With 81% guests remembering a wedding based on food & entertainment, there is a rise in creating an ultimate gourmet experience at the most special event of your life.
Everything You Need to Know about Wedding Food curation & the role of a curator
Of life's great events, your wedding celebration will be the most exciting, personal and important. You want it to be as unique as you are... to reflect your lives and stay in your and guests memories forever. With 10 million weddings taking place in India annually- Venue, decor, catering, entertainment are things relatively consistent for every couple, but there are a ton of loose ends to tie and gray area to cover in between all that. After all, this is your big day and to make it your own, you need to get creative.
Food however underrated, is actually the deal maker or breaker of any wedding!
Being a food curator for a vast spread of events like music festivals, corporate events, food festivals, cultural events, concerts- I realized the HUGE difference food can make to the success of an event and affect audience perception.
And if food can bring so much happiness and joy to such events, then image what it can do if curated well at one of the biggest events of any body's life?- THEIR WEDDING. No other event has higher stakes. Right?
No wedding day is complete without food, which is why roughly 57% of couples say food and beverage are the most important aspects to focus on during the planning process. In 2021, couples continue to use food moments to personalize their day with creative signature drinks, innovative food stations, late night snack options that celebrate a couple's favorite meal and additional confectionary or dessert options that pay homage to family recipes (most popular being donuts) or simply bringing down a 'Laduree' Macaron bar from Paris, the famous 'Kesar da Dhabha' Amritsari chole counter in a wedding in Dubai or a cheese fondue down from Switzerland at a wedding in Mussoorie, there is no limit on the experience you can create for your guests and that is not limited to only hiring a caterer.
Ofcourse you can always bring in your standard caterer, but the newest trend is getting an expert to plan, curate and work with the caterer to make your wedding a food experience to remember and cherish! Here is how....
#1: What are the Current wedding food trends?
Food is no longer a standalone entity at events, especially at theme weddings. It has to be seamlessly woven into the theme. Moving away from 'chai wallas' and halwais, the influx of wedding food consultants and curators has taken thematic decor, installations and food menus to a magical new level.
Hosts take great pains to curate a diverse menu to charm their guests. They pay detailed attention to the quality , presentation and variety of cuisines to be served.
A standard buffet or plated dinner are no longer exciting. After salads, guests get to go to several food stations where the chefs are serving and composing dishes while talking about the food! Some examples include a spud potato bar, crossiant stations, Asian-Inspired Surf and Turf Chef Action Station which includes Hibachi Grilled Ribs. Another idea is a Farmer’s Market Vegetable Stand, which includes Garden Vegetable Crudites with Edible Soil, Edamame Hummus, Shaved Artichoke Salad, a “LA Street Food” station is another popular one, Himalyan salt live grill or Black Carrot live station from Kashmir, tapas bar or Napoleatana pizzas from Naples. Grazing tables are another new trend we are seeing in different wedding functions! We recently re-created the Global Village Dubai food pavilion at a wedding in India, having 6 different international food pavilions for guests to explore.
Enhancing food with relevance and matching it to the theme is what makes a wedding interactive and gives guests a topic for conversation.
#2: What are the mistakes couples make when deciding the wedding food and menu?
The food you serve at a wedding, or any event, can be a very complex and overwhelming element. People are so used to “okay” food that in order to push the envelope and do something great they tend to stumble a bit. Having the right guide or consultant is very helpful. Having a background in world food cultures and gastronomy allows me to make food relatable to guests and come up with ideas on the spot that can be executed by our chefs. Sometimes couples don’t know what they want until you propose ideas that “Spark Joy.” I always start by asking them to tell me if they were the guests, how would they imagine being treated, what would they like to smell, taste, drink and experience. The idea is to to listen and translate those ideas into a custom-designed event.
#3: What will your wedding food curator do?
Great food and someone else to manage the details—those are the keys to a successful event!
The idea is to create an element of “wow” around the food and make it experiential rather than just treating it like something placed alongside the boundaries of the banquet halls.
Working in tandem with chefs, caterers and event planners, as a wedding food curator I make sure to create a diverse menu matching the family's interest and onboard current trends to ensure that the food being served is woven in beautifully with the rest of the event. The focus is not just on the visual styling of each dish; sourcing, taste, functionality, food safety and serving conditions are given due importance.
Hiring a wedding food curator to manage your wedding food means having a team of the most creative and networked individuals in the world come together to plan, curate and execute your wedding hospitality and food in the most beautiful, fun and memorable way possible. We work with direct clients, hotels, wedding planners and caterers to conceptualise and curate the whole experience for each function.
#4: A whole new era of marrying food with your marriage
Attending innumerable and diverse weddings across India and the world and studying the food patterns, the food trends and audience tastes, it became my goal to make weddings an experience that will provide one with magnificent food memories that will last a lifetime.
Weddings make us feel great and the food should be a continuation of the happiness, and the service an expression of warmth and hospitality unparalleled in its attentiveness. There are very less times in life we are gathered at a table with so many faces from our past, our present and our future. Hence, everything at the table should communicate that this event matters.
A wedding food curator isn't limited to the boundaries of geography and can help you plan and execute the best food menu and experience at any venue around the world. We have a roster of over 400 + F&B brands, artisans, chefs, caterers and caterers in over 76 cities around the world and our clients include Indians, expat Indians, Australians, Italians, Americans, Africans and Arabs. From live lassi making to creating a sit down 8 course meal to creating a food 'mela' and also bringing down a Masterchef Australia Chef at your wedding, as specialist wedding food curators, we can bring the most innovative ideas to the table and manage the entire food and beverage from start to finish, only bringing a smile to the couples and guests faces! That's the power of food, right?
Here is an example of a world food pavilion we conceptualised, curated and created for a wedding reception in Mumbai.
Want us to curate your wedding food or simply connect with me as a business?
Write to me at preet@gourmettales.co
