Planning for a Successful Reception
The key to a well-executed reception is in the planning. Plan in advance, enlist the right help. Employing adequate staffing to execute your plans is vital to a successful, low-stress event. Your catering staff should work almost invisibly at the reception to make sure the evening runs smoothly.
For plated meals, plan on one server for every twenty to twenty-four guests. If you do not have this server-to-guest ratio, the service will be slow and inefficient and guests may feel neglected or impatient. When scheduling a reception center, plan on at least five servers for the reception. For receptions with over four hundred guests, add one additional server per each one hundred additional guests. You should assign either a server or wedding hostess to handle the specific needs of the bridal party, from bringing water to those in the receiving line to managing the details of cutting the cake.
Another element of a well-organized reception is the comfortable flow of space. Organize tables so people can move comfortably between them. Tables with too much distance from each other feel isolated, while tables placed too close together feel cramped. Place the receiving line in a well-chosen spot that doesn't cause a bottle-neck in the entranceway. Guests should be able to enter the reception area, sign the guest book, drop off their gift, move through the wedding line, and be seated for refreshments, all without feeling crowded or being forced to zigzag back and forth.
For wedding breakfasts, luncheons, or dinners, guests should be able to find their assigned seats easily, either by place cards or with the direction of a hostess assigned to this task.
At a formal wedding dinner it is important to have assigned seating because guests will spend a large portion of the reception at their tables. A good hostess should make an effort to determine compatible dinner partners. This can be a challenging task, but it is an important one. Think of the common interests or shared experiences of your guests. For example, you might put all your single friends together, friends from college together, or co-workers from the same company together. Seat guests together whenever a possible connection might be made. Use a pencil for preliminary sketching of the seating arrangements until all RSVPs are in and you have a definite guest list. Have everything ready ahead of time but be prepared for the possibility of last minute changes.
Place cards are an essential part of formal seating arrangements, directing guests to their assigned seats. There are many ways to create place cards that match your wedding theme. A place card can be printed or handwritten on cardstock, which is folded into a small tent and placed at the head of the plate. They can also be combined with favors in a number of creative ways.
At a formal wedding meal, the bride, groom, and their parents often will sit together at a head table. This table can be either at the center or at one end of the room. The bride usually sits on the right side of the groom. The bride's parents are placed next to her, with the groom's parents at his side, alternating men and women. This seating arrangement can be tricky, as divorces and remarriages often come into play. Organize the seating in the best possible way to accommodate the different needs of your guests and yourself. If either you or your fiance have children from a previous marriage, be sure to include them in your wedding breakfasts, luncheons, and dinners, and all your celebrations. After all, they will be some of the people most affected by your marriage.
About the Author
My Chocolate Favors offers a large selection of unique, elegant and Personalized Edible favors, gifts and treats. Our website has a wonderful selection of wedding and party favors to reflect your own personality. We specialize in personalized chocolate photo favors ~ your favorite photo printed right on the surface of delicious chocolate.
How to select everyday dinnerware?
Cooking is my hobby and I like to experiment with different plating and presentations. The kids are now all teenagers – mostly past dropping and breaking dishes. Therefore, I've decided to replace our everyday dishes with Plain White, rolled-rimmed, upscale restaurant-style porcelain tableware. I definitely will buy Dinner Plates and luncheon plates. I'm undecided about Salad Plates, Dessert Plates, Bread Plates, Soup Bowls, soup cups, and chargers. I can't buy all of them – they wouldn't fit in my cupboards! If I buy nappy bowls, can they replace soup bowls and salad plates? Somewhere I read that you might use glass dessert plates instead of china to create interest/variety. Good idea or bad?
What's the best solution to my needs? I know that the answer is, “It depends on what I need.” However, can anyone give advice or point me to an on-line or text reference that can answer “How to select everyday tableware to best fit ones lifestyle?” Thanks!
you could go to family dollar or a cheap place like that and buy your dishes there they sometimes have some nice looking stuff and it wont cost you an arm and a leg then you could get your fancy shit somewhere else
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Luncheon Plate
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