Wedding menu: wedding banquet and buffet options

How to calculate dishes for a banquet menu and achieve the ideal balance between appetizers, main courses, desserts and drinks? If you order outdoor catering, the manager will go into all the details and create a menu based on the number of guests. Have you decided to organize a banquet yourself, but don’t know how much food and drinks to prepare?

There are standards for the yield of dishes per person depending on the duration of the event:

• 1–2 hours – total yield 200–400 g;
• 2–4 hours – 400–600 g;
• 4–6 hours – 600–1200 g;
• more than 6 hours - over 1200 g.

What should you consider when creating a banquet menu?

• When calculating the amount of food at a banquet, it is important to ensure that the tables are not empty. It is convenient to serve salads in portions, and hot dishes and vegetables on shared trays.
• Plan a special menu for children's meals and vegetarians. Children eat little, but drink more juices and sparkling water. Vegetarians prefer vegetables and fruits to meat and fish.
• Buy cake and alcohol yourself. This will save your budget. Arrange to pick up remaining food and alcoholic beverages after the party.
• When creating a menu, take into account the season. In summer, guests drink more wine, lemonade and juice. In winter, soups, hot snacks and strong alcohol are popular.

Buffet menu for a wedding

Buffets are becoming increasingly popular at weddings - newlyweds are abandoning the classic feast and choosing a more free format. A wedding buffet will allow guests to move around the room and communicate with each other, and not just with their neighbors at the table. This option is ideal for a youth wedding where guests want to move rather than sit still. This is also a great idea for a short wedding under 5 o'clock - at a long event it will be difficult for guests to spend a lot of time on their feet.

The buffet menu is best suited for a chamber wedding of 10-25 people - it will be attended by the closest people who will find something to talk about and do. If there are a lot of people, then the buffet threatens to turn into chaos, so for a large wedding it is better to choose a banquet option.

Some tips

• Most often, a buffet is organized at summer or spring weddings, when you want lightness, and heavy fatty food looks unnecessary on the table. And a buffet is a great idea for outdoor registration.

• If the wedding is planned for the whole day, in the morning after registration at the registry office, you can arrange a small welcome buffet, and in the evening invite everyone to a banquet in a cafe or restaurant.
• Service is an important part of a wedding reception. Order catering and waiters so that everything goes smoothly - professionals with extensive experience will help you with the organization.

• Buffet tables must be placed at a sufficient distance from each other so that both guests and waiters can move freely around the room.
• Make sure there is a place in the room where guests can sit and relax (this could be a lounge area with ottomans or a bar counter).

A great idea is to invite guests to a two-level loft and order buffet catering. Then it will be possible to organize a buffet and dancing area on one of the floors, and a place for relaxation on the other. Cool two-level lofts can always be found on our website!

Example of a buffet menu for a wedding

The buffet menu includes a large number of snacks; finger food dishes look very stylish - miniature canapés, kebabs on skewers, burgers, croissants or desserts that are eaten directly with your hands, without knives and forks. Try to make a varied buffet with meat, poultry and fish dishes, as well as several vegetarian options.

A sample wedding table menu might look like this:

Snacks

Sandwich burgers with turkey, tomatoes and baked peppers, cheese mix, cherry tomato tapas with mozzarella, basil and pine nuts (veg.), sandwich in a baguette with ham and cheese, sandwich in a croissant with grilled vegetables (veg.), sandwich in a croissant with tuna, boiled egg, cucumber and iceberg lettuce.

Salads

Mixed salad with chicken liver and orange sauce, marinated octopus with sweet potato skewers, mixed salad with salmon gravlax and daikon radish, spinach salad with arugula, fresh pear and caramelized nuts (vegan).

Dessert

Belgian waffles, blackcurrant tart and chocolate brownie.

Additionally, you can order a wedding cake from the confectionery.

Beverages

Non-alcoholic: pear lemonade with sage, pea lemonade, freshly squeezed orange and grapefruit juice and berry juice, mineral water.

Light alcohol: champagne, white and rose wine. Strong alcohol is usually not ordered at a buffet table or is taken in minimal quantities.

These and many other dishes and non-alcoholic drinks for a wedding buffet can be ordered on the Progress Project website. You can choose dishes to suit your taste or trust the choice of specialists and order a ready-made buffet set. You can also order waiter services for your holiday here.

