Weddingbee boards

M Catering formally Manna Catering.  Eric has been great to work with and the prices are great.

Max Hansen in Bucks County.  Not cheap, but yummy!

I'm using 2 people who started moonlighting as caterers and are AMAZING! They've only done one other wedding but got rave reviews from absolutely everyone in attendance. Our tasting (they made us a picinic!) with them was insanely wonderful. Our wedding is in 12 days and I know that everything will be amazing. Here's what they sent me:

Thank you for considering us for catering your wedding. We are very excited by the opportunity to contribute to such a big event in your lives. As you know, we have a fairly small portfolio at this point, but we are very proud of the jobs we have done so far and feel absolutely confident that we could provide a gorgeous and delicious buffet for you. This would be our second wedding, but Jonathan and I have been cooking and entertaining together for years, and it is a major creative outlet for us both. The food that we would bring to your wedding would be specially tailored to your needs, fresh and innovative and truly our best combined effort.

We are lovers of food! In creating a menu we consider textures, colors, flavors, and presentation. Seasonality is a primary concern for us, and we are aware of the social responsibility involved in eating. In creating this menu we focused on the flavors of the Mediterranean, as well as the flavors of the season, so we have included lots of artichokes, asparagus, fennel and onions. Jonathon and I both love bold flavors, so we have made frequent use of olives, capers, and garlic. Our philosophy is to take high quality, seasonal ingredients, and prepare them in ways that highlight fresh, clean, simple flavors. We do as much shopping as possible from the farmers’ markets and any meat that we use is from an organic, hormone-free butcher at Reading Terminal. As you requested, we have lots of dips and spreads that will be paired with specific breads, crackers and breadsticks, and we will also have some items already assembled such as bruschettas or skewers. We will have a variety of artisanal cheeses, each paired with a specific condiment. And, of course there will be all the components of a classic antipasto; lots of grilled vegetables and cured meats, as well as a couple of side salads. We want the buffet to be a plentiful opportunity to experience exciting flavor and texture combinations.

            With regards to presentation, we share your aesthetic of casual elegance. We believe that food should be beautiful but unpretentious. We imagine setting things up on various levels with piles of grapes, artichokes, greenery, and whole vegetables of all kinds spilling out from between the bowls and platters, giving the table the feel of a cornucopia. For 150 people it might be good to have more than one station set up, either two identical buffets, or separating some of the items into different stations. If you have a color scheme in mind, we can accommodate it with our choices of serving dishes and table decorations.

            Your budget of $4000 sounds appropriate to us. It is right in the ballpark of what we had been discussing. That fee would cover the food, the servers we need to hire, cutting and serving the cake and the coordinating of rentals. We do not have any special rates for getting rentals, but we are more than willing to arrange for them, if you would like. The actual cost of the rentals would be separate from our fee. As far as a bartender, if you are just serving wine and beer, we could certainly provide someone to do that, but if you are planning to offer a full bar then you will want to hire a bartender and possibly a barback. When it comes time to select wines we would be happy to help. There is a wine importer in New Jersey called Moore Brothers that we love to consult for pairings, and they have a great selection of French and Italian wines in the $10-12 range, with discounts on cases. We are eager to further discuss your needs and find ways that we can help. We can also recommend friends who do flowers and invitations.

            This menu is a brainstorm. We feel it is a good assortment as it is, but we can easily modify it to better suit your needs.

Antipasto

-Grilled red peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant and Portobello mushrooms.

-Roasted asparagus spears wrapped in Serrano ham with saffron aioli.

-Platters of blanched haricot vert tossed with pine nuts and fresh herbs.

-Assorted cured meats and locally made sausages.

Sides

-Layered salad of raw fennel, mushrooms, and shaved parmesan cheese, drizzled with truffle oil.

-Orzo salad with sundried tomatoes.

-Marinated button mushrooms.

-Mini mozzarella balls tossed with grape tomatoes and pesto.

-Skewers of feta cheese, cucumber, mint and kalamata olive.

-Individual artichoke leaves topped with poached shrimp, fennel and feta.

-Bowls of assorted olives and spiced nuts.

Cheeses

-Aged Gouda with sherried figs.

-Farmhouse cheddar with glazed cippolini onions.

-Montbriac or brie with dried fruit compote.

-Goat cheese with honey and walnuts.

Dips

-White bean and artichoke dip.

-Tuna and caper dip.

-Roasted red pepper dip.

-Olive tapenade.

-Roasted eggplant dip.

-Crostini, breadsticks, pita chips, crispy flat bread, assorted fresh Metropolitan breads.

Bruschettas

-Chickpeas, tomato and roasted garlic.

-Braised lamb and fresh mint sauce.

-Crab and watercress.

-Caramelized onions and blue cheese.

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