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Writer's pictureMountain Laurel Catering & Events

Behind the Scenes at Mountain Laurel Catering

How Your Wedding Starts Coming Together…


For you, your family and your fiance, your wedding day may start on Saturday at 8am… But for us, your “wedding day” is a week-long event full of planning, packing and party preparation! As a full service wedding caterer, we spend the entire week before your wedding getting all of our ducks in a row and logistically planning as a team. Food needs to be ordered and delivered, mixers for your cocktails need to be inventoried and packed and vehicles need to be cleaned and maintained for our travels to and from your wedding venue.


We begin each week with our managers round table every Tuesday morning, which is where the weekend's events are presented by the sales team to the kitchen managers and front of house site leads. The front of house “on-site leads'' are catering managers that run the setup and execution of your catering event. They assemble the servers into a well oiled service machine, set up the bar and cocktail hour stationed hors d'oeuvres and help to organize an orderly clean up to keep your reception space tidy and free of clutter! Site leads work closely with your day-of-coordinators during your wedding day to keep your event running smoothly and according to your timeline.



After we meet as a team and discuss your wedding menu, we then get to work gathering all of the supplies we will need! We review all of your linen orders and flatware/glassware rentals, we review all of the hors d'oeuvres stations we will need to set up and pack for, and we gather decor according to your weddings aesthetic and color scheme. We plan for bar services, gather supplies to make your signature cocktails, plan for any coffee and desserts we will need, and we make sure that all of the food we are serving is bought and stored.


Following our weekly checks and balances, we get to the logistics and planning stage! We make packing sheets and BEO’s (Banquet Event Orders) to help us prepare, and we refer to these sheets throughout the week. We plan our approach with regards to set up time, server and chef arrivals, which mobile trailers we are cooking in, and what vehicles we are using to make it all happen. Because we do multiple events a day through the weekend, we split our larger team into smaller teams and focus on an event or two each, so that we can keep our focus sharp and orderly and give you all of the attention your event requires.


The week of your wedding (and our wedding season as a whole!) is a flurry of activity and organization! We work hard to get prepared during the week so that the wedding of your dreams goes off without a hitch!


The Morning of Your Wedding!


We know that the day of your wedding is a flurry of activity and anxiety for you, so we want to do everything in our power to make sure the food and drink aspect of your shindig goes as smoothly and as worry free for you as possible!


Early in the morning, when you are first waking up and getting your wedding dress and tuxedos together, we are busy working on making sure we have everything we could possibly need to present the food on your most special day with care, style and attention. Our kitchen managers and chefs are up at the crack of dawn baking bread, cutting cheese and meats for charcuterie displays, and making sure that your brisket is braising in the oven at the correct temperature!



All of the bread that we serve “family-style” on your table is made from scratch that day! This ensures that the bread your guests receive is as fresh and hearty as possible. All of our menus are catered to what you envision, whether that means a rosemary focaccia, apple and onion focaccia or individual italian herb rolls, our chefs are equipped to make your bread dreams a reality. Even if you are gluten free, we certainly have an option for you!


Our chefs take a lot of time and care in preparing charcuterie and vegetable crudite. It takes a lot of attention to detail to make a beautiful charcuterie board, and our chefs are so very well versed in making gorgeous displays of any size and shape!


We also offer personalized charcuterie options. Traditional gigante antipasti, Mediterranean antipasti or even Lancaster Dutch Country inspired antipasti, whatever you decide, we can make it happen for your family. If you like a certain type of cheese or meat, we will track it down and include it in the display for you.


Also early in the morning, our Front-of-house managers and on-site leads are busy packing our company vans with everything from chafing sets to cleaning supplies! Every site lead packs their van with everything that they think they could possibly need throughout the day. This is an especially careful time because, when working off site (aka at wedding venues, in backyards and even open fields an hour or more away from our base of operations), we have to be prepared for anything and everything. Our staff pays very close attention to what we bring and what we don’t because time and space are limited!


Every step of the way, we take the time and care necessary to make sure that you and your family have as close to a stress-free day as possible, and all of that starts very early in the morning on your wedding day!

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