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Beginner October 2020

Planning dinner only reception during Covid?

K, on August 21, 2020 at 5:34 PM Posted in California Planning 0 8

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Hi everyone planning a Covid wedding!

So the good news is my outdoor wedding ceremony of 50 people is a go! Everyone is required to have a mask and be spaced out except for the groom and me, which I am completely okay with.
However, we were just told today that our reception CANNOT happen at all. The main issue is they don’t want food involved because that becomes a reception and that isn’t allowed in California. What is everyone else doing in California? We don’t want to dance at this point, we just want to feed all of our guests for coming.
No restaurants in the area are taking reservations due to Covid...and we already had a caterer booked. Our potential options are:
1. Do a small reception (20 people) in someone’s backyard with not all our guests but with our caterer2. Tell everyone to show up at a restaurant without a reservation, lose caterer deposit 3. Have to-go meals set up by our caterer for guests to take after the ceremony, we just won’t all eat as a unit

Does anyone think one idea is better than the other, or have another idea? Also keep in mind, I am ALL about physical distancing, mask wearing, and eating only with households. I just want to see everyone else’s ideas for this ☺️ Thank you!

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8 Comments

Latest activity by Sexypoodle, on August 22, 2020 at 12:18 PM

Legend June 2019
Melle · on August 21, 2020 at 5:36 PM
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I actually like your to go meals idea ! Never heard of that one before
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Beginner October 2020
K · on August 21, 2020 at 5:40 PM
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Thank you!!! I am just trying to figure out how to make it worthwhile for guests coming. People are driving five hours to attend and i feel bad having them show up for a short ceremony with not much to do after 😞 but I guess people should understand because it’s Covid.
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Expert January 2021
Katie · on August 21, 2020 at 5:41 PM
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I actually think the to-go meals sound like a great option. Is there a park nearby you could have a few people meet for a picnic?
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Beginner October 2020
K · on August 21, 2020 at 5:48 PM
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Thank you for this great idea! I think there are a few parks we can work with. We can maybe have the guests grab their meal after the ceremony and we can tell them that the groom and me will be at the park for a couple hours if people want to chat or talk in a socially distanced fashion! Thank you ☺️
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Master August 2019
Rebecca · on August 21, 2020 at 11:12 PM
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I think the to-go is a great option! Excellent thinking!
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Master October 2020
Yasmine · on August 22, 2020 at 2:20 AM
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I think that to go meals sounds like a good idea. It’s different, but let’s face it EVERYTHING is different during Covid!
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August 2020
JM Sunshine · on August 22, 2020 at 2:26 AM
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What county are you in? My daughter's public venue in CA also was not allowed to hold a reception, but within 45 days we found a private venue in the next county over that could. Maybe you could look into a nearby county with less restrictions or at private facilities? They often have more leeway than public ones.
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Master October 2021
Sexypoodle · on August 22, 2020 at 12:18 PM
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I was thinking the same exact thing. That would really be cute to give guests food “baskets” and have a park style reception all set up. Covid has forced creativity and unconventional ideas, which I’ve always preferred anyway.
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