It is not difficult to calculate the amount of food for a buffet - usually they order at the rate of 1000-1200 grams of food per person. It is better to take extra drinks, especially in the hot season - 1 liter of soft drink and 0.7 liter of alcoholic drink, as well as 1 liter of regular water for each guest. Unopened bottles can be taken home after the event. When ordering catering from Progress Project, managers will definitely help you calculate the optimal amount of food and drinks.

How to calculate cold appetizers

​

​

When calculating snacks for a banquet, use the following data.

• The standard yield of cold appetizers per person is 350–400 g. These include cheese, vegetable and meat slices, mini-sandwiches, canapés, and rolls.
• Salads are served at the rate of 200–250 g per person. The most popular are Caesar, herring under a fur coat, vinaigrette, and various seafood dishes.

All snacks are divided into several parts and served as needed. Most food is consumed in the first part of the banquet, when hot dishes are not yet prepared.

2.2 Menu creation.

A menu is a list of dishes, snacks, culinary products, and drinks arranged in a certain order.

The banquet menu is compiled at the request of customers and agreed upon in advance. It depends on:

• traditions;
• financial capabilities of the customer;
• enterprise capabilities.

The menu is compiled by the head of production, the head waiter and transferred to the calculator to determine the selling prices of the dishes. The menu is approved by the director of the enterprise.

The menu is compiled depending on the nature of the banquet. Characteristic features of this banquet:

• solemnity of the event,
• different nationalities of the participants (Russians, Greeks).

2.2.1 Menu

Head Manufactured by _______________________ signature____________

Head buh. _______________________ signature____________

Director _______________________ signature____________

M.P.

2.2.2 Bar card

Head buh. _______________________ signature____________

Director _______________________ signature____________

M.P.

Calculation of hot dishes

​

​

When calculating the number of hot dishes at a banquet, they are guided by the following figures:

• meat and fish dishes (steaks, chops, roasts) - 250 g per person;
• side dishes (potatoes, rice, stewed vegetables) - 150 g;
• soup (solyanka, broth with croutons, fish soup) - 250 g.

As a rule, at large-scale feasts two hot meat dishes are served. One is brought to guests in the first part of the event, the second is brought closer to the end of the holiday. Sometimes one dish is divided into two servings.

Menu for the second wedding day

The second day of the wedding is a continuation of the celebration, where the closest friends are invited to extend the celebration. Usually the menu for the second day of the wedding is simpler. It is more difficult to guess with the number of dishes, because not all invited guests will be allowed to stay for the continuation of the celebration, so try to find out in advance how many people will be on the second day. One of the most popular ideas for celebrating the second day is a country house or an outdoor recreation center. If you decide to opt for this option, then it would be great to have a barbecue with grilled dishes and fresh vegetables. If you chose a more budget option and invited those closest to you at home, then you can limit yourself to ordering pizza, rolls or other dishes from one of the many delivery services or directly from your favorite restaurant.

We wish you to celebrate an unforgettable wedding and enjoy an exquisite buffet or banquet!

Dessert calculation

​

When calculating the food yield per person that will be optimal for a wedding banquet, be sure to take into account desserts and fruits. The standard portion of fruit per guest is 200 g. It includes:

• bananas - 0.5 pcs.;
• apples and pears - 1 pc.;
• tangerines - 2 pcs.;
• oranges - 1 pc.;
• kiwi - 0.5 pcs.;
• strawberries - 50 g;
• pineapple - 1 ring;
• grapes - 50 g.

The cake is ordered taking into account that there should be a portion weighing 150–200 g per person. The fruits are cut and placed in vases. Moreover, they do this several times so that the slices do not become weathered and lose their appearance.

2.4 Calculation of tablecloth length

The size of the banquet tablecloths is 173 x 208 cm. Since the central table intended for guests of honor has a total length of 3.2 m, you will need: 3.2/2.08 m = 2 tablecloths. For the remaining tables it is required: 27/1.73 = 15 tablecloths. A total of 17 tablecloths are needed.

Handbrake and towels are required for waiters. Handbrake handles are taken at the rate of 2 per waiter, therefore 10 handbrake handles will be required. Towels measuring 100 x 40 cm are issued one per waiter, therefore it is necessary to prepare 5 towels.

Guests will need 50 linen napkins and paper napkins. All these accessories are also white linen.

