Hello and welcome to today's episode of the wedding lounge podcast. Today we're going to talk about
the wedding breakfast. That all-important part of the day comes after the ceremony and after your
drinks reception, that moment where you get to sit down and enjoy that time together. What is
the wedding breakfast? The wedding breakfast is really random because obviously it's not
in the morning, so traditionally you'd obviously have breakfast as your first meal of the day.
You break your fast. You break your fast. The wedding breakfast is called the wedding breakfast
because it is the first meal that you have as the married couple. To people who haven't got married,
don't know much about weddings, it always seems really random and people always look a bit
blankly. Not everyone refers to it as a wedding breakfast. When we were getting married,
when someone got a wedding breakfast, I was like, "Oh, are you talking about, I'd never heard
the saying before." Yeah, I see, now I hear it all the time. Yeah, it's just getting to
a weird one called a wedding breakfast, I'm not having it anyway. Is that real? Absolutely,
brilliant idea. We need to keep this short and sweet. If you listened to our food and drink episode
a few weeks ago, we went against what the wedding lounge podcast is all about where we said we have
bite-sized, so I haven't finished editing it yet, to be honest. We ate the whole cake. We ate the whole cake.
Was it a bite-sized breakfast? Yeah, because we were recording these in advance.
We haven't yet finished that one and it was looking long, so we're a bit carried away over the food.
So let's keep it brief. Okay. We've gone over the food and drink. Yes, you can have a
formal meal, sit down, something more casual, like food trucks. Whatever you do, make sure that it
reflects you and what you want. If you're not into formal dining, you don't want the stress of
organising that seating plan, then go for a more informal food truck style wedding.
So what we want to talk about today is what you can do around your wedding breakfast, like what the
options are. So one of the things to consider is the entertainment and less the music. Do you want
to have live performers whilst you're dining or do you just want a background playlist? Some people
I've had don't want anything, I'm not even sure that they want many background music, because they
said that there's enough volume from the guests. It's a tricky one. Yeah. I think I would have something,
if you don't want to have live music, I would have a playlist read and ready so that if it is a bit
awkward and silent, you can put it on. But if you're guests are talking so loudly and enjoying themselves
that you don't need it, then if you just have it down so quietly, people can't hear it, I'll just turn
it off. Yeah. Starting noise is kind of like there. I mean, you know, you have to put much sort of
consideration into it if you don't want to. Or you go the total, by the way, and put loads of thought
into it. You could have roaming wax and come around during the meal and traditions. Yep. I've had one
wedding where they had an opera singer. And the opera singer, it was very, very small intimate wedding.
There was 30 guests in beautiful Italian restaurant. So the guests had a menu to choose from on the day.
The restaurant team came round and took the orders for the starter and then whilst they were cooking
the starters, they had the opera singer, which is such a brilliant idea. So they had this lovely
opera singer, but we thought that he was performing performing. So politely demanded all of the guests
were quiet and listened to his performance. It's beautiful as it was. He didn't have the opportunity
to talk. Then whilst guests were eating, he had a break. They ordered their mains as well and then
while the mains were cooking, but after the starters, he came back on and performed again, again,
requested silence. Unfortunately, the couple weren't quite aware that those were his expectations either,
so it was a bit of a surprise on the day. But it was still amazing. It's just if you are going to have
live music throughout dining, make sure your catering staff and the musicians are clear on your
expectations of where the performances are happening whilst food is being brought out,
while guests are eating. Do you need the music to stop while plates being cleared? How is it going
to work? Because this opera singer obviously decided he needed that silence to perform and it wasn't
what was agreed to start with. And I think especially when it's around the dining experience,
that is still the priority. Yes. If you've got a close-up addition or something coming
around to the tables, they're obviously going to come on with the attention of that table.
But there might still be someone eating or someone still talking. You cannot expect
or want to pay a catering staff, may need to bring someone another bottle of wine for the table.
You've got to work alongside each other, but as you say, the food at that point,
the food at the wedding breakfast is the priority. I'll make you sure that you are well thought,
well, yes, all right, that would be your opportunity to eat. It's a funny old day,
so you just want to make sure you actually get to enjoy your food. So you need to kind of think
about something that works well around the meal. Definitely. You don't necessarily want it to
overpower. As you say, it's the time for people to sit down and chat, and if you've done your seating
plan, well, if you've taken our advice, you might be sat with other people that you don't normally
speak to. So in the drinks reception, you tend to sort of go on top of your mates,
but you might be sat with other people during the wedding breakfast. And it's a great opportunity,
you know, for different parts of your life or your partner's life to mix and create, you know,
friendships. And then you create new friendships and dance for as well. So later on, you see these
people that you put together with diversifying here. But I think if you have too much music,
it can overpower. So just think carefully about having something but not too much. Yeah.
