Several years ago, I attended a gorgeous brunch in Manhattan for businesswomen. These ladies were hard working executives who were being honored for their valuable contributions to their business industry.
Everything at this brunch was lovely -- the music was a perfect complement to the meal, the decor was pure eye-candy, and the meal was delicious. There was one challenge -- The meal service was a buffet.
In a lot of other settings, a buffet would have worked fine. But, not this one. Why? It was a formal brunch, and all of the brunch guests were senior level female executives who were impeccably dressed in their designer suits, garden party hats and stilettos. See where I am going here?
If the planner of this event paid attention to the type of people attending this brunch, he would have known that these well-traveled ladies work hard. They came to this brunch to eat good food and to be pampered. An American Service or a French Service meal would have been better suited for them.
Before you determine your meal, think about your guest list. Does it consist of families with children who are picky eaters? Then a buffet would be more their style. Or, are they a 50/50 mix of men and women who have different eating habits? Then, a Russian style service might be better suited for them. <- But keep in mind that Russion Style is considered quite formal!
Here are some common service options for your reception meal. As you can see, your budget, your actual menu and your wedding guest list will help you determine which style suits your reception best.
Buffet Service or Buffet Meal – This type of meal service places your reception food in a public area (typically at long table or at variety of smaller tables/stations). Then your guests are allowed to serve themselves. This is a popular method for feeding a large number of people with minimal staff.
Plated Service or Plated Dinner – This is the most common dinner service in Western cultures. With this service, the meal is prepared on the plate on the kitchen, and the banquet staff/wait staff serves the reception meal to you on the prepared plate. This service is also called American Service.
Family Style Service – This service is called “Family Style” because it reminds you how dinner is served at home. The dinner items are placed in platters and bowls on each table for your wedding guests to share and pass among themselves. It creates a warm and intimate atmosphere for your wedding guests.
French Service –Your banquet staff/wait staff brings a large, silver platter or tray to each table. The wait staff then carves or portions each serving for each guest before s/he serves it to each guest. After the meal item is served, a separate banquet staff/wait staff follows behind to serve the sauce selection(s). This is definitely a formal dining experience for your guests.
***Note: At many restaurants, you will see a French service for meal items such as Guacamole (think Rosa Mexicano). The guacamole is prepared table-side and served to each guest. Once each guest has been served, the remainder is placed on the center of the table.
Russian Service – Many consider Russian service to be a spin-off of the French dinner service. When a meal is served Russian Service, the banquet staff/wait staff brings several servings of food out to the guests on large, silver platters, but then serves each guest one serving of the food. The wait staff is holding the silver platter in one hand while serving the food with the other hand. The staffing and time required to serve dinner Russian Service makes it the most formal dinner service available. I would only recommend this service for small weddings or for weddings with a high waiter to guest ratio.
So, what do you think? Which service are you offering at your wedding reception?
Love and Soul Always, Kay
