Disappointing on the day
My wife and I were extremely disappointed with how things went on the day regarding the catering.
Up until the wedding day itself, we found Baba Ganoush to be very communicative, and we had a lovely time at our tasting session. All the details seemed to be in place and we felt confident that things would go smoothly on the day. We did feel uncomfortable that as soon as we had confirmed the booking with Baba Ganoush, we received almost daily emails pushing us to pay the balance up front and in full, despite having previously agreed a payment date that was weeks away. However, Baba Ganoush had such fantastic reviews that we didn’t think there would be any problems.
There were a large number of issues on the day. At no point did anyone from Baba Ganoush come and introduce themselves to us, which we would have appreciated. All the staff we encountered seemed very inexperienced and nobody appeared to be in charge to address any of the numerous problems. At the drinks reception, the strawberries and cream pots we had ordered were absolutely tiny, meaning some people had multiple pots and many people didn’t get any. We had specifically requested a lactose free cream option, and a bananas and cream option for someone who couldn’t eat strawberries, and having spoken to the relevant people, we can confirm none of them had these or were even aware they were on offer. If someone had asked us (or asked the venue co-ordinator) who the people with dietary requirements were, we could have pointed them out.
We had requested to have our wedding cake served as pudding. Baba Ganoush asked us to cut the cake as soon as we entered the room for the wedding breakfast, so that the cake could be taken away and cut up. Baba Ganoush wanted us to do this so they could pack down and leave as soon as possible. After we cut it, the cake sat in the main hall for hours, melting. We spoke to our venue coordinator about this, who had to ask Baba Ganoush three times before it was eventually taken away. Someone came out to get it and attempted to pick it up by himself, and somebody had to run over to stop him destroying it.
We understand that there were some electrical difficulties in the kitchen, but the main meal was served over half an hour late, meaning we had to put all our speeches in a row, which we didn’t want to do. We had been assured that Baba Ganoush would provide cloth napkins, which they did not. We ended up having to use paper ones which we had bought to use for the evening food that we had organised ourselves. When the food finally arrived, there were not enough pieces of chicken for one each on the top table, or enough vegetables. Someone had to go to the kitchen to ask for more of both. We then had to ask for serving implements, which had not been brought out, which our coordinator had to bring over - not something she should have to do.
It took so long for the food to be served that it was cold by the time we ate. Furthermore, it was very different to what we experienced at the tasting and what we were expecting to be served. At the tasting we had carrots, tenderstem broccoli and leeks, and on the day we had carrots, parsnips and shredded cabbage. At the tasting, the roast potatoes were brown and crispy, the Yorkshire pudding was light and fluffy and the chicken had crispy golden skin with lovely lemon and herb flavouring. At the wedding, the potatoes were far too salty and not crispy, the Yorkshire pudding was dry and tasteless and the chicken was pale and didn’t taste lemony (which was the reason we chose it in the first place).
As a result of the cake not being taken and sliced up immediately, we had to change plans, so that it was served during tea and coffee instead. This was the time we had agreed with our photographers that we would leave the venue to get some photos. Therefore, we did not get to have any of our wedding cake, which was especially upsetting for the bride as she is coeliac and has never had wedding cake before. We were asked if we wanted to serve all of the cake and we said yes. When we checked the fridge the following day, at least a third of the bottom tier was still in there. The cake ran out really quickly and if it had all been served, everyone would have got some. We cannot understand why Baba Ganoush ignored our explicit instruction to serve it all. Also left in the fridge were four dairy free cupcakes which we had made for the people who needed them. All our efforts to include people with dietary requirements were in vain because Baba Ganoush inexplicably did not serve them.
In spite of putting very clear plans in place that were agreed by Baba Ganoush, they made our wedding really stressful. It felt like it was one thing after another going wrong and if it hadn’t been for our incredible coordinator, it would have been a total disaster. This is baffling to us as we had so many emails and phone calls with Baba Ganoush where we went over the plan in great detail, only for it to be seemingly forgotten about and/or ignored. The standard of both food and service was unacceptably low and nothing like what we had been led to expect.