And then you need to consider what you have your speeches. Are you going to have them before
everyone eats? Are you going to have them after everyone eats? Or are you going to have them split
in between? Oh, well, yeah, I was going to say, you could see your face from now. I look like I've
chewed something sour. Yeah. I think it's really important to not have them between courses.
It just elongates the meal so much and you never know quite how long someone's going to speak.
But everyone says, oh, I'll only be a five minutes meal. It's never a five minute speech. So carefully
consider when you're going to have your speeches. If you're planning on having them before the meal,
make sure this is done before the meal is even served. Yeah. So don't have any food down on the
table. Don't have you breaded down on the table because what happens is you get the clattering,
you get the nose background, you get, you know, if you're going to do it before, do it before and not
whilst there's bread being served and people can be kicking. Yeah. It doesn't work because people aren't
paying attention. They're distracted. They are important. They're an important part of a wedding day.
So you want people to be paying attention. And again, if you're doing the speeches afterwards,
make sure it's done before the dessert is cleared or after the dessert has been cleared. Don't
try and get your caterers to do it whilst it's happening. I don't know how you feel about speeches
before the meal. I really like it in one way because I think that people can then relax and enjoy
the food, you know, really the food. And I think if people are anxious about doing a speech later on
or sit and maybe have a bit too much to drink during the meal. Yeah. But from a planning point of
view, I'm always finding, no matter how much time you allow for speeches, I'm always there wishing
the person to put the microphone down so that the caterers can bring the food out because so often
the caterers are waiting and the food is spoiling in the kitchen because someone is taking their
moment to shine and won't, you know, won't stop. And you can't as a planner. I see the caterer's side,
you know, had caterers before. They're like, we need to serve and I get that. But what would you like
me to do? Would you like me to walk up and take the microphone out of the father of the bride's hand?
What can I do? I keep going into the room, trying to give them the eye, you know, there's nothing you
can do. And so as much as I love the speeches beforehand because people can relax and enjoy the day,
it does have a knock on effect sometimes at the catering. Yeah. I think you're going to have them
in the drinks' reception maybe. I don't like splitting too many speeches but I think maybe you could
have like one or two like the father of the bride and the groom possibly like during the drinks'
reception. So you're not having the knock on effect on the food and they're maybe doing the best
man afterwards. I tend to people can only do that. I advise them to do it towards the end of the
drinks' reception. And then you've kind of got over on's attention as well. And then you can be
like right. We're all going into sit down. Yeah. So everyone's kind of conversations have stopped
it's much easier to then move people on to definitely. The other time that I think can have the
potential to be nice if you've got an easy dessert is after the mains. Yes. Before the pudding so,
most people tend to eat quite well for the main course. So having that little break and interlude
where people can just sit back feel a bit full. Yeah. It's enjoy listening to a couple of speeches,
go to the loo, do all of those things before their dessert served. It gives people a little break
which is quite nice. I think you're right. And when you say about depends on what's either
dessert if it's something that's not. If it's ice cream, you can't do that. Yes. Yeah. It can't spoil.
You know, it's just I think that's the thing as caterers. It's just, you know, they've spent ages
for bread, food. And when they're working to a timing and they're ready and people are still talking,
it must be so frustrating and I get that. It's just nice for people to be able to relax. Yeah.
And then enjoy the day. I think one of the days where they have to be at the end of the meal and
everyone's like nervous throughout. Yeah. I mean, if you look at the photos from our wedding,
I will find one and I will put it on our Instagram. Here's face because we did our speeches
before the dessert. Here's face. You couldn't eat through the meal because he was so nervous.
So I think someone like that. Yeah. It needs to be earlier on in the day, but he couldn't concentrate.
He couldn't sit there. It was most hilarious thing. He was just sitting there panicking the whole entire time.
