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Original poster

Wedding food

29 replies

Fortiesmum · 05/08/2025 15:36

Just after some opinions really..at our wedding we are considering having BBQ type food. Just wondered if anyone has done this and if it went down well with guests?
It's certainly to our tastes but obviously have a wide range of guests!!

OP posts:
rainbowstardrops · 05/08/2025 15:41

I went to a wedding once that had a hog roast. It was lovely!

Timeforaglassofwine · 05/08/2025 15:44

It's a nice idea, a relative had a mobile chip van and an icecream van at hers. Just watch it isn't restrictive - vegetarians and gluten intolerances are the most common things to have to cater for.

Whatareyoutalkingaboutnow · 05/08/2025 15:45

I'd enjoy a wedding bbq!

I've been married a long time, and we had a formal 3 course meal which was lovely at the time.
If I was doing it again I'd have an afternoon tea kind of thing, with bubbly, of course! Less formal.

QuartzIlikeit · 05/08/2025 15:47

We had a formal sit down dinner at around 5pm & then a bbq in the evening. It was lovely! Everyone really enjoyed it, ate loads & is was just the laid back evening we wanted. Definitely recommend a bbq at your wedding

Ayeayeaye25 · 05/08/2025 16:09

Think it depends on the venue, the vibe, the guests, the time of day you are getting married (if a late in the day ceremony 3pm or 4pm it could work but if you are getting married around noon you may need to think about two lots of food to serve and also depends on what you both want etc etc. Assume you intend to have a professional doing all the BBQ-ing and any vegetarians or vegan, gluten intolerant guests will be catered for etc etc. Also it may still work out quite expensive if doing a BBQ.

Dodonutty · 05/08/2025 16:14

I went to a wedding with a barbecue a few weeks ago. It was a strange vibe. The main reception room had places set & tablecloths, but most of the friends and young families ate outside at picnic tables near the barbecue. Nobody quite knew what the expectations of the happy couple were or that a pudding was being served at the tables indoors.

The food wasn't special. Everything was ready at different times, so veggie kebabs were ready first and disappeared whilst people were waiting for the burgers and meat kebabs to cook. If I had paid for the food I would have been very disappointed.

Nevereatcardboard · 05/08/2025 16:27

It depends on the type of wedding and your guests.Personally, I don’t enjoy barbecue food but I know that many people do.

jackstini · 05/08/2025 17:04

Depends on the timing of your wedding and the quality of the bbq food!

we had a sit down meal at 5 then a bbq at 9ish. BBQ was really well received - there were burgers and sausages but also chicken, salmon, prawns, veggie options. lamb etc. loads of different breads, salads and sides

We served the wedding cake up as dessert

There was seating outside but a few people took it back to eat inside

This was over 20 years ago - was seen as unusual then!

R0ckandHardPlace · 05/08/2025 17:09

I went to a wedding that had a BBQ instead of a sit down meal and it wasn’t great. It was literally the choice or a burger OR a hotdog. There was a tiny bowl of green salad. I’m coeliac so I literally had a solitary sausage for the entire meal.

Bobbybobbins · 05/08/2025 17:28

My brother had this at a village hall type reception and it was very nice. Plenty of accompaniments and puddings.

CarpetKnees · 05/08/2025 19:04

I've been to a couple, and they weren't great if I'm honest (and I like a BBQ).

There was a lot of queuing and waiting. It didn't feel very 'together' somehow. Vegetarians were polite of course but not really very well catered for.

I certainly wouldn't choose it.

MsNevermore · 05/08/2025 19:07

I’ve been married twice.

First time around, we did buffet-style BBQ. We had the catering people cooking burgers, sausages, chicken kebabs etc outside, and then had lots of salads and sides set out on buffet tables inside.
Second time, we had a sit-down meal with charcuterie sharing boards on each table as a starter, then the main was a carvery-style roast where the catering staff served a choice of meats table-side and then all the trimmings were put on the tables for people to help themselves. Then we did a trio of mini desserts so there would be at least one thing everyone liked.
I think the food second time around went down better with guests because they didn’t have to wait in a line to get food and BBQ can be a bit messy! I really wanted a burger…..but had a horrible vision of ketchup falling out the bottom and onto my dress 😂 So I didn’t.

