Restaurant Weddings: the ultimate value menu!

Venue hunting can be exhausting, and confusing. The less-inclusive the location, the more additional costs add up. It’s important to really understand what services your venue offers or includes, and what you’ll be responsible for renting or bringing in, yourself. You might find yourself surprised when the reality of your lakeside outdoor wedding includes negotiating with port-a-potty companies and electricity generators!

Starting from scratch can cost a pretty penny more, generates a lot more waste, and grows your carbon footprint; so don’t underestimate how using a restaurant can help you save more green while being green! Restaurants come equipped with all the tables, linens, and food (sometimes even decor) waiting for you. Many of you might say, “But I just don’t like the feel of your standard restaurant,” to which we say, “Then find a restaurant that feels right!”

We got married at a restaurant that felt more like an indoor/outdoor lounge and club, and it was the perfect place to have a party. You can find a restaurant to compliment just about any theme. Look at ethnic or exotic restaurants for a destination wedding-feel right in your own town, or an offbeat choice like an awesome beer garden or kitschy diner to really express yourselves and set a fun mood.

Restaurants come equipped with proper tables, seating, matching linens, dining rentals, bars, and staff, so you can cut out almost all of your rental costs (and delivery fees), with the added bonus that you won’t need a gas guzzling truck lugging all these items to and from the venue. If you pick a place with loads of natural character or decor built-in, you can really lean on that and save the money, the headaches, and the waste that you’d otherwise create.

But, where you really start conserving is the food. Being able to speak from firsthand experience as former catering servers, we know it would make you weep to see how much food is thrown out after every single event. “But can’t you just donate leftover food?” Good question! Sometimes yes, but usually charities won’t accept open food, and it would not be fresh enough in time to serve it to the needy. When you work with a restaurant, a lot less is wasted because being onsite will allow for a huge increase in efficiency. Instead of having to prepare everything in advance, and throw out what they don’t use, your food will be served fresher, and they can repurpose leftovers for their service the following day. Again, you save on delivery, since their equipment is ready to go, but isn’t going anywhere.

The real win in having a restaurant wedding reception is more of a sentimental paycheck, but it’s just so dreamy to be able to go back on your anniversary and have a special dinner at the place where it all began. Does it get more romantic? Yeahwedidn’tthinksoeither.

You can save even more since its a bulk purchase, negotiating with one vendor for many items, instead of making lots of deals with multiple vendors. Less stress, smaller environmental foot print, and far less cost, all make for a much bigger smile on your big day and a much smaller weight on your shoulders… So don’t overlook your friendly neighborhood restaurant, yo. It could be just around the corner!