In mid-December 2021 the Kemp and Kemp Catering team cooked and served a perfect three course meal for 120 people in a flimsy tent, by the side of a lake, on top of the Derbyshire Dales in the middle of Storm Arwen.
It was exciting to say the least as winds of up to 90mph buffeted the catering tent sending storage crates flying. The wonderful marquee man was on constant patrol for loosening tent pegs, and thankfully all was fine, but with cars and vans bogged down, mud and rain-soaked kit (and guests), it was certainly one of our more chaotic events!
With more and more pressure piling on summer dates, following two disrupted wedding seasons, securing a wedding on one of these highly coveted summer days has become harder and vastly more expensive. This means that more couples than ever are considering holding their weddings outside these traditional summer months. However, unless you are willing to risk a marquee wedding (and we do apologise if the above anecdote has put you off), the type of wedding you can organise in the winter can be significantly more limited, especially for the discerning couple who want their personalities to shine through in a bespoke, unique and showstopping affair.
Afterall, who wants traditional hotel wedding packages with their bland, ordinary food, expensive drinks, and that unshakeable feeling that you are just another bride being ushered through the wedding factory?
For all the obvious reasons (weather, demand, burn-out), the type of bespoke catering companies who traditionally work in marquees during the summer often shut down their operations for the winter – so it’s all a bit chicken and egg.
However, at Kemp & Kemp Catering we’ve decided to put our foot down! If Cinderella wants to go to the ball in the winter, then she shall, and without compromise! We’ve teamed up with a range of hand-picked, winter-friendly wedding venues in the Midlands to offer you a jaw-dropping menu of bespoke winter wedding packages, with all the individuality and choice you’d expect from a summer wedding and none of the downsides.
If you’re envisioning winter weddings as dismal, cold occasions in stuffy venues, allow us to set the record straight. Winter weddings can be absolutely dreamy and far surpass their summer counterparts. ‘What? How?’ We hear you cry, ‘surely that can’t be true’, well listen up.
Summer weather is incredibly risky. Yes, it might be glorious sunshine, but it might not. You may find yourself waking up on your wedding day in fits of anxiety when you look outside and realise your perfectly orchestrated marital take on Glastonbury is going to be a total washout. But in winter no-one expects anything. There’ll be no stressing, no fevered analysis of the MET office online forums, no hot tears dripping down on your weather app, because whatever happens – you’ll be indoors! You may even be pleasantly surprised – frost and snow and chilly winter mornings make for fairy-tale photographs.
Throw away the worn-out hymn sheet that countless couples before you have sung from – the barbecue, the lawn games … forget it! Start from scratch and build something beautiful based on you and your partner, not based on a cliché. Weddings are about bringing people together, so think intimate. Imagine warm, rich, dark colours, roaring log fires, cosy candlelight and sumptuous hot chocolate and mulled wine. Your guests won’t remember a spectacle, they’ll remember how they felt, so plan something from the heart.
It really is a chance to indulge and get stuck into some seriously hearty, rich, flavourful menus. Food-genius Karen Kemp has dreamed up some showstopping winter food combos that will delight you and your guests … slow braises, steak & ale pies, gourmet sausages and creamy mash, melt-in-the-mouth apple crumble and sticky toffee pudding, we could go on and on!
We just love the cosy, rustic winter feast aesthetic; bring your guests together over sumptuous sharing boards and platters-piled-high with mouth-watering treats.
When you aren’t paying surge seasonal rates it’s just so much cheaper to plan a wedding! Winter weddings really have won us over here at Kemp & Kemp, so we’ve created a special winter food package where, in 2022, you pay £45 plus VAT per person, inclusive of crockery, cutlery, linen, and staff based on a minimum of 60 guests eating three courses.
Our winter wedding season runs between 1st November 2022 to 31st April 2023 (although it excludes Christmas and New Year).
In 2023 the price is £50 plus VAT per person.
Venues also offer out of season deals often at more than 50% off their peak summer prices, and those set up for winter are raring to go with plenty of availability. Speak to us about the venues we recommend for Winter Weddings.
For your wedding day, plan something better than a spectacle; plan atmosphere. Celebrate who you love, with who you love. Bring your family, friends, and lifelong dreams together with a winter wedding, we promise you won’t regret it.
If you’d like to discuss our catering services, please get in touch or fill in our contact form below:
Photo Credits to Steven Rooney, Emma White and Emily Davidson.
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