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I just had my tasting on Friday, and it wasn't really a full meal. I ate beforehand, which was good, because it really was just a tasting of everything (hors d'oeuvres, entrees and sides). So I wouldn't be worried that it is mid-morning! I would just send them an email a little closer to your tasting to clarify that you'll be able to taste a few different hors d'oeuvres, main courses, and sides -- there's no harm in asking them to clarify! I would make sure you specify exactly what you want to taste (if you do want to taste anything in particular) and re-iterate which items can't be served. I honestly don't think that they would expect you to pick out an entire menu based on cookies. =)
When we had our tasting, we'd already worked with the caterer to narrow down a selection of hors d'oeuvres, sides and mains (we too have some resitrictions, so it worked out well). We had a full tasting - full portions of everything on our list. It may have been easier since we'd already picked the mains, so it was basically deciding which of the hors d'oeuvres and sides we wanted.
As Rebecca mentioned, send an email to ask what you'll be tasting and reiterate your restrictions. That will make sure that whatever they serve will be a contender. It may be that they have a very relaxed approach or that they're not knocking themselves out because you've already got a contract?
We got to pick four full meals from the menu to taste, along with four different salads, and four different desserts. We liked all of them, so it was very difficult to make up our minds. We didn't bother tasting the vegetarian slection because there was only one choice and we knew we would have to pick it. They only did tasting on Tuesday and Thursday nights from 5pm - 8pm, so it was very difficult to get there (we live in Irvine and our venue is in westwood).
I think it is great that your place is giving you so much flexibility. They may want to do the offical tasing when the place is not busy, so they (and you) don't feel rushed.
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Caliocteach - that sounds hard! That's a lot of food. :-) The problem is that I think this *is* the official tasting - I'm pretty sure missm is right in saying that they're very relaxed (which is definitely true... very small business), especially since there's already a contract in place.
My interpretation of the email is, "We'll serve you what we have here - it may or may not be something we'd serve at your wedding, but it will definitely be representative of our food!" That would be fine if this were a small party, but I guess I feel for the amount of money that's going towards catering, we should get at least what Rebecca described. The issue, I think, is that they'd basically be making everything just for us, since they don't do that many events... the whole business end is run by these two women, and I believe they have a few people working for them in their small storefront.
I'd like to come up with a delicate way of asking them this, though. Rebecca's advice is great and I think I'll do that. Since I have to write back to confirm, though, should I just ask now?
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We took our moms with us so we each had one meal -- and then we rotated plates.
Please let us know how it goes, and good luck!
Superstar - that's interesting... do you know why? Could you elaborate? I guess it's possible/probable I'm not supposed to have one either, but after reading so much wedding stuff for months, it's hard for me to see around it. Hearing about someone else in the same boat makes me feel better. :-)
Thanks for your help, all!
I honestly wouldn't feel comfortable without tasting some of the food you want on your menu! I had an issue with a caterer, she was referred to me by close friends and family, and she was a small business, very casual, relaxed. I tried to get her to send me a contract to reserve the date with her but she just kept saying that when the day got closer, she would get back to me a couple of months before the wedding. Well long story short, I could never get ahold of her, she never returned my calls, literally for over two weeks! I was feaking out because everything was going to be through her, the tables, linens, she was going to help with center pieces,,,I decided I could no longer deal with trying to track down my caterer, I even offered a %50 deposit ! I ended up calling her and leaving a message, (she never answered) letting her know I was going with another caterer. She later called me back apologizing that this has never happened to her before and she knows she has a bad habit returning phone calls, but wished me well. I found another great caterer who communicated wonderfully! They even came to my house, brought all of the meat entres we're serving along with extras! I'm soo glad I didn't go with my drama caterer!
GorgesViola - let us know how it shakes out. It definitely makes sense to clarify what will happen. It's one thing to have a sample of what style of food they make, but for a wedding, I feel it is important to taste the actual dishes. Even at restaurants I love, some dishes are much better than others. If they don't offer a tasting of specific items that are options for the wedding, would it be possible for you and your sweetie to arrange to have dinner there and order the dishes in question? That way, the business wouldn't be out the food cost and you'd get to taste exactly what you want. It's not ideal - you'd think most catering contracts come with tastings, but apparently, it's not 100% standard. :(
Good luck!
GV- we went w/ a place that was more a one stop shop (b/c of work schedules and just being sick of this running around looking etc). they don't offer tasting, but have a long list from us to choose from. They were reasonably priced. I don't mind not tasting the food for several reasons...i can't bear the thought of having to keep sitting down and planning more stuff...and that every's taste is different so if i like something, my guest doesn't necessarily will like it as much as I do... and we're doing a buffet... most of the time, even at expensive weddings w/ fliet mignon and such, it's usually dry and over cooked... so really would it make a big difference? probably not.
