Reception Dinner Choices

I think it’s fine not to have fish, providing you’re accommodating any vegetarians you might have among your guests. We had lamb, beef and chicken (it was a buffet).

View Quoted Comment Yes, we’ll either have chicken or turkey for vegetarians. There are no vegans at all.

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A vegetarian doesn’t eat poultry either…it’s still meat…

View Quoted Comment Not all vegetarians are that strict in their diets. Vegans however are very regimented to absolutely no meat or even meat byproducts. To the level of even clothes or virtually anything. If they choose to not, there are numerous vegetables and salad items. I wasn’t trying to provoke an argument or debate. That was never the desire or intent.

View Quoted Comment If a “vegetarian” eats turkey or chicken, they are not a vegetarian lol A vegetarian eats absolutely no meat (which includes fowl). Some do eat fish and seafood though. If you do not want to provide a fish option to all guests, I would check with your caterer to ensure they provide a vegetarian option (must do).

View Quoted Comment Fish and seafood are not meat but fowl is? This world is so confusing. 😂 They do have vegetable lasagna the pasta is made from vegetables as well. We’ll add that as the option. Thanks.

View Quoted Comment Not sure what happened to my response, part of it was cut off. It was supposed to say pescatarians eat fish 🤦🏼‍♀️ Either way, not offering a fish option is completely acceptable. And it sounds as though you have a great option for any vegetarians (vegetable lasagna).

View Quoted Comment Yep. Thanks!

I’ve never heard of this. We had chicken and shrimp. We didn’t get any complaints and we also didn’t have any vegetarians.

We're having pork, chicken, and eggplant. We chose not to go with beef because it has a high carbon impact and fish because I've never had good fish at a wedding.

Most weddings I've been to have one dinner option. So I think whatever you decide to do will be perfectly fine!

I think beef, chicken, and/ or fish are typically the standard options, but there's no rule that you have to offer those.

It is interesting that if the fish is hardly ever good, then it is better not to include it, unless you want to include it and have verified it is good. Otherwise, people just either come and accept whatever menu option sounds good or a few might decline the invitation. It all depends how many different tastes you are trying to address.

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Just need to reiterate that chicken and turkey won't work for vegetarians. If you have any vegetarians in your group, I would plan something within their dietary needs. As a host, your job is to establish that everyone in your guest list can eat at your event. Doesn't have to be complicated, and any caterer will know some good options.

ETA: didn't see that you had a veggie lasagne option, that's great!

View Quoted Comment I sent out a text and I suppose they are not board certified vegetarians as the do eat fowl.

Thanks everyone for you comments and advice

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Ok perfect that's great.

Our venue is famous for the seafood, so we definitely have that included as an entree choice. (Plated meal) Also offering beef and chicken - no vegetarians in our circle so no concerns there. I do worry about the "plus ones" eating preferences, but I can't plan my wedding around people I do not know. ~shrug~ There is room on the RSVP card for 'dietary restrictions' like gluten free or peanut free.

We had fish, beef and lobster, and chicken entrees. I disagree that fish isn’t good. This all depends on your venue. The food was delicious at our venue.
We had one vegan that was served rice and vegetables entree and there was plenty of vegan options at cocktail hour. It all depends on your crowd.

As long as you feed your guests appropriate to the time frame, there are no rules as to what the specifics are. Just because someone else serves beef/chicken/fish doesn’t mean that you need to if it is out of your budget and your guests will not eat one or more of those options. Figure out what works for your guests and don’t worry about anyone else.