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You shouldn’t be stressed about food on one of the most important days of your life.  Having a professional catering service takes a lot of the hard work off your shoulders, and it is vital that you ensure your wedding caterer is the right choice for your special day.  Here’s a list of important questions to help you choose amongst potential caterers, and to help you find the perfect match for your wedding. 

1. Is the caterer available on the date of your wedding? Can the caterer accommodate all of your guests? 
2. Can the caterer service your venue, and have they worked with your venue before?
3. Does the caterer have a license? 
4. What references can the caterer provide, and how long have they been in business? 
5. What amount of catering events do they do per year? 
6. What is the gratuity policy? 
7. What is the total cost for the event and what forms of payment are accepted? 
8. Does the caterer provide payment plans? 
9. How do your deposits work and what is the cancellation policy? 
10. When does the caterer need a final decision, including food choice and guest count? 
11. What equipment can the caterer provide? Do they provide things like napkins, plates, silverware, etc.? 
12. What options does the caterer have for food and how is it priced? 
13. Does the caterer offer food and drink packages? 
14. Does the caterer provide desserts? What about wedding cakes specifically? 
15. Is there a cake cutting fee? Will the caterer serve cake? 
16. Where does the caterer get their food? Is it fresh, frozen, locally grown, organic, etc.?
17. What options does the caterer provide for serving food? Buffet, individual plates, etc.? 
18. Can the caterer create a themed menu? 
19. Can the caterer provide specifically for children?  What about other special requests like kosher, gluten-free, etc.? 
20. What is the policy on leftover food? Will the caterer box-up leftovers for guests? 
21. Does the caterer allow for tastings?  If so, what do they cost? 
22. Is there a fee associated with setting up and breaking down the equipment?
23. Does the caterer have a food service business permit? 
24. How many servers will be provided? 
25. How are the servers dressed? 
26. Does the caterer provide beverages and alcohol? Do they have a liquor license? 
27. What brands of alcohol does the caterer provide? 
28. How does the caterer charge for alcohol? 
29. Will the caterer bartend? 
30. Does the caterer have liquor liability insurance?

It’s important to remember that even with the best planning and the highest-graded caterers, there are some things simply out of everyone’s control. This is why it’s important to consider wedding insurance, and to ask your caterer if this is something they offer.  If not, there are plenty of third-party providers that you can go to for wedding cancellation insurance.  Further, wedding liability insurance should be considered as well to protect you from guest injuries or property damage. 

We hope these questions are a helpful guide to finding the best catering service possible for your wedding day.

Thanksgiving Feasts from Saddleback BBQ are now available for Pre-Order. We have packages for families of all sizes and we have pick-up available on November 23rd and 24th. We also have Only-Turkey packages for groups that don't need side dishes. Giving you the ultimate in flexibility.

TO ORDER! Just go to our online ordering page and select the location you wish to order from. Under “Choose a menu” select “Holiday Specials”. MAKE SURE to select the actual day you want to pick up. All meals will be served cold, you can choose to pickup on November 23rd or 24th.

https://www.saddlebackbbq.com/saddleback-bbq-online-ordering

*Pickup is available at BOTH Saddleback locations.

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Now more than ever we have requests for individually boxed lunches. That’s why we put together 3 great options which offer something for everyone. These are perfect for office parties, and events where close contact is best avoided. 

Individually Packaged - All boxed lunches come individually packaged to ensure the safest dining experience. 

Everything you Need - Each boxed lunch comes with 1/3lb of protein, a Detroit made bun, Corncake, Housemade Pickles, Housemade Chips, and our Sweet & Savory BBQ Sauce. 

Multiple Options - You have the choice of brisket, pork, or chicken. Something for everyone!

Submit a Lead Form Now (2 Minutes or less)

Brisket Boxed Lunch: 1/3lb of Smoked Brisket, served on a Michigan bun, served with coleslaw on the side. Each lunch comes with a side of housemade chips, corncake, housemade pickles, and bbq sauce.

$16.00

Pulled Pork Boxed Lunch:1/3lb of Pulled Pork, served on a Michigan bun, served with coleslaw on the side. Each lunch comes with a side of housemade chips, corncake, housemade pickles, and bbq sauce.

$15.00

Pulled Chicken Boxed Lunch: 1/3lb of Pulled Chicken, served on a Michigan bun, served with coleslaw on the side. Each lunch comes with a side of housemade chips, corncake, housemade pickles, and bbq sauce.

$14.00

Graduation parties typically take hours of painstaking planning. Our catering coordinators will work with you through the entire process to make sure everything is perfect. We will advise you based on our years of experience to make sure you have the perfect menu. 

