We recently had our menu tasting for our wedding and it was so much fun! This is essentially where you visit the venue and they feed you a selection of dishes to help you decide exactly what you want to serve at your wedding. To give you an idea, we were able to try all five soups, pick four of six salads to try and four of nine main dishes available. They served us the house red, white and prosecco and also the beer they serve on tap. And of course, we can’t forget dessert–my fave–which we tried four of seven dessert options.
We brought along one of my best friend’s with us, Melissa, and we were so excited to see the room set up for a wedding plus try out some tasty foods. I’d love to share a bunch of photos if you’d like to see…
We arrived and took in the views–this was the second time being to the venue, but the first since we actually booked it. It was exciting and surreal to know that in less than six months we’d be getting married there. Yay! We went inside and were met by our Wedding Coordinator and she immediately got the wine flowing for us *praising emoji hands*
When they do menu tastings, they typically have all of their couples that are getting married that season, come in together with two guests per couple. Imagine a room with like 100 people–with a real wedding set up. However, since we weren’t able to attend the original date, this time it was just us and another couple who brought their respective moms, which was quite intimate and nice. The good news was, there was a wedding happening in the coming days so the room was set up and ready for that.
Before we got down to tasting, there was an opportunity to speak with our Coordinator and get all of our questions answered. I brought a notebook and am glad I did because she was firing off information left and right that ended up being super helpful and also, after a couple glasses of wine, I probably wouldn’t have remembered it all 😉 We talked about flowers, decor, hiring a wedding planner, colour schemes, set up options and day-of itinerary on a broader scale. It definitely helped ease my nerves a little when she told me at this stage in the game most brides are emailing her saying how overwhelmed they feel! Yup, have definitely felt that emotion a few times!
Then, it was onto the food…
Incredible salads…
…smooth, hearty soups…
And phenomenal mains that made all of our mouths water wanting more!
The food was so. freakin’. good.
The food blew our minds and it was funny how the three of us were so on the same page with mostly everything.
I will say I was totally surprised by the duck (not pictured). Marco insisted we try it, which I figured was just for kicks because clearly we would be doing beef or lamb, but the duck actually scored massive points with all of us. I’m not usually a duck fan, in fact, just the term ‘duck’ kind of turns me off. However, it was sensational, and we all agreed that it was absolutely delicious and a top contender.
I was a huge fan of the short rib–which I had initially chosen to have as part of our tasting because I know Marco loves it–because it was so tender and just delicious. Marco said the short rib didn’t compare to the duck, which is really saying something!
All that said, personally I don’t think we’ll be going with the duck because I know it won’t be a crowd favourite, and I think a lot of people might turn up their nose when they see that on the invitation as it is quite different. I’m hoping I can secretly get the venue to serve duck to Marco and Melly for dinner so they are happy and then everyone else can eat something more mainstream 😉
We still have a few months to finalize our selections and get back to the venue on what we’re thinking–which is great. A few things we tired that I didn’t snap photos of were the soups, which came in small glasses as tasters, and we also tried the sirloin and a lamb for entré options. Overall it was a great experience and really enjoyable.
Next up are our engagement photos this weekend! I am so excited for this, and Marco is… less excited lol, but still down to do them. I will definitely share some of the photos here once we get them back. I’m also finalizing our invitations and will share our colours and some inspo photos that are helping me cull together some sort of plan and vision for the big day! Eek!
Hope you girls are having a great week. Happy Friday!
