8 Catering Companies That Can Help Make Your Special Day Memorable

Hosting an event involves a lot of tricky moving parts, but you'll be one step closer to pulling it off and pleasing all your guests if you nail one crucial aspect: the catering. Whether you're planning a wedding, a graduation, a company gala, or a quinceañera, a great caterer will turn your special day into a truly unforgettable one. The groups included on this list, which serve locations throughout the United States and into Canada, strive to do just that by providing incredible food and service expertise. This video was made with Ezvid Wikimaker.

8 Caterers for a Memorable Event

Name Location
Ridgewells Catering Bethesda, Maryland
Catering By The Family Tampa, Florida
Catering Works Raleigh, North Carolina
Big Delicious Planet Chicago, Illinois
Real Food Catering New York City, New York
Eatertainment Hospitality Toronto, Canada
Toben Food By Design Toronto, Canada
Park Avenue Catering Cotati, California

A Brief History of Catering By The Family

6 Great Films About Weddings & Marriage

  1. Father of the Bride (1991)
  2. Steel Magnolias (1989)
  3. My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
  4. Meet the Parents (2000)
  5. The Notebook (2004)
  6. Yours, Mine and Ours (2005)

Weddings by Eatertainment

In Depth

The right caterer can really bring a party to the next level. Whether it's a wedding, bat mitzvah, corporate lunch, or any other type of event, it can only benefit from the planning and food service expertise such companies can provide. This list, presented in no particular order, looks at eight North American catering companies that have set themselves apart.

At #1, Ridgewells Catering has operated in the Washington, D.C.-area for more than 85 years. The company vows to strive to furnish outstanding cuisine and elegant, high-end presentations. Serving farm-to-table food and employing sustainable practices, the caterer touts its social responsibility and donates a portion of profits to various charities.

Ridgewells handles corporate events, providing soup-to-nuts service from location scouting through design, set-up, entertainment, and documentation. The company's major events division provides banquet catering and concession services to clients at the world's most prestigious sporting matches. Weddings are, of course, a major part of the business, as are celebrations like birthday parties and bridal showers.

Ridgewells handles corporate events, providing soup-to-nuts service from location scouting through design, set-up, entertainment, and documentation.

#2 is Catering By The Family. Located in Tampa Bay, Florida, the large, full-service caterer features locally sourced ingredients and cuisine infused by Chef Steven Gonzalez Jr.'s time in New Orleans. From boxed lunches and buffet brunches to cocktail parties and plated dinners, the company works with clients to develop menus that meet their tastes and budget.

For weddings and both public and private celebrations, Catering By The Family works with a wide range of local venues. The company offers menus for a variety of occasions and tastes, from lunch packages, both hot and cold, for corporate clients to brunch buffets, holiday lunches, and hors d'oeuvres. Widely acclaimed, it was given the People's Choice Award for Best Caterer by the Tampa Bay Times.

On the list at #3, Catering Works of Raleigh, North Carolina has served a large clientele in the Triangle area and beyond since 1989. An off-premise catering and special event planning company, it handles weddings; social events, such as anniversaries, bar mitzvahs, and galas; and corporate gatherings, including meals and meetings.

An off-premise catering and special event planning company, it handles weddings; social events, such as anniversaries, bar mitzvahs, and galas; and corporate gatherings, including meals and meetings.

Pastry Works is the group's baked goods wing, crafting custom wedding cakes, grooms' cakes, cupcakes, and cake pops, among other treats. Bloom Works is the in-house floral studio, providing flower arrangements and designs for all occasions. The company also maintains its own events venue, The Laurelbrook, taking bookings in Midtown Raleigh.

In the #4 slot, Big Delicious Planet, which makes a commitment to sustainability a part of the daily practices in its kitchen and at its events, was the first caterer in the country to become a 4 Star Certified Green Restaurant. As part of this mission, it maintains its own urban farm, from which it sources produce and where it hosts private events and workshops.

Based in Chicago, the BDP team offers both full-service catering, for galas, cocktail receptions, showers, anniversaries, birthdays, mitzvahs, and the like, as well as drop-offs, mostly used by corporate clients. It is also a sought-after wedding caterer, offering planning, menus, and service. In a space abutting the catering kitchen is The Canteen, a cafe serving coffee, breakfast, and lunch.

It is also a sought-after wedding caterer, offering planning, menus, and service.

Coming in at #5, it's Real Food Catering. Located in the NoHo district of Manhattan, the caterer strives to help create memorable experiences for clients and their guests. It prides itself particularly on its weddings, seeking to highlight the vision of the bride and groom and providing farm-to-table cuisine made from high-quality ingredients.

Real Food also serves high-profile corporate clients, collaborating with a company's in-house team or taking sole responsibility for food and plating choices. The caterer offers a variety of menus, including those for hors d'oeuvres; so-called floating, or self-service, dinners; buffets; both classic and family-style seated dinners; and desserts and petite fours.

For #6, we've got Eatertainment Hospitality. Based in Toronto, it's a family-owned-and-operated restaurant and catering company that was founded in 1981. The catering operation is set up to handle every aspect of event planning and executing, including creative concept, decor, menu design and food service, documentation, rentals, staffing, publicity, and more.

Based in Toronto, it's a family-owned-and-operated restaurant and catering company that was founded in 1981.

For weddings, Eatertainment offers planning services, in conjunction with a wedding planner or independently, as well as catering, in both buffet and sit-down styles. Its wedding package touts relationships with a variety of local venues. The company services other special events for individual and corporate clients alike. To the latter, it also provides office catering.

The #7 entry is Toben Food By Design, which specializes in fully customized menus to reflect the distinct requirements of each client. Serving the Greater Toronto Area, the company offers global cuisine crafted by the eponymous chef, a graduate of the Cordon Blue School of Culinary Arts in Paris and a one-time apprentice for Daniel Boulud.

The team's event managers take customers through custom menu creation, budgeting needs, staffing, and rentals, attending to all details. Toben caters private events, corporate functions, and, of course, weddings. In addition to traditional table or buffet service, the company also has food trucks. It has received enthusiastic coverage from local as well as industry media.

Toben caters private events, corporate functions, and, of course, weddings.

Finally, at #8, it's Park Avenue Catering, serving the Sonoma, Napa, Marin, and San Francisco counties of California. Head Chef Bruce Riezenman is also the creator of Pair It!, an app for food and wine pairings, and this wine country catering company distinguishes itself with similar expertise. It is also committed to green, sustainable food service.

Park Avenue specializes in vineyard and winery weddings, and handles those at all venues. It also plans and caters Indian weddings. There are menus and services for social gatherings of all kinds, whether hosted at home, school, church, or any other space. Partnering with corporate clients, it provides food for executive dinners, company picnics, and the like.