Casual Wedding Food
Posted by Jennifer on Jul 13, 2009. Filed under Budget Wedding Ideas, DIY Wedding Ideas, Food and Drink, Off Beat, Real Weddings, Trend Watch, Wedding How-to, Wedding Ideas
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A backyard celebration was a big part of our wedding. My husband’s aunt and uncle very generously helped us throw a second wedding party in their New Jersey backyard for our East Coast relatives and friends—we wound up with more guests there than at our San Francisco wedding. Dress and food were casual, kids ran around, many of us were barefoot—and everyone had a great time.
If your personality is more backyard than ballroom, you’re in good company this year. The New York Times says that casual food and a relaxed setting are the latest trend among couples who either don’t have the money for a fancier wedding—or just don’t want to look inappropriately lavish in this economy. Whatever the reason, an at-home, casual wedding is always appropriate, IMHO.
I’ve been inspired by some of the super-sweet backyard DIY weddings I’ve seen on blogs like Style Me Pretty and Design Sponge and by the real weddings I’ve been to. I remember one couple who used bowls of apples instead of flowers as their centerpieces—homey, simple and struck just the right note.
Most caterers can handle working out of your family’s kitchen or even using the garage as their makeshift kitchen. Most will take care of getting chairs and tables if you want to go that formal. Some even specialize in barbecues. Check out companies like Savory and Sweet or Thank Goodness It’s Sophia.
Hosting a backyard-style wedding is also a great opportunity to support state and local parks, like Franklin Canyon Park or Preservation Park.
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This is exactly what we’re planning to do for our wedding, but we’re running into a problem. We live in San Francisco, so we don’t have a yard big enough for this, so we thought we’d rent out a larger property in wine country for the weekend. Unfortunately, gatherings are not allowed at rental properties. The properties that have permits for weddings are large, expensive, traditional “wedding venues,” and not at all a backyard DIY style. Suggestions?
Hi Oscia,
This is the time to put the word out to friends and family and friends of family about your challenge. Imagine what a wonderful wedding gift loaning out one’s backyard would make to the happy couple! You might also consider Wine Country-adjacent areas, like Mendocino that have casual inns and restaurants suitable for your type of event. And don’t ignore the party potential of a public park! I personally held my brother’s wedding at Temescal Gateway Park in Pacific Palisades, and it was affordable, casual yet special at the same time. You can do it! Just be creative in your thinking; you may not end up with exactly what you had in mind—you might get something better!
Hi Oscia,
We had the same problem, which is why the backyard part of our wedding occurred in NJ! We had no yard and no relatives or friends with yards in CA. We still managed a low-key reception in SF in a neighborhood restaurant where we were regulars. The owner let us do a buy-out for Sunday lunch, when they were normally closed.
I like Jolene’s advice. Check out our North Bay section. Some of those Marin County locations are more casual than others—and many are non-profits. Sometimes you can negotiate a better deal on Sunday, rather than Saturday, when everyone wants a wedding. And there’s always the option of going to a park. I have a few friends who had their weddings in Golden Gate Park and the permits are automatically more expensive as soon as you say “wedding”(or at least that was the case for them then), but it’s still not terribly expensive.
Really nice post, Jennifer
Weddings at home are sometimes even better than somewhere public where we spend quite a lot, and this is kinda the same everywhere, so for someone outside of US is a useful article as well.
I agree with the above comment. Having a special occasion in your life is more lovely when done in private and specially in your own home.
That is a really good idea, especially because of budgets and the economic recession. It would be much more person too as you would be closer to home and only invite close family and friends if you didn’t have a lot of space. A BBQ wedding sounds like a great idea though especially for a summer wedding.
In June i attended a backyard wedding party of my friend.He was very keen to have one outdoor party.It was really fun to be there .The food was really good specially the barbecue and also he invited the musicians.All in all it was worth remembering experience.
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Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for your timely post—I think you’re right on target! Garden parties seem more abundant on my recent calendar, and they lend themselves nicely to a more “down-to-earth” atmosphere. While my band still entertains at it’s share of veddy posh weddings and parties, I sense that nowadays more people planning events are opting for their guests’ casual comfort. We used to wear our tuxedos nearly all the time, and now it’s just as likely to be jacket and tie or business casual.