Wedding Resources - Casual/elegant picnic wedding?

Casual/elegant picnic wedding?

What inexpensive cold (mostly finger) foods to serve? so far I have thought of: cheese/ crackers fruit tray veggies/dip spinach dip and bread deviled eggs chicken salad croissant sandwiches cold fried chicken? tortilla rollups wine lemonade (plus pitchers of ice water) coffee cupcake cake pastries tiramisu small pies a few different cheesecakes anything else I should include/exclude? I would like to include things that I could make a day or two ahead of time. Does anyone have an idea about what this would approximately cost (mainly just the food - not desserts/drinks)? It will be for 60-70 people at a winery. I am having family help with the desserts/cupcake cake. Help, please! oh, I forgot, I think I will be having chocolate covered strawberries as favors on the table. I don't like favors and thought this would be an okay option. I'd like to do as much myself as possible, but would be open to maybe finding someplace to buy a few things ready-made, perhaps the sandwiches?

Public Comments

maybe a couple salads not sure about the cold fried chicken. tends to be a tad greasy and i personally like my fried chicken fresh and hot. maybe stick to chicken salad instead how about punch to drink too other than that i think your menu is great. i would enjoy dining on that. not sure what area you are in but for 60-70 ppl you can probly pull that all off for $500-700 as an est.
i think a nice herb and cheese soft bread is always nice. if there is going to be kids or teenagers at the wedding you could make some home made punch. cut up different types of fruit and put them on skewers. chocolate coated stawberries these days alot of people are not having a big wedding cake. now people are having serparte little cup cakes that are all decorated. they are very nice! what about some little table bun ( the little tiny hot dog buns) with with smoked salmon and chesse with some pepper and feta or something? thats for something different. the cost will be expensive but if u you doing it your it will be alot cheaper but you have to work it out. the stress over everything or the cost? which is more important? also in stead of people giving you gifts why dont you ask everyone to bring a small dish????
we did something similar to this for my memas 80th bday, except we had it in our front yard under a huge oak tree and made all the food ourselves (had the same # of people too).... it ran about $1500 including table and chair rentals. we didn't have wine though. I think we had about 10 gallons of iced tea which was perfect. We did fruit tray veggies/dip spinach dip and bread deviled eggs chicken salad croissant sandwiches chips we also bought a small chocolate fountain and put strawberries bannanas and pinapple with it (big hit with kids) and 2 cakes, hawaiian wedding cake... which is excellent btw and a really good chocolate cake the party was wonderful... all the ladies that were invited talked about it for weeks.
ewe COLD fried chicken... get one of those 'oven bags' or 'heat bag' iono wat thier called but they keep ur food warm.. go to walmart.... SALADS wud b yummy
Looks like a good menu but... Is your wedding in the summer? If so, it's probably going to be hot which means you have to think about food safety and stability. I'm not saying you can't do it, you just have to take extra precautions and think about what's going to happen to your food when it sits outside in the heat. Looks like you're already avoiding hot foods, which will make your life easier, but you've also got to find ways to keep your cold foods cold. For instance, chocolate covered strawberries could quickly turn into a big melty mess. Make sure you have a way to keep them chilled. Finally, food safety becomes a bigger issue in the summer. Things with mayonnaise will go "off" more quickly, especially if they're sitting out on a buffet for a long time. Maybe change the chicken salad for something like turkey and brie sandwiches with green apples. It's one of my favorite sandwiches, doesn't have mayo, and you can do it a day or two ahead.
Let me tell you about the Bride and Groom who thought it was a good idea to "cater" their own wedding. The wedding was scheduled for 2PM on a Saturday afternoon. The Bride and Groom thought their out-of-town friends and family members were coming Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to help prepare the food and run errands. Oh yes, the friends and family members came by the car load but all they wanted to do was talk, laugh, and visit. Helping was the last thing on their mind. The rehearsal was scheduled for 5PM on a Friday evening, and after the rehearsal the friends went out partying and the Bride and Groom went grocery shopping and then back home to work on the appetizers. The Bride and Groom got to bed at 2AM. At 6AM the next morning the Bride and Groom were back in the kitchen while everyone else was "sleeping in." Oh yes, everything got done, but the Bride and Groom were so exhausted that they couldn't even enjoy their own wedding. Matter of fact, they couldn't wait for everyone to leave. And at 6AM the next morning, they were back at the wedding and reception site (an estate that can be rented) cleaning up because that had to be done by Noon. So before you decide to "cater" your own wedding keep in mind how important it is to enjoy your own wedding and reception, and maybe counting on other people to help is NOT a good idea. Answered by: A Certified wedding specialist / A Professional bridal consultant / A Wedding ceremony officiant