Calculation of drink norms per person

​

Before calculating soft drinks and alcohol, take into account what food will be at the banquet. Guest preferences are also important. Drinks for everyone include all kinds of liqueurs, martinis, whiskey, and cognac. Vodka, wine and champagne are considered universal alcohol. There are standard formulas:

• vodka - a bottle for 2 people;
• wine - bottle per person;
• champagne - a bottle for 3 people.

The best non-alcoholic drinks are mineral water, juices and fruit drinks. At the same time, they are purchased at a rate of 1.5–2 liters per guest.

The simplest ways to fold napkins

More complex ways to fold napkins.

Folding a napkin using the “Shell” method

1.Place the unfolded napkin on the table with the edge facing you.

2.Fold the napkin in the middle with the fold away from you.

3.Fold the napkin from right to left like an accordion.

4.Fold the napkin lengthwise in the middle - fold down, folds outward.

5.Lift the napkin and hold the folded side of the napkin with your right hand.

6.With your left hand, bend the smooth side of the napkin down diagonally so that the smooth side goes down.

7.Turn the descending part of the napkin from the bottom to the other side.

8. Place the napkin and release the folds (accordions).

Folding a napkin using the “Space” method

1.Put the unfolded napkin on the table.

2. Bend it in the middle with the fold away from you.

3. Fold the upper corners of the napkin down to the middle of the edge, folding the napkin into a triangle without creasing the folds (that is, connect both lower corners of the napkin).

4.Place the folded napkin on the plate with the corners turned.

Calculation and preparation of a wedding banquet menu

​

When calculating food for a wedding banquet, keep in mind that the main feast is usually preceded by a small buffet. For the welcome zone you will need champagne, several snacks and fruits.

For a banquet that lasts 4–5 hours, you need 1400–1500 g of food per guest (including cake). The following ratio of main courses and snacks on the banquet table is considered optimal.

• Cold appetizers (cheeses, vegetables, cold cuts) - 350–400 g.
• Salads (vegetables, meat, seafood) - 200 g.
• Hot snacks - 100 g.
• Hot (steaks, chops, roast) - 250 g.
• Side dishes - 150 g.
• Fruits - 200 g.
• Cake - 150–200 g.

If 10–15 guests are invited to the wedding, it is better to order a cake based on a portion of 200 g. If the celebration is large-scale, 150 g per guest is quite enough.

Winter wedding menu

In cold weather, the body requires more energy and calories - a great idea would be to include fattier foods in the winter wedding menu: fried pork, duck, pot dishes and julienne. When choosing snacks, pay attention to cold cuts, warm mushrooms and cheese, you can add pickles. Dishes that are perfect for a winter wedding table: dried venison with cherry cheese and herbs; veal tartare with quail egg and gherkin, on spelled toast; roast beef with caramelized pear and berry sauce.

Instead of the usual Caesar and Olivier, offer your guests warm salads (for example, sliced ​​raw smoked venison with baked pumpkin, mixed salad and goat cheese). If desired, the menu can include creamy soups to help guests warm up after a walk through the snowy streets. Most likely, strong alcohol will be in great demand at a winter wedding, so take it with a reserve. Mulled wine is also a good alcohol option for a winter wedding: it will warm you up and give you the atmosphere of a winter fairy tale.

Banquet-tea

Banquet-tea is held in the afternoon, usually at 16-18 hours. The banquet lasts no more than 2 hours.

A round, oval or rectangular table and chairs (armchairs) are placed in the center of the banquet hall. Along the walls there are sofas, armchairs, and between them 1-2 small tables covered with colored tablecloths - for flowers, ashtrays and matches.

The banquet-tea menu consists of flour confectionery products (cakes, pastries, sweet pies, cookies), chocolates, chocolate, jam, honey, sugar, fruit, milk or cream, etc. The banquet menu sometimes includes 1-2 sweet dishes - jelly, mousse, cream, ice cream, etc.

A tea banquet looks more solemn when tea is poured from a samovar. The samovar on a tray is placed on the edge of the tea table or separately on a side table covered with a tablecloth. To the left of the samovar, place a second tray, covered with a napkin, with tea cups, saucers and teaspoons. Teapots are placed on a tray in front of the samovar, slightly to the right.

A dessert plate is placed on a tea table covered with a colored tablecloth opposite each guest’s seat, dessert knives and forks are laid out to the right and left of it, and if there is fruit on the menu, a fruit utensil (behind the dessert plate). Sweet dishes are placed on the table 30–40 minutes before the start of the banquet. The sweet pie or cake is cut into portions in advance. All sweet dishes, except for wrapped sweets and fruit, are served with special utensils for serving (spatulas, forks, etc.). Rosettes are placed in stacks of 5-6 pieces near each vase with jam, honey or jam.

