Wedding Day Dress Up

The bride and groom will certainly be dressed to dazzle on their memorable day. But for those of you that have an eye for the extraordinary, your tables will be dressed beautifully as well.

The linens chosen for your reception will lend to the ambiance you have envisioned for your special day. But before you can dress up your dining-scape, you will want to have your venue, theme, and your intended guest count already in place. Once those elements are in order, you should work through the following details:

• Do you want a sweetheart table, a bridal party head table, or all guests intermingled?
• What style of tables do you want; rounds or banquets?
• Does your venue or caterer offer tables?
• Does the venue or caterer offer linen for your tables?
• What are the size of those tables and how many guests can be seated at each of them? This information will be necessary when ordering your linens so that you know the correct size and the proper amount to order.

**Helpful Reminder: Don't forget to order linens for all of your tables; i.e. sign-in table, cake table, gift table, cocktail tables, etc.**

After you've answered the above questions and are ready to move on to linen choices, consider the venue you have chosen. What does the room itself give you to work with when it comes to color, style, and architecture? This will, of course, play into the color palette you will want to choose from and the type of decor chosen to jazz up your tables. 

Likewise, you will want to consider how all of your table elements, such as centerpieces, tableware, and napkins, will look against your linen choice. Determine if you want to go bold or stay with a neutral palette. 

Lastly, figure out what style of linen you want, whether it be sheer, lace, satin, or solids, among countless others. Additionally, decide whether or not to layer up. Ideally, your wedding planner, florist, and/or linen provider will be able to offer helpful opinions when you start working through your linen planning process. 

Catering Tips: Table Setting

A table, set before an event begins, can present a stunning image as guests arrive:

Photo courtesy of Allison Reiz Photography

Properly setting a table is simple and logical. From left to right the placement is salad fork, dinner fork, dinner plate (and charger, napkin, and/or soup bowl if desired), dinner knife (blade facing the plate), and soup spoon. The water glass sits directly above the knife, to the right of the dinner plate. Additionally, you may add a white wine glass to its right and a red wine glass above and center of the two other glasses. If using a bread-and-butter plate, place it above the forks, to the left of the dinner plate. A dessert fork (with its tongs pointing to the right) as well as a dessert spoon (with its bowl pointing to the left) may also be placed on the table, straight above the dinner plate.

Happy dining (and happy New Year)!

Catering Tips: Additional Services

The process of planning an event, whether it be a holiday party, a wedding, or a family reunion, requires taking many factors into consideration, so finding one-stop shopping for multiple, related products or services eases the burden of shopping around and dealing with multiple providers and contracts. Ask your vendors about all the other ways they can help you create a spectacular event:

• Does your deejay provide microphones for the ceremony?
• Does your photographer design photo albums or bring a photobooth?
• Does your stationer offer addressing and mailing services?
• Does your caterer have linens and furniture rentals?

Even if vendors do not specifically have some add-ons in their inventory or repertoire on a regular basis, they often have strong partnerships with companies that offer complementary items at a discounted price, which they can package into their own services, upon request. Don't be afraid to ask your catering consultant if the company can provide the following:

• Tables and chairs (including those for the buffet/stations, bar, deejay, favors, gifts, guest book, etc.)
• Linens (including floor-length, overlays, runners, napkins and napkin rings, chair covers, chair sashes/bands/belts/ties/caps, chair pads and pad covers, etc.)
• Flatware (including salad and dessert forks, dinner forks, soup spoons, teaspoons, dinner knives, steak knives, cake-cutting sets, etc.)
• China (including chargers, appetizer and dessert plates, dinner plates, soup bowls, coffee sets, etc.)
• Glasses (including champagne saucers and flutes, red and white wine glasses, pilsners, high balls, juice glasses, margarita and martini glasses, etc.)
• Tents (including siding, heating, lighting, flooring, etc.)

Contact us today to discover all the ways we can make your next wedding or corporate/social event well-coordinated and easier to plan.

Here are examples of events in which we incorporated rentals from our own stock and that of our partners:

(Image courtesy of Allison Reisz Photography)

(Image courtesy of Allison Reisz Photography)

A Look at Past Events

As 2010 winds down, we're looking back at the events we shared with you over the past year:

Our Signature Shrimp & Grits, at the Fall 2010 Georgia Bridal Show

Wedding reception at the Knights of Columbus Council 631

Stay In Savannah Website Launch Party (Image Courtesy of Scott Hopkins Photography)

Wedding Reception at Savannah Station

Wedding Reception at the Harper Fowlkes House (Image Courtesy of Allison Reisz Photography)

St. Patrick's Day Wedding at Bamboo Farms

Grand Opening of Hampton Inn Savannah Midtown

Savannah Chamber Oyster Roast

2009 Biggest Little Christmas Party at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum

If you have pictures from an event we catered, we'd love to include them here. Please email them to us!