Parts of your wedding day will fly past in the blink of an eye and then you’ll arrive at the evening and chances are you’ll need something to keep you going, so too will your guests who have shared every minute of the day with you. You’ll want to extend every hospitality to the guests joining you for the evening only too, especially if some may have travelled far to celebrate with you. This article features ideas on what to serve on your wedding evening buffet and when to serve it at your wedding venue.

When considering something to keep energy levels up in the evening, the timings of your day are obviously the determining factor; an early ceremony and early wedding breakfast mean a longer evening, and a later ceremony, vice versa but a later-running day doesn’t mean you have to pass up the opportunity to enjoy something fun, funky and tasty. More than any other part of the day, an evening buffet is the free-style opportunity to include anything and everything you wanted but couldn’t quite fit into your canapés or wedding breakfast.

An evening buffet is usually put on display after evening guests have arrived, the wedding cake has been cut and the first dance has been performed.

An evening buffet is usually kept out on display for 2 hours.

Be it a buffet, bowl food walked round to your guests by usherettes, or a hog roasting on the patio, the need for more specific timings and service relaxes so if you wanted a high tea for your wedding breakfast but weren’t quite sure enough that it would hit the spot for all of your guests, the evening buffet is where you can indulge and get creative. You and your guests will be partying the night away by this time, the DJ will be doing his thing and the dance floor will fill. A service style that means guests can help themselves, or not, like a buffet means it won’t interrupt the party but offers the perfect sustenance to anyone in need and a ‘grab-and-go’ style will be appreciated by the party goers who want to get back to their boogie as much as by the more reserved who, now peckish, wish to have a little something away from the dance floor as conversations and reminiscence continue.

Depending on the style of your wedding venue, you may have your evening buffet displayed along side a wall in the same room as your dance floor, so as to keep the party together. Alternatively, your chosen venue may have a more suitable room in which to display your savoury buffet, with an alternative set up for sweet treats for later in the evening.