Accommodating dietary restrictions at your wedding has recently become a huge focus of so many couples as everyone’s modern diet becomes more restricted. Feeding a large group of people can certainly be a challenge so we want to make sure we make it much easier to make this work! In this blog, we’ll go over the best strategies for providing meals for everyone that will allow every one of your guests to participate in dinner!
Dietary Restrictions at Your Wedding
During a wedding in 2023, there’s a really good chance that you’re going to have a few people who can’t eat everything on a typical menu, at the very least. There are so many dietary restriction in today’s day and age and it can make planning a meal on your wedding day fairly difficult. With that being said, you will still need to provide a meal on your wedding day! So, how do you manage all of those dietary restrictions and still provide a great meal on your wedding day? We certainly have a few tips for you in this blog!
Understand the Restrictions
There are SO MANY restrictions that it can be overwhelming and somewhat restrictive. With that being said, it would make everything a lot easier for yourself and your fiancé if you reached out to your guest list to see what restrictions everyone has. By going into the planning with firm ideas of restrictions, you’ll be able to curate a menu that will cater to everyone. If there’s not a way to curate a menu for everyone, you can work with your caterer to make food for that specific group of people with peanut allergies, gluten sensitivity, etc. It’s very important to go into the menu planning with an idea of what you need to avoid to make sure you’ll have something for everyone and won’t have to overthink the menu.
Know the Severity of Each Restriction
Everyone’s allergy or sensitivity is going to vary in severity. Some guests of yours won’t even be able to step within three feet of a peanut without breaking out in hives while others may be able to handle certain foods being around but would simply prefer to stay away from gluten or dairy. This will help your caterer understand whether they can cross contaminate with certain foods or will need to prepare foods completely separately from certain allergens. When you ask about allergies, it is very important to understand everyone’s severity to each allergy or dietary restriction.
Have Other Foods Available
A great way to include everyone at your wedding is to have different tables of food available. For example, many modern weddings have snack bars, candy bars, macaroon tables, etc. These are extremely fun ways to include those who may not be able to eat certain things that you are providing. For example, for anyone who has a dairy allergy, a candy bar will allow them to participate in dessert without having to risk their health at the wedding! There are so many ideas when it comes to providing extra food and in many ways, it is a fairly cheap way to keep your guests fed even during open dance!
Don’t Stress or Overthink Things
When putting together a menu that will accommodate everyone’s dietary restrictions, it’s important that you don’t overthink it or stress too much. Keep in mind, you’re going above and beyond for your guests by doing this and it is not expected by everyone at your wedding. Therefore, you shouldn’t allow this piece of the planning process to stress you out but instead have fun curating a menu for everyone! Additionally, most wedding menus allow for those with dietary restrictions to eat something on the menu, but by providing more food for your guests you are simply going above and beyond!
Creating a menu when you have guests with dietary restrictions can be stressful and seem like a lot of work. However, it is well worth it to look into the best option for you and your guests. Trust us, many of your guests will thank you!
Complete Weddings + Events Orlando
Our team in Orlando offers DJ, photography, videography, photo booth, and coordination. We would love to chat about your upcoming wedding to make sure that everything flows the way you’d like it to! Contact us today to learn more about our services!