Food for thought – stylish and delicious wedding breakfast ideas

Think back to the weddings you went to 15 years ago.

You could almost predict what food you would be served for the main meal, even before you’d had a sniff of a canapé.

Soup or melon to start with, followed by beef or chicken and then one of a handful of tried and tested desserts.

But the wedding breakfast has been revolutionised in the last few years with couples seeing it as yet another opportunity to add personality to their day.

After all, if you’re buying dinner for your closest friends and family it should definitely be something you like!

We chat to seasoned wedding food experts on what makes the perfect marriage meal.

A matter of personal taste

Food is definitely one of the most popular ways to ensure your wedding doesn’t blur with all the other “I dos” your guests have ever attended.

Get it right and your loved ones will be talking about your wedding breakfast for years to come.

But how do you create a meal that’s imbued with personal meaning?

“Our menus are used as a starting point to get couples thinking,” explains Louise Proctor, event manager at The Edinburgh Catering Company.

“We love working with couples to create new, unique and interesting menus that include exactly what they want for their day!

“I always say to couples to think about the food that they really love when they are choosing their wedding menu.

“For example, if they are in their favourite restaurant what do they always have to order from the menu or what is their favourite cuisine? Can we take inspiration from there?”

And Sarah Hulse, senior event manager, from Husdons Catering says a good starting point is thinking about foods that mean a lot to you as a couple; “whether it’s embracing your culture or simply that you both love a pizza on a Friday night!”

Next, speak to your caterer about your ideas and inspirations. “They might be able to advise on dishes that work well together and how best to incorporate your personalised wedding meals,” says Sarah.

“Although we have sample wedding menus we’ve done everything from an American style BBQ for the country music lovers, festive hot chocolate stations for the couple who love Christmas to Pastéis de Nata in the evening to honour the heritage of one Portuguese groom.” 

The Covid effect

Catering has been particularly affected by the coronavirus pandemic with wedding meals being stopped entirely while restrictions were at their most stringent.

Even when meals have been allowed there have been strict stipulations including ensuring guests only eat from individual plates – say goodbye to delicious sharing platters.

All this is having an impact on what couples look for in their wedding catering.

“We are seeing couples booked for 2021 changing from family-style sharing menus to a plated version due to not knowing what restrictions will be in place when their big day comes,” says Louise.

“I think we will see this being the case for at least 2022 as well, purely due to the unknown … and when a more ‘normal’ will happen but I think we will see a return of grazing and family-style dining at weddings – it always goes down a treat with guests and it’s a great way to get everyone interacting!”

Hudsons has also seen a return to more formal sit-down meals and instead of canapés circulating individually plated nibbles have become the norm.

“Rather than an evening buffet and dancing [it’s] evening quizzes and individual ‘picnic boxes’ of pizza and wedges, stovies or bacon rolls,” says Sarah.

And, she adds, scaling back on guest numbers has also seen many couples upgrading to premium ingredients such as fillet of beef, or additional courses.

“After such a difficult year people are wanting to treat themselves, their nearest and dearest and celebrate something wonderful!”

While the pandemic has undoubtedly had its challenges for the catering industry, one benefit Sarah says has been a greater demand for locally sourced produce – something she predicts will continue.

“Locally sourced produce and supporting small independent producers has become so important to couples planning their weddings lately,” she says.

“Scotland provides so much wonderful produce including seafood, berries, beef, venison, whisky, gin and spirits it’s no wonder couples want to embrace it.

Louise says The Edinburgh Catering Company is used to dealing with requests from couples to use local Scottish produce if they’re from overseas or having overseas guests but over the last year there has been an increase in demand.

“I think the main reasoning for this has been the ‘shop local’ campaigns throughout lockdown,” she says.

“People want to help their local economy survive and Scottish produce has so much to offer.

“With starting our delivery service Edinburgh Food Delivery at the beginning of the first lockdown, we have found so many new Scottish suppliers that we would never have come across before and we are very much looking forward to using their produce for the wedding season ahead.”

The look of things to come

The catering industry has had to cope with ongoing changes during the pandemic so exactly how the wedding breakfast will look in the coming months is a little unclear but there are definitely plenty of fun options, whatever way it’s served.

“It’ll go one of two ways in my opinion (and both are brilliant),” says Sarah.

“Either, after a difficult 2020 filled with restrictions, there will be an explosion of decadence with couples looking to pamper themselves and their guests – think champagne brunches, opulent feasting tables filled to the brim, and huge celebrations.

“More likely however will be smaller, more intimate weddings which focus on hearty, quality food … and local produce as the pandemic has highlighted the importance of family and supporting the local economy.”

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And, never underestimate foodie couples’ ability to find new and exciting ways to feed their guests.

We love The Edinburgh Catering Company’s amazing new fire table, created by Athelstane Forge.

Louise says, “This is definitely a foodie trend we’d like to see pick up this coming year.

“Our menu has everything from coal roasted lobster, hanging chicken, peat smoked beef brisket to campfire beans and boozy apple crumble, do I need to say more…”

We can’t wait to try!

Are you putting a personal slant on your wedding breakfast?

Let us know and contact YSW.