the was a Picnic Wedding featured in "Real Simple Weddings" - you might check it out and see if they had some ideas for you & also if they gave costs. One of the things they did was give all the guests blankets to sit on - do you have tables or adequate seating for everyone? I think the chicken is good and the rollups sound good too - maybe some of those mini-quiche things & a chip & dip
Hi and congratulations! I like your menu, but here are my suggestions: ~ I would not do the cold fried chicken. That could be greasy. ~ Instead, I would add in may a couple of cold pasta salads. It's totally up to you, but I think you could cut down on the desserts and add more to your "main meal." I like the idea of the cupcake display....that I would keep. I would be leery about the cheesecakes especially if it may be a warm, sunny day. Perhaps just offer the cupcakes, some other small bars (like brownies) and the small pies. I would eliminate the pastries, tiramisu, and the cheesecakes. I don't know what it will cost....I can't figure those things out! But it shouldn't be too much, though, for 60-70 people. Also, remember that favors are totally optional. Don't feel that you HAVE to have something just for the sake of having something. Good luck and I hope you have a beautiful wedding day and picnic reception!
I'd skip the fried chicken as it's messy as finger foods go and opt for another type of sandwich with a meat other than chicken so people have a bit of a selection-a deviled ham or even a sea food salad....also the suggestion of a few salads is right one.....cole slaw, macaroni, potato are all standard picnic fare yet are elegant enough for what you are planning-skip the baked beans tho lol which I notice you have not included.....wise. Good Luck. Edit; I 'catered' my second wedding..granted I had only 20 people but it worked....meat, cheese, roll, veggie, fruit, condiment,and devil egg platters I had made at the deli of a local store (beautiful job they did) I made cole slaw, potato and mac salad the day before along with several dips, salsa, and I purchased the chip & beverages the day before that....dropped it all off at my sister's (she loaned me her home) , ordered an italian pastry tray from a friend in the business (I'm a retired baker) and my second daughter made our cake as her gift to us (she learned cake decorating while she worked for a time in my bakery) The key is plan, plan, plan it out well ahead of time to maximize your time and minimize confusion...you can't sit down and make too many organization lists.....and a schedual to get it all done.....if there is a willing pair of hands ( I had all my three daughters and my two nieces to help set things up, my son declined, tho lol....all the girls were 19-29 in ages so they thought me being a bride at my age a hoot!-it was hard not to fall over each other but it was fun)....the more that can bedone before hand the better..... Mine cost us around 1,000.00 but I'm including my outfit, bouquet & flowers for my daughters, boutineers for my son, groom & best man,and a corsage for my Mom (his parents and my Dad are deceased)all the paper products ( I got the fanciest stuff I could find figuring the more I could toss the less clean-up there would be..hahahah even found plastic champagne flutes and serving bowls that looked like fine crystal until you touched 'em) Party stores are great places to shop.....especially since you can color co-ordinate EVERYTHING (mine was fall colors, and I wore garnet red-a late sept wedding in NY) or use their wedding line of products which do come in silver, gold,ivory and pure whites....even the plasticware! They carry beautiful DIY decorations...check it out Hon...many even carry/order candy and wedding favors, invites, the whole kit and kaboodle....
Oh I LOVE cold fried chicken better then hot. Honestly I dont think you really need that many deserts if you want to try to cut some cost. Wedding cake is plenty I think. Maybe add Iced Tea to the drink Menu along with the lemonade or add some carbonated beverages. And maybe sometime of pasta or potato salad. You could get Suddenly Salad...so easy and fast to make. It sounds like a great wedding. Even if you just stick to your menu you have there it sounds great..even the cold chicken.