Weddingbee boards

Has anyone used VerTerra plates for their reception?  I came across these tonight online, and my interest has been piqued.  They are made from palm leaves and are similar-in-look to bamboo plates. 

What I like:

1.  They can be composted

2.  They biodegrade in 60 days and can be composted (the laminate on bamboo prevents composting)

3.  They are a fair trade company

4.  They hold up to microwave, oven, liquid

5.  They are super-cheap in bulk (like a third of bamboo)

What I don't like:

1.  The grain isn't consistent

2.  Not crazy about the bleached out color (but I am checking to see if they can be lightly stained with fruit juice)

I just can't bring myself to use plastic plates since we are having up to 200 people at the wedding, but we would be paying around $500+ if we bought stoneware from a dollar store (mugs, 3 sizes of plates, silverware).  Even renting tableware would be $500+.

Has anyone used these?  How would you rate them?

Are these options really cheaper than renting?  All of my rental bids have been about 50 cents/ plate.  All of these look like the cheapest is about 74 cents with some being up to 1.50 per plate.  Or is this just a look you are going for?

Sorry, it's been a few days since I checked in with the Hive.  You can actually buy the Verterra plates in bulk through their website.

http://www.verterra.com/shop.php?personal=1

I got a sample pack today.  Don't expect the polished quality of Bambu, because the Verterra doesn't have the laminate coating.  I still like them, though.  Heck, they're disposable, so I really don't care that each plate looks a little different.  And the laminate coating on bamboo plates takes a lot longer to break down.

You can buy the plates and bowls in sleeves of 96, or some offer a larger option of 300.  We are looking at the 10" plates ($175.50 for 300, $83.88 for 96), 7"X8.5" Appetizer Plates ($50.50 for 100), and the 5" bowls in place of cake plates ($132 for 300).  They also have some adorable mini bowls we are looking at for salt/pepper/butter (came in the sample pack, but can't see them on the bulk purchase page).

I have been in contact with the Marketing Director over there.  If anyone is interested, I can check and see if they would do an addition discount for large bulk orders.

Heads up, though.  Verterra has a long lead time on their bulk orders.  The Marketing Director recommended ordering 45-60 days in advance.  A lot of restaurants are using them for trade shows, so its hard to keep up with the demand. 

Verterra also partners with Aspenware utensils.  These are the wood utensils.  Packs of 500 are $58.

@Snowy414: I haven't found plate rentals anywhere in my area for less than $2.50 for dinner plates.  We are self-catering, so the convenience of disposable tableware is a big + for us.  I just cringed to throw away 500-600 plastic plates.  We could buy dinner plates from Dollar Tree, but washing that amount of plates is equally unappealling.

laurenthesmall: Thanks for the heads up on webrestaurantstore.  I hadn't found them when I posted this.  On average, that would make the Verterra half the cost when comparing dinner plate bulks of 300, and just a little cheaper when comparing appetizer plates.