Cost saving ideas for food

I also went to a potluck wedding and it was great! The couple sent out a group email with a dish list. People would write their name and what they were bringing e.g. salads, veggie options, dessert, meat dish etc. So it wasn't restricted to a specific item.

I have been to a potluck wedding once - it was nice and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I think for a backyard style wedding of 60 people that is totally doable. I've planned enough potlucks at my work with 60+ people in attendance to know that generally it all works out in the end in terms of enough types of food etc. You can always have people comment on what they are bringing with their RSVP to keep track. A BBQ place is a good idea as well!

View quoted message I’ll check out Big Bone! thanks

You can find local BBQ places at a reasonable price. Big Bone BBQ provided the food for one wedding I went to. It was delicious. They didn't have anyone serving it, but dropped all the food off in a industrial food warmer.

Another option is a local food truck. My friend rented a pizza food truck for her wedding. I think she paid around $500 total to feed 50-60 people, and she added her own salads. The pizza was delicious - check them out!
https://aspizzatruck.ca/

View quoted message We’ve been considering a BBQ style dinner.. although so far, all the places we’ve looked into have a $500 truck fee (for time, travel, gas BBQ, etc) plus $30 per person.

For our wedding we had excellent comments about our food - we had Danny's Whole Hog BBQ and although I'm not sure they would travel all the way to Ontario, maybe there is something like that closer to you?

We ended up paying $20/person and the buffet style supper included: casear salad, buns, pulled pork (with sauces), bbq chicken pieces, loaded baked potatoes, and mac & cheese. As well we were able to get our dessert through them as well!

View quoted message Lol a friendly tip to let someone else peel carrots or buy mini carrots that are done for you 😉

View quoted message That’s encouraging to hear that it can be done! Orange hands sounds like a good story for years to come! lol

View quoted message My first wedding we had approx. 50 people only family. I bought the food and had a bunch of the ladies over to help prepare the day before. (I had orange hands at my wedding from peeling carrots lol) it did not break the bank. The only thing I regretted about it was that I didn't take the time to make it look like a wedding. It just felt like a family reunion.

View quoted message We’re looking at approx 60 guests.. mostly close family and friends though. i wonder if that would change anything ?

How many guests are you thinking about inviting? If you had a guest list of about 30 I think you could easily do some kind of pot luck type of dinner. If you are looking at 100 I would definitely look at other options.

View quoted message Those are good points! thank you

We decided to have an evening ceremony so we don't need to feed a whole meal. We will have passed appetizers and cake.


I wouldn't do a potluck, mostly because it can be a lot of work to organize. You need to make sure there are enough entrees and not only salads(or vice versa), you need things to keep items hot or cold to keep the food at a safe temperature (which can be expensive to rent), and you need to get ingredient lists or ask your guests to avoid potential allergens. I think it would be more work than hiring someone who already knows how to feed a crowd and already has all the gear to serve and keep food safe.
Food trucks can be a great way to feed a group cheaply. You can get a set menu with a few options for the RSVPs.

View quoted message Good luck so many fun things to do with a backyard wedding!

View quoted message

We're doing backyard.. But that's comforting to know that potluck could be an idea! Thanks.

It really depends on what you envision and where your venue is.
If you want a venue, you can cut costs a bit by doing buffet style instead of plated dinner. If you’re having a backyard bbq type of wedding it isn’t unheard of to do potluck style.