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Original poster

Ever been to an under catered party?

446 replies

Crunchymum · 14/10/2018 17:37

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?

OP posts:
NoNoCharlieRascal · 14/10/2018 18:02

A bbq where we were informed we could have one burger and one beer. Dh went out did a shop in the end as everyone was starving.

NormHonal · 14/10/2018 18:02

One of our DCs’ Christenings where the caterers got it wrong with the buffet, in spite of us spending a small fortune. Loads of veggie options (we said there would be one, maybe two), kids’ options were completely wrong, not what we had asked for, so the many kids in attendance quite rightly piled into the adult food. And a few very greedy guests who had thirds, fourths...which meant we had very little left for late arrivals. Embarrassing!

We gave lengthy feedback, got no refund or apology. I do know the venue quite well and they changed to another catering contractor soon after.

We always always always over-cater when we host, so this was the absolute antithesis of how we behave!

SinglePringle · 14/10/2018 18:05

A wedding. The food was bowls of Asian inspired dishes, brought out by waiting staff to be passed round (no formal seating or tables). The people near the door to the kitchen kept swooping on the waiting staff and nothing was making it to the back of the room.

I had to go and chivvy up the waiting staff and ask them to ensure food made it further back. It did but then it ran out after one further ‘round’.

We went out to get McDonalds (first place we found!), inhaled it and then headed back to the party.

Lovewineandchocolate · 14/10/2018 18:08

We went to a function recently and there were people getting in the queue for seconds before everyone had even had a first look in Hmm

I did run a training event recently where we had booked for a finger buffet for everyone. Problem was the buffet consisted of three sandwich triangles per person and a cereal sized bowl of crisps for 15 people!!!

Original poster
Crunchymum · 14/10/2018 18:11

I'm intrigued about the plentiful but bad food? Surely it's hard to mess up buffet food?

OP posts:
DaisyDreaming · 14/10/2018 18:11

Yes, a very posh and private event. We were given fish and chips as our main meal. I literally held the cone of chips with my finger and thumb while everyone took pictures as they all said no one would believe it. I’ve since seen them served as canapés but it was our meal, they served one piece of battered fish each too, it was a max of 2cm by 2cm, a chicken nugget would look massive next to it!

TheTurnOfTheScrew · 14/10/2018 18:12

I went to a wedding where the reception was drinks and canapés only. I don't have a problem with that per se, but the church service was 11am, and by the time we'd done photos, got across to the venue, more photos, obligatory mingling etc it was late afternoon. No-one had eaten much more than a couple of tempura prawns since breakfast, and even the mother of the bride joined us on a McDonald's run.

I

Grumpbum123 · 14/10/2018 18:15

The evening at our wddding we had enough food but they took it away at 2145 my H and I hadn’t eaten we went to get some before we went to our room and they’d given the leftovers to the staff to take home. We ended up with an apple each from the display on the bar. Would have been ok but neither of us had really eaten all day due to nerves etc.

keepingbees · 14/10/2018 18:16

Yes my wedding Sad We paid and ordered a buffet for more guests than we had to be on the safe side. There wasn't nearly enough food. I had assumed it would be an informal finger buffet but they insisted on making everyone queue and the staff serving it up. I don't know whether the servers were over generous to the first few people but by the end of the queue there was nothing but scraps. It was an embarrassing disaster and all I got was a handful of chips and bits my DH managed to scrape together.

ScottyDog7 · 14/10/2018 18:16

This is what I hate about going to parties/weddings. For a few years, I have tended to pack something into my bag to keep me going, even if it's some nuts and a piece of fruit, if we are staying at the party place then I have more in my main bag, if I'm not driving I have some in the car! I hate being hungry or thirsty.

I'm helping plan a friends wedding and she's really worried about the evening 'buffet' and is regretting booking the hotel because of it but can't afford to pull out and still get married. It's not a buffet so much as a bowl of curry or a late night bacon sandwich. I agree with her, it doesn't sound like much, but not sure what she can do. Others think it's great.

greendale17 · 14/10/2018 18:17

I'm intrigued about the plentiful but bad food? Surely it's hard to mess up buffet food?

^When people do buffets on the cheap it is awful. Value sausage rolls etc

CherryPavlova · 14/10/2018 18:18

We went to a supper party where onlynthe hosts had napkins, the food was a cob of corn followed by some disgustingly sharp black currants. That was it. We all got the giggles and had to invent something amusing.

