our experience with them!
  • Cici
    Cici C. Sent on 10/20/2022
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating

    Delicious and impeccable!

    We had initially booked Little Nelly for our wedding this past October, however my planner told me they shifted gears to focus on smaller gatherings and technically were no longer catering weddings. The good news was our contract basically just got moved over to Whoa Nelly and they honored the pricing and all menu items, so the transition was completely seamless!

    Naomi was very professional and prompt in responding to my emails during the inquiry process and Corinna made our tasting experience very enjoyable. We did family style service which also included passed appetizers and table-side wine service, and everything ran like a well-oiled machine. Guests raved about the food, some mentioning they took multiple servings--even one of my friends who got the silent vegan option said she had two plates!

    On top of that, their staff always made sure my husband and I were taken care of and checked in often to see if we needed anything. Especially on a day as hectic as your wedding day, it was a lovely touch and just goes to show how much their staff pays attention to the small details.

    I'm so happy that we booked Whoa Nelly for our special day--highly recommend getting them to cater your event!
  • R
    Rachel G. Sent on 06/03/2019
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating

    Best of the best!

    We used Little Nelly for our wedding at The Lautner Compound in May 2019. From start to finish they were so wonderful to work with!

    We did a group tasting with them that was fun and really the perfect way to get to try everything they had to offer! The food was incredible and the cost was very fair and fit in our budget. The Little Nelly team was responsive, enthusiastic and professional through the whole planning process! They helped us through everything we needed to rent all the kitchen equipment they needed (our venue didn't have a kitchen!) and made sure we stayed as economical as possible.

    The day of, the whole team was on time and provided impeccable family style dinner service! All our guests raved about how delicious the food was and how wonderful the staff! We could not have asked for more. We also ordered our cake through Little Nelly and it was perfection. Simple, chic and SO SO GOOD.

    We are so please with our entire experience with Little Nelly, they really are the best of the best!

  • illustration stars

    Are you interested?

    Send a message
  • L
    Lorraine Sent on 08/17/2017
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    We tried 3 tastings with various caterers and narrowed it to Whoa Nelly. The crew was polished and professional and the food was not only delicious but also looked beautiful! We did family style service on long plank tables which ends up costing a bit more for the extra platters and silverware rentals but gave the wedding a very comfortable and connected feeling. Corrinna was our event manager and she was very accommodating, knowledgable and firmly in control of her staff. I would highly recommend Whoa Nelly for your next event.
  • H
    H. Sent on 04/03/2017
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    They're perfect!! Exceptional quality food, exceptional service. Everything they made was delicious, fresh, seasonal, California food that manages to be gourmet yet unfussy at once; exactly what we wanted. They made our wedding weekend.
  • J
    Jennifer Sent on 08/03/2017
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    I honestly cannot say enough great things about Whoa/Little Nelly! Food is one of the most crucial decisions you will make when wedding planning and I can honestly say it was one of the best decisions we ultimately made. From start to finish, their entire team were beyond helpful and always went above and beyond to make sure our wedding was perfect - and it was just that! Beth, Jenny, and Alex specifically were incredibly professional, listened to your every need, but also super fun to work with. They really made what sometimes is a very stressful experience into an enjoyable one. If you're looking for your wedding caterer, I promise you will not be disappointed!
  • User2399366 Sent on 10/29/2015
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    I can't gush enough about Whoa Nelly - from their courteous and helpful staff (in the office and at our event) to their amazing food, we feel so absolutely lucky to have had them be a part of our wedding team. We were on a limited budget, but food was extremely important to us. We tasted at a lot of companies and it seemed as though good (no, great!) food would be out of reach with the realities of what we had to spend. Until we reached out to Whoa Nelly, that is!

    For folks like us, Whoa Nelly offers a smaller, seasonal service called Little Nelly. I can't stress enough that NOTHING about this service felt low budget! From the incredible servers and bartenders (yes, many of our guests complimented us on our staff!!), to their consistent professionalism, to the HOT, restaurant-quality food served, everything was perfect. Even if we had not had a limited budget, Little Nelly would have been my TOP choice.

