When you are planning a budgeted menu, you must first know what your exact budget is when it comes to the food and drink specifically. Some people keep the food and drinks separate, but on average, the food and drink are a part of the same bill.

If you can afford the more expensive catering services, then by all means enjoy. However, if you are like most of us, you will likely need a little bit of help in creating a menu that is fitting to your budget.

If you are hosting an indoor reception in a hall and plan to have a dinner option, you have to make sure that you accommodate the needs of all of your guests which include vegetarians. You should request that the guests RSVP beforehand so that you can get the right amount of vegetarian plates.

The way that you choose to serve the dinners can vary. Here are some tips on how you can choose to serve the guests to make it a bit cheaper for you.

? You can serve the meals buffet style, with this option you have people forego wedding gifts in favor of bringing a dish

? You can offer vegetable, fruit an meat platters with dips and crackers instead of foods

? You can ask each guest to contribute a small amount of money to the reception or to make donations toward the reception rather than buying a gift.

? You can offer a soup and salad menu rather than a full blown entrée ? Offer a limited bar which means that you offer an open bar only at certain times such as after dinner and during toasting etc. that way your guests aren't paying and you won't go broke, the rest of the time offer a cash bar

? Offer around the world appetizers instead of a meal. This will give you the opportunity to offer fill ups such as crab, shrimp. Etc. as well as casual appetizers like cheese sticks, chicken wings, and mushroom caps etc. the around the world motif will also provide your party with a variety of different tastes.

? Request that each immediate family member create a dish instead of a present

? Do not pay for extras like servers, bartenders etc. asking a friend or family member to do it instead as a wedding gift to you

Outdoor receptions give you much freedom when choosing your menu because you can serve anything that you want including barbecue, long group submarine sandwiches or pizza.

As long as you offer foods that will accommodate both carnivores and vegetarians, you will be fine. You can always find items to suit all of your needs and every budget as long as your budget is reasonable for the amount of people that you are planning to serve. If it doesn't fit, you may have to trim the invite list.

Mia LaCron is the founder of Cut-Wedding-Costs.info - http://www.cut-wedding-costs.info - devoted to helping individuals live out the wedding of their dreams on a realistic budget they can afford.

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