What is a traditional Italian Wedding Meal?
Photographer: Paulina Wedding
The wedding meal is probably one of the top reasons you’re getting married in Italy. And it is not true that all food is good and equal. Italian food is exceptional but choosing what you want for your wedding meal is complex, as Italians certainly enjoy a lengthy sitting and many number of courses.
Get this right and you are in for a winning wedding day - the Italian wedding meal is one of the foundations, if not THE foundation of the wedding day. The catering service runs through every moment of the day from the welcome drink through to the end of the night. Every moment is underpinned by this catering schedule. So having absolute trust in your caterers is crucial. Let’s run through it moment by moment.
Welcome Drinks
The first look into your wedding day and what welcomes guests better than a cold drink on a hot Italian day?
Some caterers offer flavoured water as standard, others will budget in welcome Prosecco or other drink of choice, but be aware this tends to be an extra so will be an additional cost. Be sure to chat through options with your team.
Most couples opt for welcome drinks - it’s a wonderful way for people to mingle pre-ceremony, take in the setting and sets the tone for the day.
Bar APE: Event in Bar
Ceremony
Don’t worry, we aren’t suggesting that your guests are snacking during you ceremony! But believe it or not, the catering team is often responsible for the setting of the chairs. Side note - there is normally a charge for this.
Additionally, to bear in mind…most caterers will not move the chairs for the dinner, as they won’t have the staff to be moving as well as serving at the main event. So be prepared that normally they will ask you to hire the other chairs for the reception.
Photo: Taylor Hughes Photography
Apertif
Our favourite part of the day - anticipation has subsided, the rings are on and the time to celebrate with your nearest and dearest soaking up the Italian atmosphere is here. Good food, drinks flowing, chilled vibes.
Here you tend to have stations – think tables of grazing food. Meats, cheeses…classic antipasti that Italy just excels at. Guests can informally sample everything and take the opportunity to try lots of flavours of Italian food. Sometimes canapés are also served and the catering team will walk these round to guests.
Drinks at the aperitif are usually – prosecco, spritz and wine is normal. You can obviously choose to add other drinks and beer.
How do caterers budget for drink? Either by offering drink allocations ie. 2 beers pp / half a prosecco bottle pp or unlimited. All of which is dependent on your budget and request.
Photo: Elina Upmane
The Dinner
This is absolutely the main event! As the Italian sun sets, your friends and family will gather to be treated to an epic feast. If you haven’t experienced Italian food at its finest, be prepared to be wowed!
Seated at the table, the standard wedding meal includes two primi, a secondi, dolce and or cake.
You will want to build a menu that works for you and your guests. The meal is lengthy but the courses are well balanced - don’t worry, guests won’t be unbuttoning shirts or feeling too full for dancing!
Speak with your caterer as to what they suggest, but some couples mix up the meal to have an entre to start, followed by one primi (typically pasta or risotto) and then the secondi (the main). Here many couples opt for steak.
You’re at the table for a long time so this amount of food works well. It will be your own preference whether you have more or less than this.
Photo: Paulina Weddings
Dolce
The sweet options are endless…whether you opt purely for wedding cake to be served at the table or perhaps a sweet pastry table. Guests can savour various flavoured cannolis and other delicious treats throughout the later part of the evening.
Caterer: Rotondo | Venue: Masseria Grieco
Cake
In Italy the cutting of the cake is a BIG deal! Whether you opt for a traditional millefoglie made infront of your guests (with you hand finishing it together!) or a traditional cake from your home country - this is definitely a showstopper moment and such a crowd-pleaser. The Italians serve the fizz here for this reason - as opposed to with speeches.
It is tradition to have the cake served as the dolce or after dessert, to the table. But you can request it’s served after as a buffet, so that you get straight to the party (caterers won’t like me for saying that!)
Photo: Sophie Mort
The Bar Opens
After the eating has stopped, the bar opens. Be sure to check what’s included. Are they drinks your guests will want? How long is it open for?
Some couples want the bar to run through the dinner – this is not normal and comes with usually a very high extra cost.
Photo: Studio Chloe David
Our Top Tips
Each caterer has a different way of presenting you with a quote. This can be rather confusing as you are not necessarily comparing like-for-like. Save yourselves hours, go and grab the Catering Comparison Tool from our shop to quickly and accurately compare what your different caterers are offering you! Simply populate the sheet with information from each supplier and bingo, you will have a clear picture.
The standard catering meal at an Italian wedding is obviously a lot more comprehensive than other countries and therefore a little more expensive per person. Trust us, it is well-worth it once you see the value that you’ll get. It takes A LOT to deliver this quality and amount of food in just one day and Italian caterers are incredible.
Don’t be tempted to add ‘midnight snacks’ or deviate too much from the traditional meal. You really will be so satisfied with what the Italians do best.
Photo: Lenny Pellico
La Lista absolutely has your back when choosing a caterer - it’s a massive job and we know you’ll only want the best. That’s why we only list suppliers who we know and trust. Our vetting system means you get excellence without any drama. Why not find out what other Italian wedding couples are serving up at their weddings over on our Facebook group? We have over 1,000 Italian wedding couples in exactly the same planning shoes as you!
Written by Emily Jennings, marketing person and wedding day-dreamer; lover of a boho vibe and a wedding night filled with a thousand lights.
