Ever been to an under catered party?

[Crunchymum]

Just back home from a party with a generous doggy bag and I remarked how I'd never been to an under catered party as the host was divvying up the leftovers. Cue lots of stories of horrifically under catered parties and weddings?

Other than a few occasions where I've known there won't be food, I've never experienced it? I've never had to share a burger at a BBQ or nip out for a super market sandwich at a wedding.

Is it really that common? What's the worst under catered event you've been to?

I once went to the most bizarre wedding, they wanted to do everything as cheap as they could and were proud to tell everyone too. Fast forward to the event, strange venue, won't mention in case of outing, but a very busy place with people's hobbies and public passing through. Was invited to the evening where there was only hog roast. Nothing else, just meat and buns. 4 of us ordered an Indian, had it delivered and we sat there in the corner eating our takeaway at a wedding. The bride and groom were more than happy for us to do it as I don't eat meat and there was nothing for me to eat. They are still quite a topic of conversation 4years on.

Those talking about greedy people at buffets I think have an unrealistic idea of how much many people eat. If a buffet is instead of a main meal, then a few small sandwiches, a sausage roll and small slice of quiche is not enough.

But a buffet isn’t instead of a main meal, it’s a social event. You don’t expect to eat as though you were at home. You take a polite amount, then if there are left overs when everyone has had a share, you can take some more. You don’t heap your plate with all the goodies that take your fancy like a savoury knickerbocker glory.

Buffets are a bit of a catering tightrope even if you OVER-cater! It only takes a handful of GreedyGuts to upset the logistics - you know the type: they grab two plates off the pile, fill 'em up as if they're going to into medieval siege mode, shovel it down their gullet as fast as poss. and then line up again!

Easy to spot - sharpest elbows and biggest backsides.

The only solution is to weed them out before the invites are posted......

My own wedding. Shocking. We paid for a buffet for 300, we had 127 in total in the evening, they ran out of food after about half, told us we needed to order, and pay, for more! The whole wedding from start to finish was a category of disasters, we ended up in small claims court.

I hate that I can't edit.

Just to add, this was a served hot and cold buffet, served, and they ran out. Dicks.

I'm the type to get shafted at buffets. Sensible appetite, take a taster from across the range not piling high, happy to go back for selected seconds. Except when there aren't seconds or even sufficient firsts by the time those with ambitious appetites have piled it up at the front of the queue. It disadvantages those who struggle to stand queuing and would rather let the masses pass first, or the likes of families tag teaming to supervise children and manage plates.

I wonder if that's what happened at an evening hog roast. I didn't rush as I had a 4m old, and my recovering pelvis had had a long, sore day. By the time the queue subsided there were only scrapings left. At least the main meal had been lovely and plentiful earlier in the day. Other than the hog roast, it was a great wedding.

My wedding hell story involved flying to another country for extended family. It was the first family occasion to meet DH's aunts, cousins etc in the years since we got together. Wedding in rural town A at 12pm. Reception at extortionate hotel B up the arse end of nowhere, so we stayed with relatives in town C, about an hour's travel from both Church A and Hotel B. Arrive at the hotel at about 3pm. Coffee and a few biscuits. We mingle and wait... 5pm the bride and groom turn up after their photo shoot... There's some big sports match on the TV... the cardboard coasters are beginning to look appetising... 8pm the wedding breakfast is served. Food tepid and mediocre at best. We politely lingered on until 10pm for the end of the speeches/ cutting the cake/ first dance then hotfooted home for 11pm. Not a McDonalds within an hour.

If you're going to serve food 8 hours after the ceremony and not turn up to the reception for a couple of hours, at least warn guests that they have the time to buy a decent lunch in between. Despite a good brunch at 10:30 before setting off, and some sandwiches in the car in between, we were ravenous, and ravenous guests are not happy guests.

We had a 2pm ceremony and advised guests that it would be 6pm. We suggested places to meet and eat near the church so distance travellers could refresh themselves and use their spare contingency time beforehand. At least they knew what to expect. We also provided extra canapes beyond the hotel's recommendation.

