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Just Said Yes August 2023

Catering company changed pricing

Lisa, on March 31, 2023 at 12:44 AM Posted in Planning 0 4

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Hi! I'm hoping to gut check something here.

On March 3rd, the catering company we're using (who owns all of the events at our venue) sent us a proposal with pricing for the entire event: price per head for our chosen menu, service fees, etc. Our coordinator did mention that the menu may be changing but that if we signed soon, she could lock in pricing. Last week (19 days after we received the proposal) I reached out and confirmed we'd like to move forward with everything in the proposal.
She responded with a new, *partially complete* menu and said the old 2023 menu is no longer valid. This new menu had no dinner options listed - just breakfast and a few lunch options. I questioned this, and she told me that the menu wasn't finalized yet. I told her I wasn't comfortable singing the venue reservation contract without knowing what we're paying per head for catering, and reassured me that the menu was being expanded and that prices would just be adjusted for inflation.
Stupidly, I signed the contract to book the venue (our wedding is Aug. 6th, so we're in a rush). I assumed it might go up $10 or so per person, but today she shared the new menu and it's $30 more (!!!) per head, and for less food.
I looked back at past menus and noticed that all of the menus -- except the one we chose from -- had a page with terms and conditions at the end noting that proposal terms and pricing are valid for 45 days.
A) Does this seem sketchy, or should I just chalk this up to "lesson learned" for signing the contract without seeing the new menu?
B) What sort of terms have you all seen re: how long proposal terms/pricing is valid for?

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Latest activity by Kimberly, on March 31, 2023 at 11:00 AM

Rockstar October 2023
Michael · on March 31, 2023 at 1:08 AM
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I'm not sure how you could really change things, but a contract basically must represent a meeting of minds. If the price jumped unexpectedly high, especially when the vendor knowing it would, there was not a meeting of minds. I don't know if that knowledge would give you leverage to renegotiate the price downward some. Of course there is not a whole lot of time to do that.
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VIP August 2021
Michelle · on March 31, 2023 at 8:08 AM
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So in the 10 days since you signed, the pricing went up $30? Does that include changes to bar pricing? Does each entrée have its own pricing, and do you like their dinner options? You didn't even have a tasting yet which is atypical for caterers. When I got married in 2021 (all-inclusive venue) Market Price lobster changed from $23 to $33pp (difference of $10). This was an optional add-on for cocktail hour.
I would have an in-person meeting immediately on how food, pricing, or both can be modified. Be prepared to walk and take other meetings as there are other caterers with better business practices you can certainly book in 4 months. August isn't a busy wedding month. Good luck.
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Just Said Yes August 2023
Lisa · on March 31, 2023 at 10:25 AM
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The $30 increase pp is just for the meal (buffet style, basic salad/chicken/beef/sides options. It just seems excessive.

I feel like I have room to argue that if their proposals are supposed to be valid for 45 days as a venue rule, they should honor the proposal I was given 19 days prior. At the same time, I'm also completely aware that I signed when I should have waited, so I'm at fault (fwiw, she kept telling us she had no idea how long it would be before the menu was finalized).
The venue is a landmark location in Chicago and their standard venue is booked over a year out, but we're just renting a pavilion on-site. I feel like their general attitude has been that because it's so in-demand, they don't need to bother with any standard courtesies. We never had the option for anything that's typically standard: tour (thankfully, what we're renting is publicly accessible), menu tasting, etc. Unfortunately, the location gave full ownership to this particular catering company, so by signing the venue contract, we're stuck with them.
Rant: They've also generally been disinterested in helping us because we're not having a huge, immensely expensive wedding like their typical client. 😕 My favorite plot twist: we only have 1 hour to set up before the wedding, and that includes our floral and decor drop offs.
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Super September 2023
Kimberly · on March 31, 2023 at 11:00 AM
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Yikes. It really sounds like there are a lot of downsides to this particular venue and caterer. So your proposal never stated how long it was valid for? Most of the quotes I’ve received from vendors had some kind of time limit, although the timeframe varies by vendor. While I agree with Michael that there was no meeting of the minds on the particular terms, there was on signing the contract itself with certain terms TBD. It would really depend on the language in your contract. It sounds like if your venue requires this caterer, you’re kind of stuck anyway unless you find a new venue. I would see if you can negotiate the quality of the food down, like fewer sides, cheaper brands of alcohol, etc to see if they’ll budge at all, and also just let them know that a $30 pp increase was way beyond what you ever expected/they suggested. Or will they let you serve the lunch menu instead? There are ways to get out of unconscionable contracts, but only a local lawyer would be able to tell you if this qualifies.
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Catering company changed pricing

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