I’ve also been to a party given by quite elderly hosts who had ants crawling all over the table and where they sliced each chicken breast in half before serving with a teaspoon of cold mashed potato and some of their homegrown dry gritty spinach.

60sname · 14/10/2018 18:18

A company event - fancy venue and open bar but there was hardly any food so people got absolutely bladdered.

SecretWitch · 14/10/2018 18:19

I have never been to an undercatered event but my son has. He was invited to a birthday party when he was eight. The invite stated pizza party and bowling. The host bought one large cheese pizza for ten children and one jug of juice. My son had a tiny slice of pizza and a cup of juice. We stopped on the way home to feed him as he was very hungry.

CherryPavlova · 14/10/2018 18:21

Ghastly buffet food too - those hideous school or church hall events for parents / parishioners that are ‘ bring a plate’. Cheap cold, mass produced sausage rolls and ‘picnic eggs’, tuna mousse of indeterminate origin and wotsits mixed with prawn flavoured skips. Just revolting.

RedSkyLastNight · 14/10/2018 18:22

Work Christmas meal. It was a buffet, but wasn't put out until 2 hours later than expected by which time most people had had a fair bit to drink and we starving.

There was literally about 3 or 4 quarters of sandwich and some crisps each. Worse, the first to the buffet piled up their plates assuming more would come out and there had to a re-distribution of the food when it proved not to be the case. I think we (work paid thankfully, but still) paid about £25 a head, so not like we should have had any inkling the buffet would be so pitiful.

t00dle00 · 14/10/2018 18:23

I went to a wedding once where the evening catering for 200 guests was 4 trays of sandwiches, 2 trays of pakora and 2 bowls of tuna pasta.

The bride wasn't happy.

CurcubitaPepo · 14/10/2018 18:23

SILs sisters wedding.
Only one lot of food (no evening do as such). Got a friend to cater for £6 per head. No where near enough food and not a crumb left at the end. Vegetarian BIL ended up going to dominos as nothing suitable for veggies.

TheHobbitMum · 14/10/2018 18:24

I've been to a few worst was a wedding where the food was so small and poor tasting that 10 of us (was a small wedding) left early to go straight to McDonald's Grin

SenecaFalls · 14/10/2018 18:31

I'm intrigued about the plentiful but bad food?

It was a buffet on the cheap and and featured seafood past its prime.

Aaaahfuck · 14/10/2018 18:32

I've not been to an under catered party but a fair few work events. Also I went to a charity fundraiser a few years ago which was £8 per head and there was hardly any food. And they ran out of drinks (social club) if it wasn't for the good cause I'd be really annoyed!

DaphneduM · 14/10/2018 18:37

A wedding at a Hilton hotel. By the time we got to the buffet my husband said it looked as though it has been savaged by a rabid dog!!
Hardly anything left apart from a few tired sausage rolls and tortilla crisps. To add insult to injury, we had to wait for our room, and it was not clean, pubic hairs in the bath and bed - yukk.

redexpat · 14/10/2018 18:41

Scout/guide Jamboree in norway. Fucking starved all week. And one work event where our boss had spelled out 4 slices of bread per person and they still didnt make enough.

MachineBee · 14/10/2018 18:41

I ran a work event where I’d given numbers of 75. About 80 turned up - fair enough, there is usually loads of food, or so I thought.

Wrong. The venue put out 42 plates and half the platters of sandwiches and savouries I had ordered.

It was terrible- the event was a paid for networking event and the delegates were not happy. And the hotel manager had left and there were only waiting staff n hand. I was furious. We gave refunds and I paid a proportionate amount of the invoice. And didn’t use that venue ever again even though it was very well located.

pallisers · 14/10/2018 18:41

a christening. There were two small supermarket pizzas for all of the children. We arrived late so ds got nothing - a few crisps that were left in a bowl was all I could find (it was supposed to be dinner). Very little for the adults either. The drink ran out very quickly but some of the family went out and bought fresh supplies. In fairness to the couple it was sheer disorganisation more than meanness.

I was managing a big work event once and our facilities people usually do a really great job ordering food. They ordered from a new restaurant which sent the right amount of food presuming that people would really only want half of the enormous sandwiches - except the packaged both halves together. After a few people I could see that the people at the end of the queue were going to get nothing so made panicked phone call to order more food as quickly as possible.

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