Your wedding date has been set and you can’t wait to meet your caterer to plan out an elaborate menu that people will remember long after the wedding. While planning a menu is one of the most exciting parts about organising a wedding, (and the tasting of the menu of course!), do not disregard certain practical and logistic issues while creating an exciting menu that encompasses all. Certain foods, although they may be your favourite, are best left out of your wedding menu. Here’s a list of some of them.
Dal khichdi/Kadi chawal: Both these dishes are great comfort foods otherwise, but including them in a wedding menu is a bad idea, especially when they sit alongside exotic, festive fare. People will more likely go for festive fare than dal khichdi. And Kadi chawal is far too runny a dish for a buffet, where most people are likely to be standing. Stick to pulaos and biryanis, or pasta if need be.
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Fish: Fish is not an absolute no, but big bony fishes like pomfret, surmai and rawas are hard to eat. Not only that, fish is expensive, difficult to store and when prepared in large quantities, there is danger of contaminated meat also getting included. Avoid it or else include lighter ones like bombil, bassa or salmon (if your budget will stand up to it).
Caramel custard: Dessert fares in buffets these days must be exotic and very varied. Most guests today are discerning in their taste and a simple dish like caramel custard, although welcome on regular days will not find too many takers in a wedding spread. Besides, there are logistic issues like setting them beforehand, maintaining temperature and transportation of thousands of ramekins of wobbly custard.
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Pizza: This is the most popular dish at a house party, but it doesn’t work well at weddings. Not only will it clash with the rest of your formal exotic menu, it’s even difficult and messy to eat when served as a starter. The best starters are easy finger foods that can be picked with a tooth pick.
Pork and beef: Many people have a tendency to avoid eating these two meats – the reasons may vary from religion to taste. So unless you are absolutely sure that many of your guests will partake of a pork or beef dish, better avoid including it in your buffet to prevent wastage, especially since both meats are more expensive than chicken.
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Salads: Salads will always find takers, but do not put up too many varieties of salads as most guests usually make a beeline for the more unhealthy, yet delicious fried food and gravies. Stick to two salads at the most, especially if you have a big spread of main courses and starters.
Roomali roti: Roomali rotis are deliciously soft to eat, but their preparation takes time, especially if it’s a live counter and it will really create a pile-up of guests. If you still want to include it in your regular buffet, check with your caterer first on whether they have the man power to keep the supply of rotis coming when the crowd at the buffet goes up.
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Dosas/Appams: Both these dishes taste good only when served hot off the stove, so it definitely needs a live counter. And since they take a little time to prepare, dosa live counters are best included when the crowd attending the wedding is small. Or else skip it. Instead opt for something that can be made beforehand and served warm, like uttappams.
Diet food/oil-free snacks: Not only will inclusion of health food in your menu hike your budget, there will be very few takers for it as well. People come to weddings to enjoy and nobody wants to be spotted eating diet food there-it draws a lot of questions. Stick to unhealthy yet yummy food. It’s only one meal after all.
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Coconut milk curries: Thai cuisine is a lovely inclusion to your buffet and will find many takers. But the problem with curries that contain coconut milk is that they can neither be left out too long nor can they be constantly heated and reheated. Thai food also has several curry options that do not require coconut milk. Do check them out.
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