The sequence of serving dishes and products: sweet dishes are offered first, then tea is served with flour confectionery, and fruits, nuts, and sweets are served last.

When serving sweet dishes, instead of a dessert plate and cutlery, a pie plate is placed in front of each guest, covered with a carved paper napkin, with a dessert spoon (the handle is turned to the right of the guest). Place a bowl with a sweet dish on a plate. The used dishes are then removed and replaced with a dessert plate and cutlery.

You can include coffee in the menu. In this case, coffee cups with saucers and coffee spoons are placed on a tray with tea cups, and a coffee pot with hot coffee is placed next to the teapots.

Will the holiday be alcohol-free?

Strong drinks are widely represented on restaurant menus

. As the famous expert on traditions M. Zhvanetsky says, alcohol in small doses is harmless in any quantity. Of course, the assortment of the establishment and your imagination will allow you to determine the choice, but vodka, cognac, whiskey, wines, and champagnes should be dosed within reasonable limits. Waiters are increasingly saying that they are drinking less at banquets. We hope that this will be the case in your case. On average, you will have to add 500 - 800 rubles for drinks for each adult guest.

Let's create a menu for the wedding feast. The banquet is not the climax of the wedding, but it claims to be the longest and most expensive part of it. The manager of a good restaurant will try to take control of all the details of creating the menu, but it is useful to prepare a working version. There may be several options, let’s decide on the main one. An approximate banquet menu for a wedding for 40 people might look like this:

Cold appetizers, salads

• assortment of several types of cheese (serving in the center of the table) – 10 pcs. 100 g per person;
• assorted meats – 10 plates, 100 g each;
• aspic – 8 plates of 100 g each;
• mini tartlets with caviar – 40 pcs. 12 g per person;
• Caesar salad - 15 pcs. 60 g each;
• Olivier salad – 15 pcs. 60 g each;
• herring under a fur coat – 15 pcs. 60 g each;
• seafood salad – 10 pcs. 60 g each;
• julienne – 25 pcs. 60 g;
• mini chicken skewers – 25 pcs. 60 g each

Hot dishes to choose from

• beef steak – 9 pcs. 50 g each;
• roast with pork, with chicken – 9 pcs. 50 g each;
• kebab – 8 pcs. 100 g each;
• Veal kebab – 5 pcs. 50 g each;
• fish fillet with sauce – 9 pcs. 60 g each

Garnish of your choice

• country-style potatoes, grilled, fries, mashed potatoes – 30 pcs. 75 g each;
• rice – 5 pcs. 70 g each;
• eggplants, vegetables with champignons – 5 pcs. 75 g each;
• dessert on 8 plates, 250 g each.

It is worth discussing with the banquet manager the presence of children. As a rule, a good restaurant will offer discounts: free meals for children under 7 years old, 50% payment for those 8-12 years old. It is better to create a children's menu separately. Offer to provide the kitchen with your own products, discuss the possibility of purchasing alcohol and other drinks - the rules of many establishments allow this. As Elizabeth Gilbert likes to say: “Sometimes food becomes the only hard currency.” I would like to wish you a wonderful banquet, real fun! Let the holiday become the starting point of a happy journey for young people through life!

We offer a wedding scenario without a toastmaster. And how to organize a man’s birthday - find original ideas here.

How the choice of dishes depends on the place of celebration

Different dishes are served at home, in restaurants and outdoors. To make it easier to decide on their choice, we have provided several menu options.

For a restaurant or other establishment

By ordering a wedding menu for 30 people in a restaurant or cafe, newlyweds get rid of the problem of calculating the number of necessary products. Their task is only to select dishes. Professional chefs take care of the rest.

To save money, you can try to negotiate with the establishment’s staff and bring your own alcoholic drinks. In restaurants they are usually overpriced.

If the menu for a wedding for 30 people in a cafe does not suit the newlyweds and they want to add certain dishes, the establishment’s employees usually accommodate them and allow them to bring their own treats.

Before renting a cafe or restaurant, you should not only inspect the interior, but also read reviews about the establishment to make sure that the food here is really tasty.