For a house party we cook food in batches to keep sharing out and accept that there will be spare in the fridge/ freezer for future meals. Sausage rolls for dinner on day two is better than being stingy

Siblings wedding where all the canapés got lost and went to another reception, then our table only got oysters for the entree, don’t think my mum got served her sad vegetable stack until everyone else was at dessert.. we drank a lot to make up for the lack of food..

The strangest wedding i ever attended had some loaves of sliced bread, sliced ham and sliced cheese still in the packet. So if you were hungry you could make yourself a sandwich. I think it was a cultural difference i didn't understand though. This is 30 years ago in the rural Midwest. You just attended the wedding and then went next door to the church hall tonight chat for 30 minutes. Quite nice if you are very local just to watch the ceremony say hello and go home.

myimaginary If you serve a buffet as your wedding meal, it is instead of a main meal. People are at weddings all day.

The company used to persuade the hosts that paying a few people to serve the buffet was a much better bet.

I think this is really crucial. I've seen this and it works really well.

Many years ago I went to a wedding reception that had such a buffet. The bride's brother's wife at the time had a well-known habit of bringing her uninvited relatives to wedding receptions for a free party. So there were two gatekeepers at the start of the buffet queue with lists. If you have not RSVP'd you did not get a plate!

I laughed like a drain! What a brilliant idea. Also had servers to make sure everyone get food.

People are at weddings all day.

This is another problem. Tedious in the extreme, too, and so easy to get under-catered. I love weddings that start at 3 or 4pm. It's such a pity that UK law won't allow legal weddings after 6pm because there's nothing like a lovely evening wedding. You rock up, watch the ceremony, go straight to cocktails and canapes whilst the couple has photos, then straight to the meal. No waiting round, no evening do.

The other issue is people who do all the photos after the wedding and take 2+ hours to get through them and leave the guests with no food milling about. No one does some of the shots before the wedding so it doesn't take so bloody long afterwards.

I had a huuge Scandi buffet for my wedding. In Denmark the caterer brings out the buffet in courses rather than putting everything on the buffet table at once. So the greedy types that piled up their plates got a lot of herrings and salads while those that took less still had room for the cold and hot dishes that came out at 10-15 minute intervals.

At the end of the evening the caterer brought out platters of open sandwiches for "supper" - but everyone was stuffed. So the Maid of Honour piled them into a taxi and put them in our fridge and they served 15 for lunch the next day.

But a buffet isn’t instead of a main meal, it’s a social event. You don’t expect to eat as though you were at home. You take a polite amount, then if there are left overs when everyone has had a share, you can take some more. You don’t heap your plate with all the goodies that take your fancy like a savoury knickerbocker glory.

I guess you've not been to that many wedding buffets, then. Of course it's in pace of a main meal, and like others, I've seen the greedy pigs go up front loading their plate as if it's food for a week.

I hope that anyone planning a wedding and reading this thread takes onboard...

Don’t have a buffet!
Forget spending money on flowers and favours. Indulge your guests, and yourself!
My brother at the weekend commented how he’s never had truffle mash before my wedding and still remind the most delicious thing he’d ever eaten (along with a perfectly cooked steak and some beautifully prepared roasted veg). The wedding was 9 years ago!

I'd consider a buffet, but just make sure it was catered, so that people don't go grabbing regardless.

Otherwise, hot food, whilst ensuring everyone gets a plate, can sometimes have issues as well.

If I am at a wedding and have a buffet instead of a sit down meal, I expect to be able to pile up my plate. Not greedy, but I expect to be able to eat as much as I would at a sit down meal.
And at many buffets the plates are small so 4 quarters of sandwiches, a bit of quiche and a samosa means piling up the plate.

Then you have the by far largest group who take loads and leave loads. They have eyes bigger than their belly and dont care that they will be chucking away enough food to feed another person. This is 80% of guests at any given function

Coming from someone clearly in a position to know, the most depressing part of that is the percentage. I obviously know there'll always be some such folk, but eighty per cent?? What the hell's the matter with people??