ThatLemonBear · 05/08/2025 19:07

I went to a wedding years ago that served afternoon tea after the ceremony (early afternoon ish) and then had a hog roast in the evening. It was brilliant!

Julimia · 05/08/2025 19:12

If that's what you fancy then do it. You'll always get someone who wouldn't have chosen what you did whatever you had. Just enjoy your day. Other peoples' opinions do not come into it.

tipsyraven · 05/08/2025 19:13

I don’t enjoy bbq food as I am a vegetarian and the meat eaters always eat it as well but I also don’t like the whole waiting for things to cook and standing around. Also, flies and wasps outside.

VicWill84 · 05/08/2025 19:22

Our wedding was catered by a local butcher and we had BBQ platters. It was served family style to the table.

YouknowIknowbest · 05/08/2025 19:25

I’ve been to 3 weddings that had the main food event as a bbq, and can categorically say that each of them were awful.
I echo others comments where the vibe just doesn’t sit right. A lot of queuing, people eating in various locations, people tended to just have picky bits and then were hungry later. All 3 were very different locations and vastly different formality vibes but personally I felt that the whole bbq experience didn’t work at any of them.

The best two wedding foods I've had were posh pie (choice of chicken and leek / steak and kidney) roasties and peas, and the best bangers I’ve ever had with mash and peas!! For me it’s a much better dining experience for everyone to be served in their seats, but that’s a personal preference.

BananaCaramel · 05/08/2025 19:38

My cousin had BBQ food at his wedding and it was great. The food was in abundance - burgers, sausages, chicken, kebabs, sweetcorn, baked potatoes, salmon. There was some veggie stuff too but I didn’t really pay attention to it.

They had their reception in a pub garden which they had hired for sole use and the seating was informal but it worked because there were more tables than people and it was the sort of food you could also mill about and stand up.

Just don’t be stingy and offer one meagre burger and sausage each and it will be great!

Unilaterallyinsane · 05/08/2025 19:44

I went to a wedding in a farmer’s field. We played cricket, rounders, had a quiz and a shared BBQ. It was the most enjoyable wedding I’ve ever been to, ever.

slightlydistrac · 05/08/2025 19:52

The sight of a large dead pig with a spear through it being turned on a giant spit over a fire for hours is enough to put me right off eating anything, let alone any of the pork (sorry to those who like it, but it's not for me).

Justthethingsthatyoudointhisgarden · 05/08/2025 19:56

We're having a really relaxed wedding with an afternoon BBQ and evening buffet. Much rather this than a formal meal.

QueenOfWeeds · 05/08/2025 20:00

I went to a wedding where they had BBQ food but served on sharing platters to tables, so it was effectively a formal, sit-down dinner but with big plates of BBQ meats and sides at each table. I’m not wild about sharing platters at weddings (but awkward when you don’t know everyone on your table) but they seem to be having a moment? And the food was very good.

Icecreamandcoffee · 05/08/2025 20:01

I've been to a BBQ wedding. One thing to check is how the caterers are planning on doing the food intolerance and allergy / vegan and veggie stuff with the meat stuff. The one I attended had 2 grills, did the allergy stuff on 1, then vegan stuff, then veggie stuff and finally cooked the meat stuff. Plus what sides will be offered and how people will be catered for. Unfortunately there were some very gannety guests who decided to get in the queue and once the grilled stuff was ready and were quite happy to eat the vegan/ veggie stuff whilst they waited for the meat stuff to cook. Unfortunately they ran out of vegan and veggie stuff before some of those with dietary requirements were able to eat.

Also see how they manage portions, again the very gannety guests were having their 2nd or 3rd burgers before others had had their first. Meaning the last guests got very little. In some ways, everyone sat down and served means everyone gets to eat something.

lemoncrisp · 05/08/2025 20:20

My daughter and her Argentine husband had a traditional Argentine BBQ for their wedding reception. Loads of food and it was fabulous.

mamagogo1 · 05/08/2025 20:24

Sounds great to me though probably more suited to less formal weddings - I’m a very messy burger eater, so not in my best clothes!

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