Delivery - We offer delivery, which entails more than just dropping off the food. We will set everything up, from lighting the sternos to placing the food in the optimal order for guests. 

Menu for Everyone - Our menu offers something for everyone, from delicious mac & cheese for children to hearty baby back ribs for the carnivore in your group. 

Knowledgable Staff - We have a full time catering team ready to answer any questions you have or make adjustments to your menu. We have an entire team of well trained catering employees with expertise in handling large events. 

Submit a Lead Form Now (2 Minutes or less)

We have a full-time catering team ready to plan and execute your corporate event. Whether you have 6 months to plan or 6 days, we’ll work with you to make it happen. 

Flexible Meals - Our staff will work with you to plan the best meal for your situation. Whether that means individually boxed lunches, or having staff on-site to serve all the food. We will assist you with whatever requirements you have. 

Delivery & Setup - We offer delivery, which means we will bring the food to your office and set up everything you need to have a simple, delicious meal. 

Quick Response Time - Once you submit a lead form we will typically have a proposal over to you in 24 hours. We have full-time employees working just on helping plan catered events. 

Submit a Lead Form Now (2 Minutes or less)

Saddleback specializes in catering services for weddings. About 70% of the large events we provide food for are weddings. In the past year we've catered over 75 weddings. 

Staffing - Our staff is incredibly experienced. Our average employee tenure is over 5x longer than the national average for the industry. For weddings, our staff will be on-site to set up all food-related items, serve the dinner, answer questions, clean up, and package any leftovers

Tastings - To ensure you try all of our options, we offer wedding tastings. You can bring in as many people as you would like. Sit down with our catering coordinator, try the food, and plan the dinner.

Flexible Staff - Our catering coordinators will work with you from day 1 to the day before your wedding to ensure your menu and itinerary are perfect.

Quick Response Time - Once you submit a lead form we will typically have a proposal over to you in 24 hours. We have full-time employees working just on helping plan your event.

Request a Free Catering Quote (2 minutes or less)

Important Information for Anyone Planning a Wedding! 

Questions to Ask When Looking at Wedding Venues

Questions You Should Ask When Choosing a Wedding Caterer

The first thing you need to do is negotiate a contract with a landlord, assuming you don’t already own the building. After your space is secure, the next step will be to order the necessary equipment, remembering to plan at least 2-3 months for delivery. As you wait on your equipment, reach out to a qualified architect to provide you with a drawing. These drawings will lay out the particulars for your space, including where to place your equipment, which permits you will need, and how to properly move any electrical or plumbing lines.

At this point, you’re ready to move into the final phases. Start by sending over your drawings to the Health, Building and Mechanical Departments and await their approval. As you await approval, reach out to contractors and establish a proper time for them to come and make any necessary changes to your space and install your equipment. Remember that the contractors should only do this after approvals are obtained. After all of this, reach out to the Health Department so they can conduct their initial walkthrough. With their sign off, it is time to order food and open up your restaurant. Once opened, reach out one more time to the Health Department for a second walkthrough. If there are no issues, you are in the clear, and it is time to start selling your delicious food to the masses!

Cooking the perfect short of rib is hard enough. Now try to cook them, then reheat them and still have them be good. It’s difficult, but we believe we have a workable solution. Saddleback takes a contrarian point of view with ribs, we don’t believe they should “fall off the bone”. This helps when it comes to reheating because the ribs will have more room to be cooked before becoming overdone.

Our Process:

1. Wrap the ribs in aluminum foil.
2. Place them in oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
3. Take rib(s) out of oven, check for 165F.
4. If not done, put back in and check every 5 minutes.

We’ve tried multiple blind taste test with this process and have been unable to distinguish between the fresh ribs and the reheated. We hope you enjoy as much as we do!

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Cooking the perfect rack of ribs is hard enough. Now try to cook them, then reheat them and still have them be good. It’s difficult, but we believe we have a workable solution. Saddleback takes a contrarian point of view with ribs, we don’t believe they should “fall off the bone”. This helps when it comes to reheating because the ribs will have more room to be cooked before becoming overdone.

Our Process:

1. Wrap the rack of ribs in aluminum foil.
2. Place them in oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
3. Take ribs out of oven, check for 165F.
4. If not done, put back in and check every 5 minutes.

We’ve tried multiple blind taste test with this process and have been unable to distinguish between the fresh ribs and the reheated. We hope you enjoy as much as we do!

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To order our BBQ Sauce, check out this link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B082P7WZ99?ref=myi_title_dp