WEDDING SUPPLIERS REVIEW: Eloquente Catering Servies

I'll have to admit, finding the right caterer was a tough job for us.  Considering that food will eat up a huge chunk of our wedding budget, we didn't want to book not just any caterer.  We wanted to be 100% sure of our decision.

We did the usual rounds (bridal fares, referrals - the works).  We saw a lot of really impressive ones but budget-wise, not really what we were looking for.  When finally, 2 officemates of mine mentioned Eloquente Catering Services.  Incidentally, both their sisters had them as their wedding caterers.

So after meeting with them and experiencing first hand what they had to offer, I present to you our top 5 things we love about Eloquente:

5. Price.  If you may have noticed in my earlier entries, budget plays a big part in all our wedding decisions.  We are practical people.  And since we had to pay for everything (and I do mean, everything.  No one chipped in at all), we always thought through everything as many times as possible.

Eloquente, as compared to the other caterers out there, offers more reasonably-priced packages but provides the same quality of service compared as the rest.  I have been working in Human Resources my whole professional career.  I have experienced doing the back-end of almost every Employee Relations activities known to man out there.  One thing I learned from my experience, a pricey caterer/supplier does not always equate to quality service.

A gem like Eloquente is so hard to find.  So based from reviews and recommendations, we booked them on the spot.

4. Food.  Fiancee and I booked the lowest package (Anthurium).  We were supposed to take the 2nd option but when we analyzed the package, we realized that we already had suppliers for most of the freebies they were offering there.

I have to admit though, at first I was a little apprehensive.  I was afraid that the food at the lowest package might not be all that good.  I was even prepared to change our package if ever we didn't like what we ate during the food tasting.  Surprisingly, we loved it!  Even our guests agreed that it was superb!

Buffet pictures.  Yummy!

3. Resourcefulness.  Our wedding was, unfortunately, scheduled on the same day as the Feast of the Black Nazarene, an extreme oversight that we had failed to notice during our early planning stage.  Eloquente, surprisingly, was able to beat the traffic and arrive at our reception in plenty of time to spare.

Jun, our Eloquente point person, mentioned that they did their research the night before, plotting alternative routes just to beat the traffic.

I had a picture of a wedding cake that I really wanted for us.  It was a 3-layer white fondant number with fresh red roses surrounding it.  I fell in love with the design instantly and immediately went about explaining to Eloquente my predicament.  They called up their baker, Merced, and arranged the details.  I gave them the picture and here was what the finished product looked like:

Groom and bride Tatty bears courtesy of Hubby, who loved me so much to locate a couple in Singapore

We had to pay a little extra for the fresh flowers (around P2,000), but it was well-worth it.

2. Excellent customer service.  Waiters and servers were sufficient enough during the wedding.  Feedback from the guests was that they were always accommodated and never once felt neglected during the event.  Two waiters were assigned specifically for hubby and I at our table.  Everytime I had to stand up, or forgot my bouquet at the table, someone was always there lending a hand.  So attentive!

1. Extremely accommodating.  I was an obsessive-compulsive bride (and darn proud of it, too!).  Since fiancee is working in Singapore, he more or less gave me the go ahead to make the decisions during most of the wedding preparations. 

I've attended a quite a few weddings in the past and I've seen things I loved and hated about the decor.  So I made sure that every aspect of the wedding decor was exactly to my specifications.

Request #1:
Our package included the use of 3 columns which would serve as the main decor to highlight the newlywed's table.  Unfortunately, it wasn't really to my liking.  I saw their pictures and it looked so tacky!  On the other hand, the wedding cake table had an arc that looked too big for the it. 

So instead of their usual decor, we requested them to transfer the columns to the wedding cake and the arc to our table.  They agreed to the request.

They even designed it for us with lights.  Something we really didn't expect them to do.  We had a nighttime garden reception party and the effect was wonderful.  So happy!

Request #2:
Our wedding motif was burgundy and eccru (sort of a dark red and off-white color).  So I wanted everything, and I do mean everything, reflecting those hues.  I didn't like some of the weddings I attended before where the flowers used were in different shades, not in line with the main color motif.

But since I was really an OC bride, I requested all of our flowers to be in shades of red and white only.  I really didn't care what type of flowers they used as long as they followed our color motif.  They were able to pull through.  From the buffet to the individual table centerpieces, all were in varying shades of red and white only.  Oh and I had our tablecenter pieces personalized as well.  J

Request #3:
Our table and chair decors followed specific instructions as well.  During the final meeting, Eloquente's events designer showed me the actual chair and table design.  I had him do around 3 different designs before finally settling down on one I really wanted. 

Request #4:
We had to request for vegan meals for 2 of our principal sponsors.  This we requested way in advance.  Unfortunately, the night before our wedding (around 8:00 p.m.), fiancee suddenly mentioned that those same sponsors weren't also allowed to eat garlic and onions.  Frantic, we had to call Eloquente immediately and inform them of the change.  They were able to get back to us quickly and assured us that it could still be fixed.

I was one monster bridezilla and thankfully, Eloquente was able to stomach all my "artes" and gave us a reception we truly loved.  Never once regretted getting them.  J

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For inquiries, please visit http://www.eloquentecatering.com/ or call (+63 2) 4401913.



For a detailed list of our wedding expenses and some handy tips, please visit my Wedding Expenses: Our own Personalized Summary of Wedding Needsand Wants post at this link