Thrifty Food Ideas For Wedding Reception

By

Vaylmer

A friend of mine got married and they had a pasta buffet. It was great. They had big buffet warmer trays filled with pasta, and others filled with two different sauces. I think a red sauce and a cream sauce. Anyway, the only thing I would change would to serve bowtie pasta instead of spaghetti, less chance of disasters. They also had huge bowls of salad and bread. And this was at country club, so it was a pretty snazzy wedding. FYI, those big spiral hams work well for crowds, too, but they're more expensive. If you serve those, maybe you could serve it with green beans, rice pilaf, and rolls. P.s. if you live in New England, shop at Market Basket for your food. It's a lot cheaper than other area food stores.

By

tennesue

Pasta casseroles (one with meat, red sauce, one with veggies and cream or mushroom sauce) with sides would be cheaper than lasagna. Try cooking for schools and get their prices, emphasize that you want quality (salad especially) but that you are hoping that the students will be able to give you a good price for the experience (which is why they're there). Happy wedding to you.

By

Poor But Proud

You can't go wrong with finger sandwiches, veggie trays and fruit. Anything that drips, as leekelly suggested, or that is red will stain pretty clothes. In fact, the less silverware you have the less there is to clean!

If you make sandwiches that are meat and cheese, put the condiments between them to keep the breads from getting soggy, or put the condiments side up on the tray. Pretty cello picks make things festive. They can also be used for fruits, veggies, and more.

I did my sisters re-vow and made pastel parfaits in alternate plastic cups (yellow cup, pink dyed parfait) and they were very pretty.

I hope this helps!

By

leekelly

Red foods and soups are not a good thing when your guests are dressed in their good duds.

By

thriftyvicki

Catered food is never very cheap. Do it yourself! Get some of your family to pitch in and cook the food, store the food, etc. Nobody said wedding food has to leave the invitees stuffed either (as in a full meal), finger sandwiches, chips and dips and all that works fine.

By

redhatterb

Get prices from different caterers for different foods and then compare the prices that the different caterers have. Myself I wouldn't go with a meal type reception. A lot of the budget friendly receptions, etc. where I live consist of stacked ham, turkey, or beef on smaller size buns, and then salads, like potato and pasta salads, then the wedding cake, coffee, tea, and punch. Of course the entire bridal party spends time, ahead of time preparing the buns and salads. You can have close friends and family members make sure there is plenty of food on the tables and serve the beverages. Unless you definitely want to have it catered, that is the economical way to do. No matter what type of food is catered, it will still be more expensive than do it yourself.

I'm getting married in Aug. and we're on a very tight budget. My family is going to cook the food for my reception, but I need some good ideas for food.

I am looking for cheap food ideas for a fall wedding reception. It will be buffet style.

My fiance and I are planning a wedding, in April, and we are doing everything ourselves, including the food.