A wedding is an opportunity to bring everyone together to celebrate your new life, but we’ve all heard the stories about weddings from hell where things just seem to go wrong. Well, I’ve seen it all, on the catering side as well as just being a guest. This isn’t anything unique to vegan weddings, but the last thing you want is something special to turn into something especially bad.
Veganism isn’t just about food and catering, but because that’s what we know that’s the aspect we’re going to talk about.
It’s easy enough to just pass the food responsibilities over to the caterer, but if they aren’t experienced with vegan recipes or what goes into thinking about vegan food, there might be issues.
Some tips to follow.
Use an experienced caterer
If you decide to not go with a vegan caterer, you should definitely make sure they’ve worked with vegan clients before and ask to see past menus and a sample of vegan food. It’s not necessary that they be vegan themselves necessarily (though I am!), but it can help.
Have some omnivore-friendly foods
So I don’t mean that you should plan out non-vegan food, but you should have a few friends who aren’t vegan take a look at the menu before you finalize it, have them try the food too if that’s possible. There are many styles of vegan cooking that are accessible to all types of people, and if you and your partner aren’t both vegan, this can make things a lot easier.
You also don’t need to skip the cake! Vegan baked goods and cakes are super easy to make, I promise, and they’ll taste just as good, even if your guests might hesitate before trying. Having vegan cupcakes is something we usually recommend because it’s easy to take and people aren’t quite as nervous about sitting around with a huge slice of cake they’re scared to eat.
Let people know
It’s best not to leave the vegan food as a surprise. Think about when you have to go out to eat or to a friend’s house as a vegan, it’s always helpful to know beforehand so that you can pre-eat or at least be mentally prepared for the occasion. Letting your guests know about the vegan intentions will let them ask any questions they have early, plan to eat before if they’re really scared, or give them the chance to read up about veganism and what it means.
Pay attention to the drinks
Not all alcohol is vegan! You probably know this, but make sure any caterer you work with has this information too. A lot of alcohol is made with isinglass (which is made from fish), but more and more brands (most famously Guinness) have been removing it from their process. Just make sure that if you’re working with two different companies for food and drinks that they coordinate and both know exactly what being vegan means.
Talk it over with your partner
Even if you’re both vegan (but especially if you’re not), it’s good to discuss your plans with your partner, it sets a pretty good stage for the rest of your marriage too. If you guys have any concerns, you can maybe resolve them early in the planning process or come up with additional questions or plans regarding a vegan menu.
If you guys have any ideas or tips that I didn’t include, I’d love to hear them. We try our best to make our weddings as easy as possible for both the guests and lucky couple, but the more preparation you do beforehand the easier a time you’ll have!