I can't even remember when we did ours, but I've been to a wedding before where we've all gone in,
sat down and we've started the speech and they've been at hour. Yeah. So you haven't got
Spanner Pays coming around. You haven't been giving your food jets and you might find out a drink
but you can't get up. They are about 45 minutes though for three speeches because you know,
people are saying five minutes. It's not. It's 10 minutes. Yeah. And then when you've got the heckling
and the conversation and you know, the fourth tends to be about 15 minutes. If you've got three
speeches, that is a whole 45 minute chunk of time. Yeah. Gone. Yeah. It is quite a long time.
Of course, you may decide not to have any speeches and tie it up to you and then you save this
whole dilemma. Yeah, or just have one. Yeah. Just go. Thank you very much for coming.
Here we are. We shall enjoy eating. But it's worth considering at that moment, like when are you
going to do it and what's it going to be involved? Well, then the other thing you need to consider
with your wedding breakfast is your table. Yes, the decor. What are you eating? Yeah. Because if
you're having a plated meal, it means you can put stuff in the middle of the table. But if you're
having a sharing cell food, you need to have Spanner East for that to go. You also need to consider
if you want different wine glasses for your different coloured wines, they've got your warts glass,
you've got a champagne flute, if you want that toasting. How many knives and books you've got on
each side? Are you having a charger plate? There are so many considerations that you need to think
about and how much space that all takes up. And then also just things down to the decor, we briefly
touched upon it with the seating plan last episode. But just help people are going to know where
they're sat on the table. Yes, you know, have you got table names? Are there going to be displayed
somehow? People are going to be able to see them when they come in. You need to make sure that
they're obviously like facing them out way so people can walk into the room and see them, double
sided. Or double sided. Or double sided. Yeah, I always do double sided. But then you put, you know,
it's still got to be. Yeah, they're right. Angles, it should be. Yeah. And then obviously place names. Are
you having favours that double up as place names? Or are you having traditional place names?
Or menus that double up as place names? There are loads of different options with your table decor.
It needs to be fairly obvious to forget, though, because they're not going around trying
the hardest to find their seat. Yes, they need to stand out. Yeah, definitely. My favourite
thing that I've ever seen at a wedding was a tea towel. But they got all the guests on the RSVP
to send in a little sketch of themselves. And do you remember like the tea towels from primary?
I still have mine. Yes, I still have mine. They did that for their wedding. Oh, amazing.
It was amazing. So every guest had on their seat a tea towel with all these guest spaces on it.
It was so cool. It was really cool. Really original. Did they use them as their napkins on the day?
I love that. I think I heard some ideas of that. And a table decor for your wedding breakfast
is a brilliant way to add personalisation. Yes. If you're going for a themed wedding, whether it's
like a travel theme or something slightly different than your pets or something, it's a good way to
subtly include your theme in the favour, a drawing of your favourite destinations,
you know, hand painting of your favourite destinations on the table name cards.
It's a really good way to include your personality. So with your decor, just think about the space
that you need for everything, the practical things first. Yes, your plates, your glasses,
your cutlery and how your food is going to be served. And then you can build up your table names,
place names. I think it's worth asking your venue as well about the table sizes. Depending on
if you... So the width of a trestle table. Yes. The standard trestle table is two foot six wide.
That doesn't leave an awful lot of room in the middle for a plated meal and let alone a family
start sharing meal. So it's worth asking, are they two foot six wide tables or are they three
foot wide tables? And that gives you an idea. And the same with the round tables, are they five
foot six round tables, which a venue will tell you will seek tests. But it'll seek 10 at quite a
squish. Yeah. Or are there six foot rounds that a venue will say see 12? You'd rather have 10.
You'd rather have 10. Like I know, with my marquee clients, I always say six foot tables with 10
people on. That gives you space for a charger plate as well. Which you will not have. So it's worth
finding that information out so you know how many people are going to want at each table.
Definitely. Thank you. And what would you say would be your top tip for your wedding breakfast?
I think it's around the entertainment. I think having some sort of background noise is important
in my opinion. But I think you need it to be discrete. Yeah. Going over the live band that's
going to go up and down. That's going to be really up in people's spaces. That is the time where you
want your guests to communicate with each other. Yeah. And you want them to have a conversation.
So keep the entertainment that you choose sectional. So if you want to have a live band,
I'm not saying don't have a live band, have something that is roaming and can keep certain people's
attention at certain times, rather than everyone in the room's attention. And then they can move on
or opt for background music or opt for a magician or something that's not quite as loud. But you want
guests to be able to hear each other. Amazing. Thank you. So join us next week when we are going to be
talking to a fantastic cake to play. Juna Proko. Oh amazing. See you next week. Bye!