Buffet lunch/dinner questions--help!

[flowerbelle]

Hi! I am planning to have a buffet style lunch at the GF for my reception, but the menus that I received from the coordinator shows that the lowest amount is $98/pp. (I'm planning to do a menu tasting later.) I saw some previous brides BEO's that showed significantly lower lunch buffet pp. Is this because the GF is just that much higher in cost for food compared to other venue places to eat??? Does it depend on where I have my reception (regarding the food menu)?? Has anyone gotten a lower lunch buffet menu at the GF? Even theAny help and/or advice would be much appreciated. Thank you very much!!!

 

[lurkyloo]

The menu price depends on what food is on the menu. And you can have just about any kind of food you want on your menu - you don't have to stick to just the ones they give you. You can either ask for different/additional menus (tip: rehearsal dinner menus are cheaper than wedding dinner menus) or you can just subtract and swap things out until you create one that fits your budget.

Also, Disney is moving away from venue-specific menus to a global menu system, so you aren't confined to just the ones they usually feature at the Grand Floridian. You can even ask for items served at Disney restaurants.

 

[flowerbelle]

Thanks so much Lurkyloo! You are a God send for us brides!! I very glad to hear that I'm not limited to the menus I received from Disney...although it can be very deceiving in a way. BTW, how does the menu tasting work when you go for your planning session?? I was under the impression that I needed to select a particular menu from what I had received from Disney to do the tasting...since I'm going for the buffet style (as it will be better for my budget), there were only four buffet styles to choose from in the Disney menu selection so I naturally thought this is all I get to choose from--can I only choose one of them for the tasting or can I mix it up??? Can you (or others) help guide me?? I sooooooooooo appreciate your help!!! How much will Disney let you taste??? I know my DF would love to taste a lot since he always has a good appetite! Thanks again!!

 

[lurkyloo]

I'm so glad I could help!

When we did our tasting session (which was also for a buffet) we were given a worksheet with space to write in 2 appetizers, 2 salads, 2 entrees and 1 dessert (other than cake). We just picked what sounded good from the tons of menus we had.

I'm sure they can be flexible if you wanted to try a few extra things - your planner would just have to run it by the chef. Also, be sure that your planner knows you want a tasting session - it's not automatically included.

You can find a ton of Disney catering menus at this site: http://www.magicalkingdoms.com/ftw/wdw/menus.html. Even though some of them are out of date, if you see something you like, chances are Disney can re-create it for you.

 

[flowerbelle]

You are awesome lurkyloo!! This helps a lot!! Looking at the website menus, there are lunch buffets that is much more budget friendly ($39/pp) and hopefully they can do this for me at the Grand Floridian because the lunch buffet menus (on the website) are from the Boardwalk. Thanks so much again!!! I don't know how I would even plan this wedding without the help of all the lovely ladies on this site.

 

[tiggerrifficheidi]

I'll echo lurkyloo's statement about customization. I'd also add that we had a plated lunch menu with three courses, and it was $72. Sure technically there's not as much food, but everyone said it was too much food! And being plated, it was a bit more traditional. We had a duo plate as the main course, to make sure we had a little variety.

 

[disbridemimi]

If you give them some pushback they will give you more options.

 

[Nikisha421]

I have been trying to google disney menus all day...thanks lurkyloo

I was going to ask if it were okay to choose different food items for your venue?