A feast for the senses

IT’S the moment everyone’s been waiting for: the ceremony is over and the guests are seated at their tables for the wedding breakfast. As the bride and groom appear as Mr and Mrs for the very first time, a huge cheer erupts around the room. And, according to d irector at Rocket Food (www.rocketfood.com) Charlie Grant Peterkin, it is this entrance, rather than the first dance, which is becoming the climax of the day ‘This is increasingly the big moment,’ he says. ‘Couples are choosing the music and planning it carefully to make everything perfect. And it’s straight after this that the food is served, so it’s important to keep that sense of drama nobody wants an anticlimax.’

Previous generations seemed to think of the wedding breakfast mainly as a chance for guests to mop up the booze, but couples are now taking a different approach, planning the menu carefully to reflect their tastes and influences and foregrounding local, seasonal ingredients ‘We always try to make the food and drinks at a wedding really tell the story of the couple,’ explains Holly Congdon, director at Lettice Events (www.letticeevents.com)

‘For instance, lots of our clients have travelled together extensively, so incorporating food from the locations they’ve visited can be a great starting point it’s really fun to do this with the canapé s, where there is plenty of chance to experiment, from sushi stations to streetfood carts.’ Mr Grant Peterkin agrees that mixing things up can be fun: ‘Most of our clients like the idea of having two sit-down courses, after which you can do something more unusual like a dessert station where people serve themselves that way guests get to mix more as well.’

Using local, seasonal produce on all menus is an important part of the mission at Lettice and Miss Congdon is firm that this doesn’t mean compromising on quality ‘We have some of the best ingredients in the world in the UK and we love to show that off,’ she explains. The team at Rocket also works hard to showcase British produce: ‘Once we agree the menu with the couple we can track down the best pos sible local suppliers. We’ve actually used vegetables from our client’s own garden before.’

Finally, a brilliant caterer can also help you squeeze the most out of your budget ‘Spend money on the things that are important to you and save elsewhere,’ Mr Grant Peterkin advises. ‘Is the cake really important or would you rather do good cheese ? Perhaps you can save a little bit on the wines and do entire turbots or t omahawk steaks for the main course. Our job is to show our clients the possibilities so they know they’re going to give their guests a truly memorable experience as well as a really good feed.’