One of the questions I get asked most when talking about my wedding is whether or not I had food. There is a misconception that food is too expensive when it comes to having a wedding for as little money as possible. But I really wanted to have a meal at my wedding because there is nothing that brings people together more than food. During the planning stages, I could already picture my guests talking and getting to know one another around a table of delicious food, and I knew that I needed to find an inexpensive way to have a meal at my wedding. I knew right away that catering was out. It's way too expensive. So, I began thinking of meals that wouldn't take too long to prep, but would still be something that at least most of my guests would enjoy. I settled on pasta, salad and bread. The pasta was set up against a wall in the room where people walked up to get it, and the salad and bread was kept at the tables.
One of the greatest things about your wedding day is that people around you want to help out in any way possible. Some women at my church that I have known and loved for years prepared and served the food at my wedding. Now, I paid them, but there are probably people in your life that would be willing to help in this area of your wedding day free of charge. Don't be afraid to ask, and if they do want to be paid for their work, it's guaranteed to be cheaper than a catering company, and the food will most likely taste better. :)
If your reception is later in the day, the food might be able to be prepared at home and transported to the reception area. It can be kept warm in dishes like the ones pictured above. Utilize your reception space if you can. If your venue has a kitchen and will allow you to use it, you can prepare or at least keep your food there until the time of the reception. Rallying together some family and friends to help make food for your day will save you a lot of money, and, like I said before, the food will be delicious. Choose food that can be made cheaply and easily, like pasta or some kind of baked dish. My other food concern was the cake. I had my cake made by a bakery in a grocery chain here in the Midwest. I found some inspiration on Pinterest and they made it for less than $100. The main goal here was to get a cake for cheap and decorate it on my own.
The bakery made the actual cake, and I added on strawberries and Baby's Breath on my own, which would have cost about another $30 for them to add on. Not only did this save me money to use for something else, but I was able to make my cake look exactly how I wanted.
As for my guests, I wanted to do something a little different. Another idea I found on Pinterest (Pinterest will be your best wedding planning friend if you can't tell already) was a pie bar for the guests. I loved this idea because I could have all different kinds of pie to suit every guest. Plus, it was something I had never seen at a wedding before. My mom, grandma and aunt made all the pies the day before the wedding. This saved a lot of money on buying extra cake or cupcakes from the bakery. From what some of my guests told me, the pie as a hit and so was the food. If having food is still too much for your budget, or it isn't an important aspect of your reception for you, you can always just stick with desserts! You could have some kind of food bar that matches your theme. For example, if you have a wedding in the fall or winter, you could have a s'mores bar, a wedding in the summer could have an ice cream sundae bar or a popcorn bar. This way, you still have food that people will love and remember, but won't cost you a bunch of money. If you plan your wedding at a time of day that isn't around meal time, you don't have to worry about feeding them anyway!
However, if you're like I was, food is an important part of your big day. If that's you, using these tips will help you save money and keep your wedding under $2,000. I loved being able to have dinner at my wedding, and I loved that it didn't cost me very much to make it happen.
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