While gratuities for the service staff are not required, they are greatly appreciated. In addition to the basic premise of working hard, our professional, knowledgeable staff provides an open, friendly attitude that makes a visible difference to you and your guests.
FAQ
FAQ
How Much Will It Cost?
We understand that spending money wisely is important to you. It’s important to us too. We purposely do not print specific prices of individual items on our menus as they can be misleading. Since catering involves so much more than just the food, it is extremely important when determining cost to consider all factors that go into producing a successful and memorable event.
Each event is entirely unique, therefore it would be simply impossible to put a single price tag on what it would cost for Big City to cater your special event. To offer a general sense, our prices for a simple event begin anywhere between $45-65 per person for the menu, with averages for an entire event (food, beverages, staffing and rentals) ranging between $75-105 per person. We also produce many events that exceed $200 per person.
When quoting your event we pride ourselves in providing the honest true and final price of serving delicious food, presented artfully from professional, friendly staff to you and your guests. We will not have last minute add-ons or surprises.
Resist the urge to compare the cost of a catered event to the cost of making food yourself or going to a restaurant. While this approach is certainly understandable, the “BIG” difference between going to a restaurant and using a caterer is that we bring the restaurant to you!
Transportation, service equipment and utensils, logistical planning, and the timely service of large quantities of food bear necessary expenses that will reflect in the overall price of your event.
Menu
The majority of the caterer’s cost is often the food, important factors to consider are:
1. How many courses are you considering serving for a meal? (i.e., appetizers, main course, dessert, etc.)
2. Would you like to do a Buffet-style service or a more formal Plated-style
3. What type of cuisine would you like to serve?
Drinks are also an important item to consider. Do you plan to serve alcohol, non-alcoholic beverages, or both? What about coffee and tea service? The general reality is – the more food and more options you choose, the more it will cost.
Equipment
In order to successfully serve people, caterers must provide basic dish ware and utensils. At Big City, if you choose to use our disposable acrylic plates, napkins, cups, and utensils — these items are included in the menu price. On the other hand, if you prefer to use china, real silverware, and glassware the menu price will increase. Additional items to keep in mind are guest seating tables, chairs, buffet and service tables, linens, flowers, etc.
Staff
The people who transport your food, prepare it on-site, serve it eagerly, and clean it up also add to the cost of an event. The total number of staff will vary according to the complexity and size of your menu, your anticipated guest count and the level of professional and personal service you desire. Please keep this in mind when considering plated service, passed appetizers, buffet stations, and bar tending service.
Service Charge
A standard practice in the catering business is to apply a service charge to the total price of all events. This traditional charge is not a gratuity that is shared amongst on-site staff. Rather, this charge pays for everything from the labor to produce the food for your event to the wear and tear on service utensils to the time we spend with you designing and revising your menu. At Big City, we always give you every ounce of necessary energy to make your event an absolute success.
Delivery and Set-Up
Sometimes your event is smaller and may not require any type of staffing. We offer a few different levels of service depending on the needs of our client and the event expectations. A simple delivery and drop-off is when all food is delivered in disposable containers for you to display in any manner suitable. A delivery and full set-up is when a delivery person will arrive at your event location approximately one hour prior to the event start time and set-up the food items utilizing our platters, chafers, linens, etc. We will also return after the event or the following day to retrieve our equipment.
A Service Charge and a Delivery Charge are two separate charges. The majority of the Delivery Charge covers fuel and overall vehicle maintenance, insurance, and other necessary costs. Some catering companies include the delivery price in with the price of the food. At Big City, we prefer to line item all charges for easier understanding of all costs involved with your event. We believe this gives our clients more flexibility to decide what level of service they prefer.
Gratuity
The "Big City" Picture
The above information is intended to give you an honest, thorough overview of what it costs to turn your event into how you envisioned it – the best it can be! We do not intend to make you gasp for air or get a queasy feeling inside when you start thinking about how it all adds up.
The most important thing to us is to make your event memorable and to serve people unique and delicious culinary creations. We are always willing to work with you and your budget to arrive at something that works for everyone.
Please let us know if we can answer any additional questions and help to make your event dream turn into a successful reality.
The Gossip Around Town
Testimonials
Big City Catering is a pleasure to work with and we have enjoyed collaborating on many weddings together! We highly recommend them to our couples and anyone looking for a top-notch catering experience with delicious food for their next event or special occasion. From initial conversations to wedding day, they are very detailed and communicative. They truly show their passion for what they do, and we love working with Tom, Tracy, James, and the rest of Big City’s amazing staff, it’s always a delight!
Big City made our wedding day so special!! Each meal was so delicious and personalized. During the tasting the chef was extremely accommodating, and you could tell he had a passion for the food Big City creates. They were amazing throughout the entire wedding planning process, and they provided food that truly reflected my husband and I. For example, when we were choosing the hors d’oeuvres during the tasting, I loved the raspberry brie tarts, but we ending up choosing something else over them. On my wedding day, they placed a few raspberry brie tarts on my plate just for me! They are so thoughtful, and I can’t thank them enough for everything. Thank you so much, Big City!! Everything was perfect and delicious!!
