Food and an Evening Wedding

Where I’m from 7 is pretty standard for a reception start usually with a cocktail hour followed by dinner around 8. Is that not an option?

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Maybe... I've just never been to an evening wedding and I want to ensure I'm not being inconsiderate to our guests by eating later. This already is going to be an interesting wedding with some family members, so I am trying to cross all my t's.

Seven is a pretty standard reception time. Our ceremony was 5-5:30, cocktail hour 5:30-6:30, and reception starting at 6:30. I would go with the sit down dinner, as it is unlikely your guests ate dinner before coming to your wedding.

Due to the late hour you could do a more extravagant spread for your cocktail hour and then do the food truck later in the evening. However, some people don’t mind a late dinner as long as you provide some munchies at cocktail hour to hold them over.

Because September 24 is a Friday, most people will be rushing home after work to get ready and go to your event, so it is likely they will not have time to eat prior; so I would definitely serve a full meal. If you will be doing photos after the ceremony, I would do a cocktail hour for your guests, then the meal immediately after.

7ish is meal time. Do your best to serve a sit down meal or the equivalent of that with heavy appetizers (carving stations, spring rolls, crab cakes, etc) which is 20-30 pieces per person.

Please do not use food trucks because they are not set up to handle catering and can often only serve one person at a time.

We are doing a 7pm reception as well. We are doing pre-ceremony cocktails, and a cocktail hour followed by a plated service. But if you have a smaller guest list w/a more laid back atmosphere, a food truck is definitely acceptable & would largely depend on the crowd your feeding. If you’re in an urban area, you’ll find many food trucks have started catering to weddings and are very equipped to handle smaller affairs. The one I went to had the food prepared as a caterer would, so it was ready to serve & moved quickly (again it was smaller). Another good thing about the food truck is that they may be willing to stay throughout the wedding and your guests could have the option of eating a late snack later. I also went to a mid-sized wedding recently that had a buffet style reception (it was also a 1st for me). The food was southern style (bbq, Mac & cheese, etc). It was wonderful & I was surprised. You’ve got loads of options...I don’t know if that’s what you want to hear though 😂

I think the standard cocktail hour then dinner at reception should be fine. Our ceremony is 8 pm cocktail hour 8:30 - 9:30 and reception 9:30 - 1:30 lol. we're doing everything standard . . just with a later start time.

7 pm is a very standard starting time for a reception, so I would plan to serve a full meal.

If I went to a 7pm wedding I would still expect a sit down dinner. Cocktail hour with snacks before the ceremony sounds great when accommodating a later event, but even so I know a lot of people who don’t eat much at cocktail hour knowing that a real meal is to come , so I would still do a sit down meal after the ceremony.

A sit down meal with no cocktail hour. Ceremony at 7, dinner starting around 7:30-7:45.

Defiantly serve a full meal or equivalent portions to act in place of one. 7pm is right at meal time (unless you have small kids). The only reason I would do a cocktail hour after the ceremony is to give you time for photos if you are planning a sit-down meal. You could easily do one before just to get people fed and relaxed after their work day but you and your bridal party may still be getting ready and unable to mingle or eat. You could also do a buffet as your meal and open it up after the ceremony that way you and your husband still get food after photos are done. Food trucks are hit or miss depending on your crowd, their setup, and what food they are serving. Could work well but think it all the way through first.