Three Ways to Have a

Trendy Wedding this Year!

 

As the winter rolls on here at BPI, we are beginning to take a look at our offerings for our wedding menus and coming up with new and creative offerings for our guests.  Planning a wedding, or any special event, can be stressful with a lot of overwhelming options to consider.  Through my research for Black Point Inn, I’ve come across three wedding trends with creative and interesting menu ideas that I would love to share with all of you.  Not only are these ideas popular for 2015, but in my mind they’re timeless, so if you’re planning farther into the future, feel free to hold on to some of these tips!

Brunch Garden Party Weddings

Weddings do not have to be a nighttime event anymore!  More and more couples are opting to go with a classy brunch inspired wedding, filled with mimosas, chef-attended stations and old-fashioned comfort breakfast food.  Who doesn’t love breakfast food, anyways?  Also, you’ll find that hosting a wedding during the day instead of at night tends to cost less when renting out a wedding venue.  Add in a classy string quartet, an abundance of bright flowers, chalkboard signs and a light and airy wedding dress, and you have the perfect daytime event!

* How to Pull it Off *

Omelet Bar

Chef-attended stations are growing in popularity these days and you’re guests will appreciate having the option to customize their “egg-entrée,” whether that be omelets, frittatas or eggs-benedict.  You can creatively display all of your egg add-ons in festive bowls around this station and allow guests to interact with the Chef while he creates their perfect breakfast dish.

Make Your Own Mimosa Station

Let guests decide how they would like to dress up their favorite mid-morning sparkling beverage by displaying a variety of juices (grapefruit, orange, pineapple, etc...) and garnishes (maraschino cherries, citrus wedges, twists, etc…) and let them build their own drinks!  You can choose to have your bottles of sparkling wine chilled or on display for guests to help themselves or you can have a bartender pour the right amount into flutes for your guests as they arrive and then let them do the rest.

Display of Meats, Cheeses and Breads

This is very Parisian!  You can create a beautiful and bountiful looking display for guests to nibble from during the reception with smoked and cured meats, an assortment of hearty breads, pasteries and a selection of gourmet cheeses.  Smoked salmon (capers & onions on the side), prosciutto, oysters, smoked pork belly… the options are endless!

Bloody Mary Bar

Stocked with poached shrimp, celery stalks, olives, pickled ocra… Get creative!  Have some hot sauces such as Tabasco on display as well as horseradish and freshly ground pepper for your guests who like their bloodys a little bit more on the spicy side.

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 The Localvore Wedding

Localvores are taking over these days and we love it!  Black Point Inn has had a long history of obtaining local flavors from our surrounding area and this restaurant trend has now hit the wedding scene as well.  What a more perfect way to pay tribute to the area you have chosen for your wedding than displaying the food and drink culture of that destination!

* How to Pull it Off *

Local Beer, Wine & Spirits

Check around your wedding venue area to see who’s brewing, distilling and making wine.  Your wedding venue can most likely provide you with a list of who is popular in the area and if they are providing the food and beverage for your event, as them to provide you with the pricing options for local offerings.  Even offering one keg of local beer will showcase a little bit of the culture around you and will wow your guests, giving them the local experience they crave!

Signature Cocktails

By doing a little bit of research, you can figure out what cocktails are popular for your hosting area and ask your bar service to create you a signature cocktail around it.  Having a wedding in Maine?  Be sure to ask for some type of blueberry concoction, maybe using one of our local distilleries such as Maine Craft Distilling!  I would suggest our “Maine Blueberry Martini.”

Farm-to-Table Menu

Find a catering company that works with local farms so that you can get more local ingredients onto your wedding menu.  Also, choosing dishes that represent the area (just like the signature cocktail) will help inspire a farm-to-table or sea-to-table idea.  While you can pull this off with a plated menu, a family-style menu might be an interesting idea for this as well, so that guests can really experience a farm-like dining experience.  You can get really creative with the décor for an event like this as well, by using farm-esc features such as rustic, picnic style tables, mason jars for candles and flowers and even haystacks for wedding ceremony seating.

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The Great Gatsby Wedding

And then, in a completely different direction… “Gatsby” style (or really Art Deco/1920s style) weddings are becoming increasingly popular as well.  I love the idea of throwing a lavish event, filled with lots of champagne, glitz, sparkle and maybe even some fireworks?  Keep in mind, Black Point Inn would be the absolute perfect venue for this type of affair, with our old-school hospitality, gracious charm and beautiful architectural detail.  Your venue for this event should, or at least have the potential to, be just as grand as the decorations you will be putting into it.  You may even want to consider rolling out of this event in style, with a 1920 chic car while your guests fill the air with confetti!

* How to Pull it Off *

Champagne Tower

There’s nothing that screams Gatsby more than an over-the-top champagne tower.  It’s a definite showstopper can take place of your traditional reception champagne toast.  Building one of these is not an easy feat and if you’re going to with this idea, I would suggest reading my previous blog post, “The Awe-Inspiring Champagne Tower.”

Oysters Galore

Source: https://s3.amazonaws.com/live_object_images/26294/1.jpg

Oysters, chilled seafood, poached shrimp, caviar… it was all popular in the 1920s and these items make great hor d’oeuvres for your cocktail hour.  If you’re sticking to a budget, having this items passed instead of having stationary displays will most likely help you keep down the costs.  Although, there is nothing more extravagant looking than generous displays of chilled seafood.  It screams 1920s luxury.

Art Deco Cake

Instead of your traditional round and tiered wedding cake, opt for your cake designer to create a tiers made with more defined edges.  “Art Deco is often characterized by rich colors, bold geometric shapes and lavish ornamentation.”  Have your wedding cake designer add some edible gold details along with detailed beading, for the ultimate Gatsby look.

After Hours Tea Party

When the dinner service begins to wind down, set up a display of teas and petit fours, using tiered displays and festive tea cups and saucers.  I would also suggest that you add coffee to this mix as well, since most of us these days will not forgo our after-dinner coffee for a cup of tea.  Finger foods and a spread of tea offerings will bring your guests back in time and will keep them full and caffeinated as the night goes on.

Headbands & Bowties

Now, I know this is not food related, but I couldn’t leave this out!  Before your guests arrive to your event, it would be wise to notify them about the theme of the event so that they can dress the part if they elect to.  One cute way to get everyone feeling like they’re straight out of “The Great Gatsby” is to have sparkly headbands for the ladies and clip-on bowties for the gentlemen, helping them take their outfits to the next level.

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Whatever you decide to do for your big day, the biggest piece of advice I can give you is to narrow down your theme into a couple of words (for instance, 1920s Gatsby or Brunch Garden Party).  By doing this, you’ll be able to quickly figure out what sorts of food, beverages and décor fit into your theme and what does not.  Have a vision and then stick with it!  Remember, anything is possible, especially with Pinterest.