For home

Creating a menu for a wedding for 30 people at home is quite possible. A small celebration has its advantages. And this is not only a great opportunity to save money. For a home banquet there is no need to choose treats from a specific list of dishes.

The menu can include everything that the newlyweds want to see on their table. These can be not only traditional dishes, but also original treats. However, organizing a banquet for 30 people on your own is not so easy.

You'll have to ask your relatives for help. After all, it is necessary not only to calculate and purchase products, but also to prepare treats and present them beautifully to the table. Some dishes can be ordered from the restaurant and delivered to your home.

For a holiday in nature

When creating a menu for a wedding for 30 people in the summer, you usually don’t choose perishable food. For an outdoor celebration, steak and grilled vegetables are suitable as the main course. As a rule, sandwiches and lavash rolls are served as a snack. It is better to exclude salads with mayonnaise or prepare them in small quantities.

It is not easy to choose a cake for a wedding reception in nature. It is served at the end of the banquet. Over the course of the entire day, in the absence of a refrigerator, it will float and lose its appearance or even deteriorate. The ideal option is to negotiate with the delivery service and order the cake directly to the table. Otherwise, it is better to give preference to a wedding cake made from sweets or an eco-cake with a small amount of cream.

When choosing drinks for a menu for an outdoor wedding for 30 people, keep in mind that on a hot day, guests will be thirsty. Therefore, you will have to increase the amount of unsweetened soft drinks.

What dishes do you prefer?

Tasty, aromatic, skillfully decorated dishes on exquisitely served tables create a festive mood and bring people together like nothing else. And everyone has different tastes. In order to satisfy the majority of guests, surprise and introduce original, signature dishes, you need to first study the restaurant’s banquet menu.

Then take into account that the number of each type of treat should be calculated for the number of guests + 5% (possible additions and preferences). The weight volume of all products per person for a feast duration of 5 - 7 hours is justified - approximately 1.0 - 1.5 kg. The traditional list of appetizers and salads can include:

• salads: “Olivier”, “Mimosa”, “Caesar”, “Herring under a fur coat”, seafood cocktail;
• appetizers: aspic, julienne, mini chicken skewers, meat, cheese platter;
• main second courses: beef steak, roast pork, chicken, shish kebab, veal kebab, fish fillet with sauce;
• side dishes: country-style potatoes, grilled, fries, mashed potatoes; rice, eggplant, vegetables with champignons;
• dessert: assorted seasonal fruits;
• drinks: fruit and carbonated water, without gases; fruit drink, Pepsi, kvass;
• You can’t forget about the birthday cake either!

On average, for one person in a good quality restaurant, such a choice will cost from 1,200 to 2,000 rubles. Naturally, the administrator will offer special banquet and signature dishes.

Depends on the season

If the weather on the wedding day is hot, then it is advisable to diversify the menu of the wedding banquet for 20 people with light snacks and cold desserts. For example, the following dishes may be placed on the table for a summer or autumn wedding:

• canapés with oranges, fried chicken and pineapples;
• tartlets with tomatoes, melted cheese, mayonnaise and garlic;
• sandwiches or toast with red caviar;
• vegetable mix;
• cold cuts;
• “Red Sea” salad made of tomatoes, crab sticks, cheese, garlic and mayonnaise;
• “Lady” salad made from Chinese cabbage, ham, corn, croutons and mayonnaise;
• “Mood” salad made of white and red beans, corn, cabbage, tomatoes, herbs and mayonnaise;
• chicken aspic;
• pork fricassee with mushrooms, sour cream and melted cheese, and rice as a side dish;
• portioned ice cream, jelly, soufflé or mousse.

In summer and autumn, nature delights with fresh fruits, so if the banquet is held at home, then be sure to include a large amount of vegetables in the wedding menu for 20 people. In winter, on the contrary, the menu should contain a lot of meat or fish:

• canapés with salmon, curd cheese and quail eggs;
• tartlets with liver pate;
• sandwiches or toast with red caviar;
• cold cuts;
• vegetable mix;
• sausage and cheese slices;
• salad with chicken breast, hard cheese, eggs, mushrooms, onions and mayonnaise;
• “Inspiration” salad with beef, tomatoes, hard cheese, herbs, garlic and mayonnaise;
• “Funchoza” salad with cucumber, pepper, carrots and mushrooms;
• fish in batter;
• beef langet with potatoes;
• chocolate cupcake with hot liquid chocolate inside.