@GV -- yep, if you have to send an email now, I would just ask them to clarify what you'll be tasting in that email. Frame it like you're tasting not to make sure that they're culinarily up to snuff, but that you need help narrowing down so many of their fabulous options. Charming but firm hasn't failed me yet!
Good luck!
I would call them and ask just what you can expect at the tasting. If it's a small business, they may just not know what you want to taste. Maybe they don't do a ton of weddings? If there are any dishes you really want to taste, I would highlight those in the call. It never hurts to ask and they really should be able to accommodate you.
ha - at least you're getting a tasting. We live in a small town where there's not much competition - so I guess the companies don't feel the need for tastings. I asked and they said no :)
Sounds like they might be trying to plan your tasting around another event so they'll already have the food made and just have to plate up some for you???
Calling to ask what you should expect at the tasting will def help.
Jilian - you called it! :-) They have a wedding a few days before and will save some leftovers. It won't be close to everything we want to taste, but at least we'll get to try 1 or 2 main dishes and 1 or 2 apps. Also, having it as leftovers might (sadly) give the feeling of wedding food prepared in large quantities. I think they've got great quality control; I'm just saying it'll pretty different preparing 1 piece of chicken instead of 150. :-P
Thanks for the advice, everyone - I'll keep you posted about what happens!
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So we had our mini-tasting a few days ago, and it was great. They had a few pieces of grilled chicken and salmon with several different sauces/marinades/sides, and everything was delicious (well, except the cilantro pesto, and I can't blame them for that one). They were absolutely wonderful - we're having a farmers' market theme, so I'd love to have as much local/seasonal stuff as possible, and we're going to talk again a few weeks before the wedding to discuss what's looking good at their vendors. Then we'll plan the menu around that! 
I'm thrilled, because it'll help narrow things down in a way, and it will also allow them to be creative with ingredients they're excited about. We all came out of the meeting really happy, and I'm glad I just sort of let them do their thing but also made sure I was able to get a good sense of their food. Thanks for all your ideas and advice!
A few of the places that we looked at for reception sites with in-house caterers didn't offer tastings and that made me really uncomfortable, especially with the amount of money they were asking for. I was very excited when the caterer I'm going with mentioned a tasting in the very first email response to me.
If the tasting is mid morning, it's possible they'll be preparing for a lunch and can give you a sample of that. Or maybe they'll just make a dish or two of what you're looking for.
Historykitty - we already had the mini-tasting (see post just above yours). Since they're a very small operation and since we're trying to keep our own costs down, it wasn't financially viable from either side for us to have a full-on tasting. But I feel 100% confident about our choice, especially because Mr.GV and I have several friends who have worked events for our caterer, and our friends have had nothing but positive things to say about them. In the catering business, that's pretty awesome!
I also did not have a tasting. But had eaten at this restaurant before and the quality of food was very high. They have an extra room for weddings and such. I didn't ask for a tasting and they didn't offer.
In the end, our food was unbelievable! I have never had such a tender, juicy filet mignon steak in my life! I have absolutly no regrets.
And I would think the tasting would be mid-morning so that they are not preoccupied with lots of other guests, or meals to make. They will be focusing more on you.
Just be honest. "I'm sorry 10 am is a bit early for us to try main dishes and really bea able to enjoy them I would prefer something in the afternnon"
It doens't have to be rude or anything, just be honest. You want to be able to talk to this vendor becaue he's a key part of your day. Cutting off the ability of communication isn't good. Be polite but remember he's working for YOU
We had our tasting at 10AM, and I actually think it's a perfect time to get a full tasting- you wouldn't have eaten breakfast/lunch by then so you'll come hungry and ready for your 'free meal'.
Our caterer was at first very lax- they said they'd just serve up what they had on hand that day. I made sure to keep asking them to please include things from our menu, especially since I specially requested some vegetarian items. I think just being straight-forward and telling them what you want/need should get the point across.
That being said, we did end up tasting extra things that weren't on our menu because they were flexible and brought things out for us. Plus we ended up substituting things from our original menu for new things we tried, and in a few cases, never got to try! At some point you have to realize whether or not you trust your caterers to provide a high quality of food- for us, it was apparent our caterers were great, so I trusted their suggestions and changed up our menu accordingly. So even if you don't get to taste every last thing, that's fine. The bigger picture is whether or not you like their food, period. If you're worried they will mess something up, then yes, only choose things that you have actually tasted for yourself. Good luck!
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We hired our caterer based on glowing recommendations of several friends and the site manager/owner, and I'm confident we'll like the food. However, I've never actually tasted it!