    We did passed appetizers and a family style dinner, followed by a dessert buffet for 125 guests. From what I understand, limiting the menu to a specific set of seasonal dishes and ingredients is what allows Little Nelly to offer such a competitive price point for what is absolutely another level of catered fare. And we had plenty to choose from on that "limited" menu: our tasting was one of the most fun and wonderful experiences I had during the planning process. So good that I ended up going twice!

    The food at the wedding tasted exactly the same as it did during our tasting. You can tell that these folks come from a culinary background. Having to rent the equipment necessary to make such good food was an additional cost, but it was well worth it. Our guests were extremely happy and complimentary, many of whom mentioned that it was some of the best wedding food they had ever been served.

    Their customer service is also excellent. Thank you Little Nelly and the Whoa Nelly team - you lifted our little DIY wedding to another level!
  • User1205860 Sent on 06/18/2013
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    I consider my wife a bit of a foodie, so when it came to looking for a caterer on our big day, we couldn't find just "any caterer" we had to have a great one.

    Our biggest problem was that we were putting together our wedding on a budget with a medium sized guest list therefore finding a terrific caterer that wouldn't break our budget was going to be a challenge. A friend of ours suggested we try WhoaNelly! Catering and assured us that if we were able to get them to cater, that would be one less item we would have to worry about.

    WhoaNelly turned out to be everything our friend described and more. The owners were very enthusiastic and quickly formed a good relationship with my wife and me. They were very helpful from the tasting, planning the dinner layout, all the way to the big day. Fortunately for me their pricing fit fairly well into our budget, and for my wife she savored every bite of dinner. Even our guests kept raving about the food for weeks after our wedding

    Having had such a great experience with them I am pleased to highly recommend WhoaNelly! Catering to anyone looking to hire a top-end catering company. We will definitely be asking them to cater the next time we hold a large event.
  • R
    Rachel Sent on 07/12/2012
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    Whoa Nelly just catered our destination wedding is Sedona, Arizona, and they could not have done a more amazing job. They rocked it on everything - from the planning, to the service, and especially to the food. They went above and beyond, and I have had so many compliments about the food. And, most important to me on the day: I can be a little type A, and when I saw how fabulously and flawlessly they were running the event, I could just relax and enjoy, knowing that my guests were being taken care of beautifully. And back to the food, because Whoa Nelly made sure I ate, bringing food to me when I was running around saying hi to people. It was AMAZING. We had a cocktail hour with passed hors d'ouevres, then a family-style dinner, and finally a desert table with a wedding cake and a fantastic spread of mini pies, salted caramel cup cakes, this fabulous caramel creme/foam/pudding thing in little mason jars that guests were actually grabbing extras of and hording at their tables, because it was so good (although there was plenty of everything.) The dinner was delicious - feta and watermelon salad, steak with avocado salsa, fish in corn succotash. It was a boiling hot day, and everything was so juicy, flavorful and fresh. Perfect! People told me it was the best food they'd ever had at a wedding. It was a fabulous meal, on par with what is served at top market-driven restaurants. I couldn't be more delighted. Thank you, Whoa Nelly!
  • L
    Laura Sent on 12/04/2010
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    WhoaNelly catered our wedding reception at Newland Barn in Huntington Beach, CA. The overall experience was wonderful. The food was delicious, fresh, seasonal and beautiful. Our reception took place in November so they came up with a fall inspired menu. They actually came up with several different options for us to choose from. Several guests said the spiced kabocha squash salad that was served was the best salad they had ever had! We had a cocktail hour with passed appetizers. The mini fish tacos were my favorite, I could have eaten a whole tray. These ladies have an exceptional eye for detail and sense of design. They spent a lot of time with us planning. They love weddings, are super knowledgeable and treated my special day with a lot of care. They worked within our modest budget and had a ton of suggestions and ideas. Beth made me an inspiration board to create a look and feel that was perfect for our location and season. She also made our wedding cake which was actually 3 different cakes, all different flavors, really yummy and displayed beautifully. The servers were great and very attentive. Our guests were commenting all night about how much they enjoyed the food. I highly recommend WhoaNelly catering.
  • R
    Rachel Sent on 08/18/2010
    5 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    We were so lucky to work with WhoaNelly for our wedding. We wanted interesting, market fresh food that was sophisticated but not too fussy. They gave us lots of choices and we left some of the final choices up to them regarding what was fresh/local at the time. The food, appetizers, cocktail, family style meal, dessert table and wedding cake were all fresh, flavorful and really beautiful. We had people all night complimenting each course. The most memorable comment was that the food was great, and the service, but it was done in a way that didn't make things feel uptight. We cannot say enough good things about WhoaNelly in every department!
  • S
    Stefan Sent on 11/20/2016
    4.9 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      4.5 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    We used Little Nelly (Whoa Nelly's simple, streamlined menu) to cater our wedding, and we could not have been happier. On the one hand, my husband and his family are VERY invested in quality food and on the other hand my family has a few allergies that I did not want to be a concern on our wedding day. Somehow Little Nelly prepared a most delicious meal from their standard menu that both avoided any allergy concerns and wowed the entire crowed. Almost every guest told us that our meal was the best wedding meal they ever had.
  • B
    Brenna Sent on 08/09/2010
    4.8 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      4.5 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      4.5 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    I hired WhoaNelly through a mutual friend to plan my wedding with about 10 weeks' notice. I was in Australia until ten days before the ceremony, and Beth and her colleagues organized the bulk of everything by email and Skype. In addition to the services Beth provided directly, she also found a fantastic photographer and brilliant officiant.

