Wedding Catering Planning in Washington State: Expert Tips from a Chef & Sommelier

Are you getting married? Congratulations!!!

Have you booked the venue? Have you got a photographer and/or videographer aligned? How many people are you inviting? Have you got a wedding planner or coordinator? Hey… have you thought about what you are going to feed your invitees?

Oh boy, there are so many questions couples must go through to plan a wedding. And do not get me wrong — as a professional caterer, I know there are countless items that have to be on your list if you want to have your dream wedding.

Wedding Catering Planning in Short

Wedding catering planning is the process of turning what a couple imagines their wedding day to taste like into a costed, sourced and executable menu and service plan. It normally starts six to nine months before the date, and it covers the budget, the guest count, dietary restrictions, the service format — plated, buffet or stations — and the food and wine pairing that ties the whole night together.

• Book six to nine months ahead. Popular dates go first, and an early booking buys you time to design and taste your menu.
• Set the catering budget before you fall in love with a menu. Knowing the number lets your chef get creative inside it.
• Collect dietary restrictions on your RSVP cards. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free plates should be as impressive as the mains.
• Choose the service format from the feeling you want, not from the price alone. Plated is formal; buffets and stations keep people mingling.
• Treat the wine as part of the menu. A sommelier matches acidity, sweetness and body to the dishes instead of guessing.

Defining Your “Dream Wedding” Menu

But again, how is that “dream wedding” that you want? We all want something different and we all think a tad different. That is the exact beauty of my job.

I am not a wedding planner by any means; I am a Chef & Sommelier, and I am a caterer. My team and I are just one piece of that whole puzzle of getting a wedding together — but we handle one of the most memorable parts of the night: the food and the wine. That day can be the most important day of two people’s lives, and that, to us, is serious business.

Why You Need a Chef & Sommelier for Your Wedding

When it comes to wedding catering planning, having a professional who understands both the culinary arts and the science of wine pairing makes a world of difference. As a Chef and Sommelier, I do not just design a menu; I create a cohesive gastronomic experience. Every dish is crafted to shine alongside the perfect pour, so your guests get a sophisticated, seamless dinner they will remember for years.

I have spent my career as a chef and sommelier, restaurateur, event planner at some point, and now as a caterer. I have always tried to walk the extra mile for my clients, and I have seen many times how bad advice leaves couples not knowing how to get things done. That is exactly what fuels me to do a better job every single time. If you want to know who is cooking, meet the chef here.

Top 3 Wedding Catering Planning Tips

1. Set Your Catering Budget Early

Before falling in love with a five-course plated dinner, establish your budget. Knowing your numbers allows your caterer to get creative and offer the best possible quality and experience within your means.

2. Consider Dietary Restrictions and Preferences

Your guests will appreciate a menu that accommodates their needs. Ask for dietary restrictions on your RSVP cards so your chef can plan delicious vegetarian, vegan or gluten-free alternatives that are just as impressive as the main courses.

3. Plan the Perfect Food and Wine Pairing

Do not leave the beverages as an afterthought. The right wine can elevate your entire menu. Work with your sommelier to choose wines that complement the season, the venue and, most importantly, the flavours of your chosen dishes.

How We Plan a Wedding Catering, Step by Step

For me, wedding catering planning is mid-term work. It runs for months, from the first message until the day of. I plan ahead — sometimes too far ahead — because pricing, weather and staffing can all affect the big day.

Step 1. The first conversation

When I get a lead, I try to establish a simple, quick but very important relationship by listening: what they want, what they need, what they expect. A phone call, a few details, what they do not like, and how they envision the food and the service on their big day.

Step 2. Translating words into dishes and flavours

That is when the magic comes in. My chef ear has to work, my imagination has to be at its best, and my team’s interpretation has to be full throttle. We become one team for two people and their guests. That is just a beauty.

Step 3. Sourcing and shopping

How we shop, where we shop and what we shop is the real beginning of what we are going to serve. Colours, flavours, tendencies, cultures, cuisines, my experience and my team’s input all land in the shopping list before they land on the plate.

Step 4. Service day

Most of our receptions have gone great and the feedback has been amazing. There was one where the feedback was not quite up to my standards, and too many things came into play for us to shine the way we wanted. But we read it, we understood it, we owned our mistakes and corrected them. We got stronger for the next day.

Elopement, Small Wedding or Large Reception?

It is a little funny, because I was not much into weddings. Then a couple of years ago I got hired for a couple of receptions, the year after a few more, and 2026 is just full of them. Elopements with a handful of guests, small weddings of 50 to 70, big receptions of 150 to 250 — it has become a part of our portfolio that I personally enjoy a lot.

Elopements at Mount Rainier and Mount Baker

An elopement is not a smaller job — it is a full menu cooked on location, often in a kitchen that is not ours, sometimes on a folding table in the treeline. Beef Wellington at altitude, chateaubriand for two, and a complete non-alcoholic bar programme built from scratch.

Cocktail hour and canapés

Cocktail hour is where a reception finds its rhythm. Shrimp shooters, charcuterie boards, Korean BBQ pork on crispy wonton, pulled pork tostadas, yakitori-style chicken skewers — food that is built to be eaten standing up, with a drink in the other hand.

Mains, buffet stations and dessert

For larger guest counts we lean on buffet stations that hold beautifully and keep the room moving: beef lasagna, Peruvian lomo saltado, slow-cooked pork belly with Korean BBQ sauce or sweet potato purée, and a dessert bar to close the night.

Where We Cater in Washington

We cater weddings and elopements across Washington State: elopements at Mount Rainier and Mount Baker, receptions at Bellingham venues such as Lairmont Manor, and weddings in Tacoma. If your venue is somewhere we have not cooked yet, that is usually the fun part. You can see more of our work in events & memories and on our catering page.

Bringing It All Together: A Delicious Conclusion

Planning a wedding catering is a big job and a hobby at the same time, an experience we get every so often and love every time we get the chance to do it.

My conclusion is that I can offer my about-to-be-married clients a lot of experience, flavours and input, for one good cause: that their wedding is a delicious one, and a great flavour to remember from the day they said yes and then said yyyuuummm.

Catering for weddings has become one of our most important and most loved experiences. We love them, we share them, we learn from them, we make it happen.

Happy newly married!

Frequently Asked Questions About Wedding Catering

Let Us Cook Your Wedding

If you are planning your menu and want to talk flavours, formats and pairings, let us talk. Tell us your date, your guest count and how you picture the night, and we will translate it into dishes.