Do You Tip a Wedding Caterer?

Wedding vendors are essential to creating the perfect day. Your venue is the perfect backdrop to say “I do”, your photographer will capture all your important moments and your DJ will keep everyone dancing throughout the night.

Your wedding caterer is one of the most crucial vendors. They will ensure that the food and drinks are flowing freely throughout your reception, from cocktail hour to the end.

Your wedding catering has a big job. Depending on who you choose, the caterer could be responsible for everything from creating your menu to renting place settings and even serving food at your reception.

You want to ensure that they are compensated properly because of their large job. The question is: Does that compensation include tipping? Here’s everything you need know about Tipping your Wedding Caterer.

Do You Tipped a Wedding Caterer?

First, let’s answer the most important question: Should you tip your wedding caterer or not? The short answer is: It depends.

Some caterers include gratuity in their catering fee. In this case, you don’t need to worry about the tip. The tip will be included in the catering package and you don’t need to do anything else.

If your catering contract does not include gratuity, then you will definitely want to tip the caterer as well as any other staff (such bartenders or chefs) at your event.

Check your contract to see if gratuity has been included. If so, find out how much it covers. You may not be sure if gratuity is covered in the catering fee, ask your caterer.

How Much Should You Tip the Wedding Caterer

How much gratuity should you give your caterer if it’s not included in your contract?

There are several ways to tip your wedding vendors. You’re probably most familiar with the first tipping technique, which is to tip a percentage of all your food and beverage expenses.

Imagine tipping in a restaurant. You would tip at least 15-20% of the bill if you had a wonderful meal. The same goes for wedding caterers. It is recommended that you leave 15 to 20% of the total bill for food and drinks. Your caterer will then decide how the tip is divided amongst its staff.

You can also choose to tip each member of your catering staff at a fixed rate. This method may be more cost-effective depending on the number and total cost of the food and beverage services. Plan to tip the catering manager between $200 and $300, waitstaff between $20 and $30, and chefs and kitchen staff between $50 and $100. If you have hired a caterer to run the bar at your event, tip the bartenders between 10 and 15 percent of the bar bill.

When (and how) do you tip a wedding caterer?

When and how to tip your wedding caterer? That’s the last question.

There are several different ways and times to tip vendors for your wedding. You can tip the wedding caterer ahead of time, usually when you pay the final bill. You can tip the catering manager if you are paying in a lump-sum (between 15 to 20 percent of your total food and beverage bill). If you’re planning to tip all staff members a flat amount, confirm who will be attending the wedding. Separate their tips and give them to your catering manager before the big day.

You can also give tips the day of your wedding. You usually distribute tips after the reception. You may want to give tips to waitstaff or bartenders before the ceremony. This will encourage them to perform at a higher level.