    Aside from the extremely professional organization and logistics WhoaNelly delivered, two other aspects of our wedding stand out: the creative direction, and the food.

    Beth from WhoaNelly listened very carefully to my vague ideas of the "look and feel" I had in mind and came up with something that suited our style and budget perfectly. It was hip without being trendy or easily dated. The venue, flowers, decorations, and table setting were exactly what I would have organized if I had the talent and know-how!

    The catering was beyond memorable. All the food was fresh from local markets, beautifully presented, and absolutely delicious. Beth and her staff provided top-quality table service, using Riedel glasses and swapping the champagne flutes three times in four hours. The wedding cake was devoured, something I had never experienced before.

    I can't sing WhoaNelly's praises highly enough and consider myself lucky to have been their client, as these gals will be going places fast.
  • A
    Alice Sent on 02/25/2017
    4.6 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      4.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      4.0 out of 5 rating
    We had a great experience working with Little Nelly (the fixed menu arm of Whoa Nelly). They offer set options, but it results in a lower price point for the same high quality food as Whoa Nelly.

    The food is delicious and was on par with what we had at the tasting. They delivered amazing service and were there for the duration of the event, even to help with serving desserts! The only sad part was that leftover food at the end of the night was tossed. :(

    You do have to rent your own platters (~$700 for about 100 people) and kitchen equipment (~1000) though. However, this cost would be required by most caterers, and even with the rentals, the pricing was still lower than many other local caterers.

    Highly recommend Little Nelly for a delicious meal and professional service staff that cleaned up the place. They definitely made sure I got my deposit back!
  • E
    Erinn Sent on 06/04/2014
    3.8 out of 5 rating
    • Quality of service
      4.5 out of 5 rating
    • Average response time
      2.0 out of 5 rating
    • Professionalism
      3.0 out of 5 rating
    • Value
      5.0 out of 5 rating
    • Flexibility
      4.5 out of 5 rating
    Whoa Nelly catered our wedding a couple weeks ago and the food was really delicious. Their menu ideas were creative, fresh and very yummy.

    Our dinner service was family style and it was fun, social and all our guests seemed to enjoy it.

    Many guest commented on how delicious the food was. They also worked with us on budget which we were grateful for.

    Presentation was beautiful as well and service was attentive, friendly and laid back.

    My only negative comment would be that communication with them was slow at times.

    I had read this in another review (on another site) so I was somewhat prepared and consider myself a pretty laid back bride! But I will say as the day drew nearer it did get frustrating at times.

    Be prepared to follow up with them (sometimes more than once) and if you are an impatient bride or planner it's something to consider.

    If you can relax and trust that it will all work out alright (as I did) you'll be really happy with your experience. We were for sure.