Plated vs. Buffet

Both these options also come with 6 appetizer choices. Three stations and three passed.

When we left the venue, he said that she might have convinced him that buffet was the way to go, but now I’m torn. He was so adamant on plated that that’s what I got in my head and what my heart was set on. He doesn’t have many strong opinions about the wedding, so I try to give him the ones that he has the major opinions on. He hasn’t set it in stone, but saying that now he’s leaning more toward the buffet option so that guests have more options and can go back for seconds, which I am all for, but I also really started to love the idea of having our guests served. Our coordinator said that they literally do 98% buffet dinners for wedding.

Here’s where you come in. Plated vs. Buffet. Pros and Cons. Convince me either way.

What's your guest count? Sometime at huge weddings it takes way too long to get everyone through the buffet line. How do they have it set up, is there just one line or lines on both sides?

I was set on plated for entirely different reasons, although I love the look and feel of our guests being served. My mother has severe balance problems. The last thing I want to happen is her trying to carry anything and fall. However, when looking at our options, it seems the buffet choices are going to have a better selection of food for our guests. What if they choose an entree they end up not liking? With a plated dinner, they are going to go hungry. If we choose the buffet, they can make a return trip and fill up on something they did like. The last thing I want (besides my mom falling) is my guests having a terrible tome because they are hungry and weren't able to eat the dinner they chose.

@Rosemary - that's my main concern, too, the line.

@MN - my guest list is 186 right now. I don't have the answers to those questions, actually. That's a good place to start. I believe that, for our size wedding, it is set up off to the side and the line is on both sides, but I need to confirm that. I know that for smaller weddings they set it up on the dance floor, which I absolutely don't like.

I liked my buffet option. It allowed people to get what they wanted and how much they wanted. It really didn't affect the "elegance" of my reception.

I think plated "looks" and feels nicer.

But typically buffet is more options and is generally cheaper.

@Kimi - our venue does duet or triplet plates, so each plate has all entree options plated on it. Which is nice for those who might not like the chicken, but love the beef. The buffet will have more options and offer more food for the guests if they're still hungry, so that's the major pro on the buffet side.

@Mrs. Faith - thanks for you input. That's my main concern. We're not going for black tie super elegant, but I like the idea of an elevated elegance for the wedding, so that's one of my main concerns.

@JoRocka - the beauty of my venue is that it's the same price either way, so cost isn't a factor at all.

Yes that would be fine, I was at a wedding once with a buffet and 300+ people and dinner took forever. I am all for giving guests more food and options.

I like the duet plated idea actually. No taking orders no mixups; it's perfect. And many of my venues do ask people if they'd like seconds...

With that many people you need at LEAST two buffet lines, if not three, and if you have an 'action station', like pasta, it will take even longer. At most of our places, the cocktail hour includes stations, so in effect, the guests spend a lot of time standing on lines....

How about making parts of your dinner family style? Maybe the salad course and the dessert course OR the main course ( wouldn't do every course like that).

I would always vote for plated, except at a brunch where so many more foods are better made to order (waffles, omelettes).

We did plated and it was lovely. Buffet isn't always cheaper FYI! We had guests with balance issues, can't stand for lengths of time etc.

ETA we were going to do a duet plate but somehow broke it out into beef, chicken and veggies option. Our caters were so sweet and made my chicken gf for me!

I think in your case, I would go with the buffet to get the carving station! (Btw, we had played for our wedding but our venue only offers a plated meal)

Picky eater here! So please keep that in mind when I tell you my opinion/choice.

I am so picky that I often have a difficult time eating at weddings. I usually stuff my face at cocktail hour on things that I like to keep me full for the rest of the night. Liking the dinner option is rare for me. So when it came time for our wedding, I decided to flip it. Everyone likes the awesome stations at cocktail hour much more than their plated meal anyway. So I'm having a lighter (still substantial, just not the grand NY style) cocktail hour and am having the awesome stations that are typically found at a cocktail hour, during our reception. My mom was nervous about this because she thought it wasn't enough food, so my coordinator suggested that one of my stations be the "fish, chicken, meat" options that you would've gotten with a plated meal. I'm really excited for it. But please keep in mind, my picky palette is what led me to love this option. I just like the variety it offers and it ends up being much more food.

But Nicole, you have so much time!

We are doing plated. I like that "perceived elegance" and it is less money at our venue.

We have a food truck catering, so I suppose that counts as a buffet. We just love this BBQ truck, and we knew they wouldn't disappoint. They're roasting a whole pig for us, as well as butter-boiled shrimp or prawns. I've seen good and bad versions of both buffet and plated meals, so I think it's more about the caterer and your crowd. I know some felt balancing plates would be difficult, but others were concerned about options and variety. What's the most important things to you about the meal?

That's a good question. My main concerns are that the food tastes amazing and everyone gets their fill. I also have concerns about the dietary restrictive people. I have a couple gluten-free, a couple diabetic, and one vegetarian. She said that all we have to do is let them know who they are, where they're sitting, and what restriction they have and the catering staff will accommodate. I need to confirm if the same is true for the buffet option as well. I also have concerns about lines and people balancing stuff.

We are doing buffet. If it had cost more we probably would have done plated. With 150 guests I think buffet could go quicker and there's a chance for seconds. Yum.

If the caterer is the same, the food should be have the same quality in plated or buffet. I feel like buffets offer more volume, but your caterer may offer seconds on plated dishes too! While balancing may be an issue for some, you may have the type of family who naturally looks out for them. I know my dad would always help his mother in a situation like this without thinking about it. It's good to think about this now so you'll know what to ask your caterer when you meet next. ETA, when you do decide, let us know which you end up going for.

My venue does in house catering, and buffet is $68/plate but it has to be for 130 guests or less, so far that reason we are keeping our guests to right at the tip of 130. The buffet would've been $72/plate. My cousins in Vancouver had grandiose weddings at 5 star hotels with 150-180 guests and they still had buffets, it doesn't take away any sort of elegance. If anything I loved the buffet at my cousin's first wedding in 2007!

I'm probably not much help because I like both. I did plated because it was cheaper and also my MIL thought that buffet food tends to get cold kind of fast (she obviously doesn't know what warmers are).

Things I like about buffets: I am super picky so I can choose what I like, if I'm not a big fish person I can skip over it and go to the beef. And I can grab extra mashed potatoes since I like potatoes. I like carving stations because you get a nice piece of meat you wouldn't normally get with a plated.

Things I don't like about buffets: The line for food can be a while, you have to wait until your table is called up, and in general it's just more work for the guest and makes dinner time possibly longer if you have a lot of guests to get through and also make sure even the last table had time to eat. Walking around in a dress trying not to spill my plate on me and everything is also difficult!

Things I like about plated: I don't have to go anywhere as a guest, I can just enjoy the company of the guests at my table and just relax as food magically appears before me. I think it looks fancy and the presentation is always quite nice.

Things I don't like about plated: There may be foods that go to waste if I don't really like it. However I think banquet food is pretty standard and I usually like most of it. But I don't get to have extra of the things I like.

So therefore as a guest I don't really think you can choose a wrong answer. Hey...either way I'll be happy just being at your wedding ;-)