Our experience was wonderful! Everything was perfect. Big City was exceptional in providing us with everything we wanted. We had no issues or complaints. Everyone loved the food and service. Also Teska was awesome!
Big City Catering chose us once we chose our venue, and I couldn’t be happier! The food was amazing for our wedding and cocktail hour! The catering service was also superb! We received many compliments on their service and the food the night of our wedding. Job well done!!
I loved working with Big City Catering and all of my guests would agree. The food was so amazing. I would highly recommend them to anyone. They make the whole planning process stress-free and they make sure every detail of the entire day is taken care of. I would hire them a million times over!!
Delicious food, friendly catering staff, and excellent customer service! In true covid wedding fashion, I was eight weeks out from my wedding in search of a catering company along with half of my other wedding vendors. My venue recommended BCC. After reading their stellar reviews and multiple awards, I felt comfortable booking without a tasting. Let me start by saying that Madeline is fantastic!! From our first conversation to her response to my 30th email, she was always responsive, helpful, and professional. The food was delicious! All of my guests raved about how good the food was! Lastly, my husband and I had a staff member that would check in with us throughout the night. She brought us appetizers, drink refills and even had dinner waiting for us at the sweetheart table. I could not recommend BCC more, their staff was excellent, and the food was delicious!
We had the pleasure of having Big City Catering as our vendor for our wedding day through Luxmore Grande Estate and we can not say enough great things about them. All of our food for the event was INCREDIBLE! From the build your own mac and cheese bar to the prime rib carving station, every item was delicious. We also appreciated that when we had our tasting the Chef encouraged honest feedback and catered our menu specifically to us. Thank you Big City Catering!
Big City was more than just the caterer at our Wedding but family! They made our special day nothing short of perfect!!! Everyone kept coming up to us throughout the night to compliment the food! Narrowing down our menu was the hardest part because we wanted to have EVERYTHING! Huge thank you to the owner Tom, Chef Thomas, Chef Lou, Tracy, Madeline, Sarah, and the entire service staff for providing the most exceptional experience for our guests. We love you and can’t wait for you to cater our next big occasion!
Big City Catering was the catering company that came with my venue, Luxmore Grande Estate. However; even though I did not personally “select” them, they really blew me away. They were wonderful to work with, from the suggestions and helpfulness at our tasting, to the piping hot and super tasty food on the night of our wedding. I have absolutely no complaints. Everything was delicious and all of the guests were raving about how wonderful the buffet food was. I highly recommend Big City Catering for any event catering. p.s. ask them for chimichurri sauce with their medallion steaks. Yum!
I had my wedding at Paradise Cove and Big City Catering was amazing! The team was wonderful with remaining in contact with me throughout the wedding planning process and answering my questions! The food and service was wonderful and people were raving about it that night and days after. Everything ran smoothly and they were super accommodating to kiddos and people with food allergies! I would certainly recommend Big City to any bride to be friends!
We had our wedding at Cypress Grove Estate house and they use Big City Catering for all of their weddings. We chose to do the group tasting and did not get to taste all of the dishes we originally wanted to try so I’d suggest doing a private tasting if you want to specifically taste something. We did however love our final dish. Our guest also raved about the food and said it was the best wedding food they’ve ever had. We ordered the tomato bruschetta, buffalo meatball, pork sliders, herbed grilled chicken, bourbon street pork, green beans almondine, and mashed potatoes. Very happy with choices.
“Our daughter’s wedding was at Cypress Grove Estate House, and Big City delivered on a wonderful meal that our guests were very complimentary of. Not one part of the courses was second rate, our guests raved as much about the appetizers as the salad and the main courses. Wonderful meal for one of the most important events in your life!
“Going into our wedding, we already knew that food was one of the most important aspects of our wedding. We are a food-loving couple that loves to wine and dine and enjoy the experience of new foods. That being said, we were highly satisfied with ALL of the catering services that were provided for our wedding. The guest raved about the food all night, and still two weeks later I am still getting compliments on how great the food was. The staff at Big City is beyond accommodating, friendly, and so easy to work with. They will definitely ease the stress of your wedding planning! We got to enjoy a complimentary tasting before we decided on their services and met personally with the chef and bartender to personalize our menu. Teska kept in constant contact with me, always reaching out to make sure I had everything I needed, and we couldn’t have asked for a better turn out for our wedding. It was perfect!
Big City Catering did our wedding at The Luxmore Grande. What delicious food! Everyone we’ve talked to has said it was delicious- some even said it was the best food they’ve had at a wedding EVER. The chefs are wonderful, and we were thrilled with everything. We highly suggest them!
We look forward to speaking with you.