Long past are the days of one-note chicken or fish options for post-nuptial nourishment. Artful fare with flair is the new chef’s kiss of wedding cuisine. From blue crab beignets as an amuse-bouche to beignet and bourbon goodbyes, give the foodies on your guest list a memorable experience and presentation that is delectable to the last bite.
Kelsey Reiss, sales manager at Black Pearl Catering Co., has noticed a rise in requests for inventive menu options. “Most of our clients are interested in elevated and unique menus for their weddings, whether reception style or seated dinners. Lately we’ve been seeing a lot of requests for twists on the more typical fare and upgrades for every aspect of the event – from passed appetizers to late night snacks,” said Reiss, noting ideas including duck à l’orange, artichoke vol-au-vent and wasabi pea tuna. “Starting a wedding with passed appetizers that show creativity and are aesthetically beautiful allows guests to get a glimpse of what’s to come for the rest of the reception.”
Beyond the starter nibbles, Reiss suggests actionable stations to both highlight the elevated cuisine and provide eye-catching visuals for your guests.
“Grazing stations and roaming displays are a great way to showcase creativity and elegance,” she said, noting ideas like Gulf + Bay stations that feature raw oysters, chargrilled oysters, crab, shrimp, seafood dips and accompaniments.
For more trimmed down experiences, Reiss and the Black Pearl Catering Co. team have surprised partygoers with servers wearing cigarette-girl style boxes filled with oysters and all the trimmings. “If a client has a more conservative budget, we can still incorporate the wow-factor element of an elevated station, just on a smaller scale.”
Creating a theme for cuisine can also add a layer of artistic engagement to the dining experience, says Melvin Rodrigue, president and CEO of Galatoire’s. “Themed displays are also really neat and resonate with guests,” said Rodrigue.
Suggesting concepts like plateau de fruits de mer seafood towers, Rodrigue recommends incorporating various displays of seafood into the mix of the reception to provide an aesthetically impressive presentation and a focus on local and seasonal fare.
“We are fortunate to have extremely high-quality seafood indigenous to our area,” he said. “Beginning with blue crab, oysters and Gulf shrimp prepared in the New Orleans French Creole methods is always a wonderful start. Other items such as foie gras, lobster and raw bars can also set the tone right away.”
For a standout presentation, Sarah Hall, president of Joel Catering, recommends incorporating a caviar cart. “What’s fun about this concept is that it can travel around featuring a small caviar presentation with all the sides,” said Hall noting delectables like crostini brioche triangles, crème fraîche and even potato chips. “It takes the stuffiness out of caviar and makes it more approachable for people without a lot of experience. And if you do a cart version it’s a relatively affordable splurge.”
In addition, Hall suggests considering an over-the-top, chef-style arrangement of charcuterie to wow your guests. “You cover the entire table with whole loaves of bread and all types of cheese, charcuterie and chutney. It’s a really grand visual and looks luxurious and elevated to make for gorgeous pictures and an abundant feeling,” said Hall, whose team has also been known to showcase “charcuterie-style” dessert boards with a variety of decadent bites like red velvet truffles and French 75 macarons. “Dessert stations are the ultimate crowd pleasers, guaranteed to leave guests smiling!”
