Before you go:

• Catering, whether on-site or your choice, is all about the food on your plate. The look, the taste, the smell, the texture and the presentation. First, consider whether you want heavy hors d'oeuvres, buffet, or a plated dinner for your guests. A mid-afternoon casual affair lends more toward heavy hors d'oeuvres. A formal evening event calls for a seated reception.
• Think about the types of food that you want to serve. Do you want family or regional favorites on your menu? Can your caterer accommodate those tastes?
• Consider the season. Do you need a soup as starter to warm your guests? Or, would they prefer a light, summery salad to begin?
• If your menu is serve yourself, think about placement. If you have a large guest list, you do not want to put all of your food in one location. Consider stations or two separate buffets to ease the back-up at the buffet.
• Take a close look at your guest list. Do any of your guests have special dietary needs including diabetic, gluten-free, kosher, vegetarian or specific food allergies?

Questions to ask:

• If you have a small wedding or a small budget, does your caterer have any food and beverage minimums required to cater your big event?
• What other fees are associated with their service? Typically additional charges include a service fee (ranging 10-22 percent), state and local tax, staffing charges ($17-$25 per staffer per hour), bartender fees, bar set-up fees, cake cutting fees, and corkage fees for those who want to provide their own alcohol.
• How flexible is the company with menu? Do you have to choose from a specific list or can you create a custom menu? If you have a favorite recipe or family specialty can they include that as well? Are there any additional costs for this custom service?
• When and with what restrictions can you do a tasting of your possible menu choices? What fees or charges are associated with this taste-test?
• If you choose to give your guests a choice of plated meals, how does your caterer calculate final charges. Many caterers will price all meals based on the most expensive menu items. For example, if you give guests a choice of chicken ($20 per person) or beef ($25 per person),  some caterers will price all guests meals at $25 per person.
• In today's global market, you can get any type of food you want at any time of year, but how does that effect your bottom line? Does your caterer use locally grown produce when possible?
• If your guests have any special needs, can the caterer accommodate special meals for children, diabetic, gluten-free, kosher, vegetarian or other guests?
• If you are serving alcohol at your big event, does your caterer have all of the necessary licensing through the Alcohol and Beverage Control Commission?
• If your site requires it, does your caterer have all necessary licensing and liability insurance required to serve food and alcohol at your big event?
• Regarding the bar, how does your caterer charge for serving beer, wine and liquor? Will you be charged by consumption at the end of the night or do they have one-time hosted bar rates that run per guest per hour? If you are serving wine with dinner, does that service run at the same rate?
• Does your caterer allow you to bring in your own beer, wine or liquor? If so, is there a corkage fee associated with providing your own libations? Also, will they help you determine the type and amount of alcohol you'll need?
• Does your caterer's service fees include any rentals? Among the items you'll need are: tables; chairs; guest table linens; food table linens; bar tables; napkins, china, glass and silverware; chafing dishes, carving stations or other serviceware; serving trays; tray jacks; water pitchers; cake knife; and toasting glasses.  If it does not, but they offer to make arrangements for you, are there any surcharges on the rental costs to do so?
• If your caterer is on-site at a restaurant or resort, how does the food served in their own restaurant compare with that served during weddings and other banquets? Many restaurants and resorts boast four or five star chefs, but will your guests be getting the same service?
• What will servers wear the day or your event? What do you prefer?
• Once you have a preliminary menu in place, ask your site to prepare a Banquet Event Order (BEO). This document is what caterers and sites use to outline your food and beverage choices and all inclusions as well as basic timing of your event.  And while it will change based on your final numbers and any menu adjustments you make, it will give you an early look at the total costs for food, beverage and service fees for your big event.
  

• Keep all payment balance, deadline and contract information in one, easy to find place. And remember, no vendor is yours unless you have a signed contract in your hands.
• Ask for everything in writing. If during the sales process, your vendor contact promises any extras or cost-cutting deals, make sure you can easily refer to that in an email, letter or contract.
• Make sure you have an accurate count of all meals as the RSVPs start rolling in. Some caterers require final guest counts as early as 2 weeks prior to your big event.
• When making that final count, don't forget to include the vendors who will be working for you during the reception. Most caterers offer these meals at a discounted rate. Vendors typically present (and hungry) include your wedding planner and assistant(s), Disc Jockey or reception entertainers, photographer(s), videographer(s) and security guards.
• While some caterers include gratuities in their fees, most do not. Make sure to set aside tips for the chef, captain and wait staff for their hard work the day of your wedding.

• Ask for water service by pitcher instead of bottled water. This is not only healthier for your budget, it is healthier for the environment.
• If your caterer allows you to provide your own alcohol, look for great deals on beer and wine at your local wine distributor. Total Wine, Costco and BJs Wholesale shops are great places to shop in bulk.
• If your caterer does not provide rentals, you can avoid surcharges of up to 10 percent on these rental costs by going directly to your local rental provider.
• If you do not want or need soda at your event, opt for lower cost non-alcoholic beverages like iced tea, sweet tea and/or lemonade.
• Stay in season!  Choose vegetable and other sides that are easily found and prepared during that time of year.
• Another seasonal saving, cut coffee service during summertime events. Hot beverages requests are low when temperatures are high. If you are hosting an evening event and want to offer coffee with your cake, serve it at a station and in limited quantities.