Let's Talk Wedding: The Food

Ken and I decided that we were going to be a little different. Typical. I learned that people in the South (me) do wedding receptions a little differently than people in the North (Ken). The South usually have the buffet open so that their guests can eat as soon as they walk into the reception. The North (according to Ken) don't open the buffet to the guests until the Bride and Groom have gone through the buffet line. So...the compromise was that we would have Hors d'ouvres passed while the guests waited for us to get to the reception. We would go through the buffet line and then open it to all the guests. Ken has a crazy-fast metabolism and knew he would be REALLY hungry, so he wanted to make sure we ate before we mingled and danced. He also didn't want to walk in and go straight into our "first dance"....he thought that was too staged. So, we ate! And, ate well! I was so surprised at how good the food was! I'm used to hotel food being just "okay", but the Renassiance really surprised me....and we heard from so many of our guests how good it was....especially the "beef on a stick". :) We tried to accomodate as much as possible by having a buffet on both sides of the room. Hope it helped....but honestly I have no idea! The reception was a blur. It was FUN, but a blur!

Hors d'ouevres:
Chipotle Barbeque Beef Sate
Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus
Double Cream Brie and Pear in Phyllo

Ken and I only got the asparagus and I tried the brie and pear. It was GOOD! Sadly, we missed the beef, but we heard it was YUM!

Antipasto Display:
Regional Italian Meats and Cheeses
Olives
Grilled Vegetables
Artichokes
Hearts of Palm
Pesto and Herb Remoulade
Focassia Crostini

This was my FAVORITE!!!!! Ken and I didn't know how much we were really going to get to eat, so we had the hotel bring a tray of this to our room. It was all set up by the time we got upstairs. It was nice to have it there!

Pasta Table:
Penne Pasta with Marinara Sauce
Tortellini Pasta with Alfredo Sauce

Toppings:
Roasted Red Peppers
Italian Sausage
Toasted Pine Nuts
Parmesan and Feta Cheese
Peppers
Basil Pesto
Black Olives
Sundried Tomato Pesto

OH MY GOSH! The tortellini was A-MA-ZING!!!!!! I was shocked at how good it was...or I was really hungry!!!!! haha! Thankful we were able to eat before we mingled. It was nice to have something that gave us some energy!!! We thought this menu was perfect for everyone! Who doesn't love pasta???? And, if there is someone, there were a lot of vegetables and the Italian meats and cheeses to pick from. Even if you don't eat meat, the pasta didn't include it unless it was added. YUM!

The hotel also provided:
Wedding Mints and Nuts (on the cake table)
Fresh Fruit Punch
Iced Tea
Coffee
Iced Water

Ken and I were supposed to be the first through the line, but we didn't quite make it....but thankfully we had sweet friends who let us "cut in line". My plan was to eat so we could cut the cake and have our first dance while people were eating. I was hoping this would allow people to have something to do instead of just watching us dance. Sometimes that can be boring for some...especially men. We made our way through the line and enjoyed the wonderful food.