We went to a wedding when I was 8 months pregnant, I was always hungry. I got myself towards the front of the queue, but am quite polite (not piling my plate really high and being greedy) so only took a normal sized plateful of ‘firsts’. Dh never pays attention to what’s going on around him and was being mr polite, letting everyone go in front of him. By the time he got there, there was nothing left. So I never got my seconds. There was a lot of hushed whispering going on that there wasn’t enough food laid on. The couple getting married aren’t generally know for being tight with money, and we never found out if the lack of food was because they had told the venue there would be a 75 guests when they had really invited 100 or if the venue had diddled them a bit and not laid out enough food. (Numbers are obviously examples).
It was really miserable though and lots of people left earlier than you would normally leave a wedding because they were so hungry.

It was a wedding and evening do, (no sit down meal) so the buffet would be your main meal of the day. Who would have a proper meal at lunch time if you are going to a wedding mid/ late afternoon time?

I guess you've not been to that many wedding buffets, then.

Very true 😁

But I’d hope that buffet etiquette was the same whatever the event.

Yeah a BBQ. They had invited a good few teenagers and not considered how much they eat! I got to the food and there was one hot dog left and salad.

I once went to a full day wedding at a venue in the middle of no-where with DH and DC1, who was 3. The bride and groom specifically invited DC1 and quite a few other children. Found out when we got there that they had decided not to cater for children as they could eat something from their parents' plate. Which would have been OK except for the very small portions. DC1 ended up eating a full portion and DH and I shared the other.

Not quite a party, but my first experience of Christmas day with the PIL was also one I'll never forget. I am used to loads of delicious food on offer all day. There was no food on offer before lunch (not a problem) then Christmas dinner was plated up (not the 'help yourself' arrangement I'm used to) and incredibly small portions- 2 roast potatoes, no mash, small piece of meat, about 10 peas, 3 slices of carrot, NO SPROUTS! Desert was a small slice of cake. It's the first time ever I have had a full large meal on the evening of Christmas day.

Only if DH’s cousins are there. I have never known a group eat so much between them as they do. We have learned that whatever happens, get to a buffet table before they get there or you WILL go hungry, regardless of how much food there is. No idea if they are shoving it into handbags to take home or something, but food just disappears when they are around. Thankfully, they didn’t come to our wedding as it was ‘too far away’.

Never experienced undercatering, just a lot of extreme greed.

Multiple parties where guests just picked up a bunch of communal chip and dip and nut bowls and wandered off with them, leaving the spread half empty.

Work functions where assholes see the huge array of various sandwiches and snacks and decide it’s fine to try a bit of everything.

Buffets where people decide it’s ok to pile their plate and their children’s plates as high as they could possibly go before 90% of the guests even get near the buffet.

Unless you have the money to buy and waste a ridiculous amount of food, never give people the chance to be greedy pigs. Cause they won’t hesitate to run with it.

Not a party but work training..may out me if anyone attended these..

South of England event...probably 150 people....they had Sainsbury prepacked sandwiches..bottled water and crisps...we were in a 'break out room' yeah I know! so later in...all food gone..so nothing from 8.30-5 apart from cups of tea.

Second event abroad..with 5000 attendees.1st night in travelodge ..left early from hotel but before breakfast,...the staff put some food in bags for us..arrived by plane at early o'clock..taken to venue, coffee was served...no food...got to lunch...there were food stations..queued..got to front...nothing left ...joined another queue..same again...finally grabbed 1 baguette..we shared between 3 of us! Nowhere to sit though..Organisers/senior management apologised and said the evening would make up for it! We are all ravenous and looking forward to a good evening meal ..that consisted of a huge conference room with food stalls..lots of choice but massive queues for each stall..and it was tiny taster ...think 4 chips in a mini cone...we had envisaged a sit down meal but no..and again were sitting on the floor.. The next day there was an all you can eat breakfast in the hotel...we demolished that in anticipation of no food again..and we were right!

But recently had another event and we had a full cooked meal, buffet style hot meals..lots of choice...puddings...cheese and biscuits...so maybe they are learning..

Not me but a colleague - he was at a wedding and the caterers catered for 50 not 150 people!

Turned out the B&G had made a typo when ordering (caterers were external to the venue so venue had enough seats etc).

They 'saved the day' by cutting up each chicken breast into 3 and giving everyone like one potato and one green bean. He said there was a mass exodous to go find food after dinner :-(