Venue allowing us to bring our own food

There almost certainly isn't a company that will do that because of liability. I think you should look into BBQ or Italian caterers to save money instead of cooking your own food...

View Quoted Comment I agree. It would also cost you a fortune to hire servers without food.

Darn, because the issue we are having is we will have around 250 - 260 guests and if we did have a catering company come in, we were quoted for 170 pp. We live in the DC Metro area that price is insane!

View Quoted Comment I live about 45 minutes outside of DC and there were catering companies that were priced lower. Do some more research! Look for companies in surrounding areas, not just in the city. The price difference will be substantial. You could also see if a restaurant would be willing to cater and deliver food for that many people and provide some of their staff to serve it. Or they could set it up buffet style and guests could serve themselves. Also, I hate to say it, but if you can’t properly host over 200 people then you need to cut your guest list. Good luck.

View Quoted Comment Then you need to cut the guest so you can afford to feed everyone. Look at bbq or Italian, as PP mentioned. I’m in the DC/Baltimore area and I guarantee there are plenty of caterers cheaper than 170 per head.

My venue in Sterling was all inclusive and for hor d’voures, plated dinner and a full open bar it was $135/pp.

Girl, There is NO WAY you can cook for that many people. Please look into BBQ or Italian. I would HIGHLY suggest you cut that guest list in half.

Do not do self catering, that could be a nightmare for you & FH. Just for reference I threw a 40th bday party for FH - I self catered for 60 people along with some of his relatives that brought trays of things like wings, mac & cheese, and ziti. I spent the entire time in the kitchen the days before and of, the entire night making sure the food was kept at a correct temp (I work in the food business and am trained for food safety so I thought I could do this..nope) and in the kitchen refilling things etc....

It wound up costing me so much more than if I had just had it catered, not to mention this amazing party and entertainment that I missed because I was so worried about the food. This is a diff type of party and much smaller scale, I CAN'T imagine doing it for your guest count & on my wedding day!

Cut the guest list and get a caterer, you will thank yourself.

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We don't have a choice in terms of our guest list because our families are both very large and it would be rude to exclude certain family members.

Hi Guys, I think i wasn't clear enough - oops. We will be buying food and get it delivered to the venue. We are looking for staffers to serve food, hubby and I will definately NOT do the cooking, hahaha.

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Where was it if you don't mind me asking

How were you expecting to feed that many people without a caterer? There are tons of options that will be less than $170 p/person. You need to do more research. Also, if you are bringing in your own alcohol, you need to check with your venue and state to make sure you have proper licensing, insurance and servers.

Bringing all this in in your own for a wedding this large is a big task. Did you think about plates, silverware, linens, glasses?

To be be quite frank, it makes no sense to have that many people and not the budget to support that crowd. Consider cutting your guest list by 50%.

I live in DC and you can get catering for MUCH LOWER! Check out Sardi's (very very reasonable and a personal favorite of mine for budget events), Hill Country BBQ, Carmine's, Henry's Soul cafe, Maggiano's, Greek Deli and Catering. There are SOOOOOO many options here. Don't just try to go the traditional catering company route. You can do this!! Reach out if you need any other suggestions in DC!

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Ok good. lol

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Don't get me wrong but I don't think many people would be okay spending 60-70K on a wedding so I'm trying to explore my options and not be bashed on.

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Aw thank you!

View Quoted Comment Buying food from where? How is it going to be kept hot or cold?

Did you talk to the venue about some of the catering used there in the past? Maybe they have a few places to get you started. Does the venue have lots of big refrigerators in the kitchen area?

I would look into a semi - quick service place that does full service catering. We are doing Famous Daves for our RD, and it;s about 15$ pp and a 20% charge for full service staffing. There are tons of full service options that aren't 170$ pp. Look at places like Olive Garden, Famous Daves, Qdoba ETC. Or even local restaurants will offer that sometimes - especially local Italian places.

View Quoted Comment 1757 Golf Club. It holds 180 people max. https://www.1757golfclub.com/weddings-banquets We also looked at the Waterford in Fair Oaks. http://www.waterfordreceptions.com/our-facilities/ It was a similar cost per person. I believe they have a room big enough for your guest list!