Our daughter was married last night. Everything went beautifully - until it didn't. Next steps?
We booked a beautiful venue with high ratings and paid for a package that included allowances for preferred vendors, etc. The photographer was fantastic; the DJ was excellent; the wedding coordinators were on top of everything. We knew there would be bobbles - there always are - but we felt that between the day-of coordinator and our own perspective on things, anything could be handled with grace.
The wedding went off without a hitch, and the reception started well. Then our meals were served. The entree consisted of a steak and chicken combination, fondant potatoes, and broccolini. I knew something was off when I saw that the sauces had congealed. One bite told me the rest: the food was barely room temperature. The veg had been par-cooked but not finished. The steaks served to the bride and groom were purple in the center. All of the meals were similarly cold and under-cooked.
I went to the kitchen to get some answers and talked to the coordinator. I heard one of the kitchen staff mention something about the hot box, but got no more detail on what went wrong. The chef had already departed. At this point there was nothing to do but go out to the individual tables to apologize. Fortunately, both sides of the family are pretty easy going and we didn't allow it to ruin the evening. The coordinator was horribly embarrassed, but this was clearly out of her control. She did notify her management and there is a promise that they will make amends this week.
I'm assuming that they will offer financial restitution, which is something but doesn't really make up for the embarrassment. I'd like to get some advice from the professionals in this sub or those who have had similar catastrophes to get a feel for what a reasonable recompense should look like.
Posted Jul 19, 2025, 7:46 PM UTC