You asked for it, here it is....Wedding from HELL!!

[marvsbbq]

This started out as a party for 350. I have only spoken to the groom and only through emails. Except for the time he came over to get some samples.

They (bride and groom) insisted on samples, they said they didn't even care if it was what they wanted for their wedding food, they just wanted samples of SOMETHING from Marv's.

After sampling, he emailed that same day to say how great the food was and how much she and he really liked it. (I gave them Tri-Tip and chicken).

This was very early on in this years season. They had actually booked us last summer.

Well, when it came time to pay the piper (me), HER father called me and said "the kids kind of got carried away and their won't be near that many guests". He said the groom will be calling me in the next few days with new numbers....I said "Ok, not a problem I will do what ever you need".

Well the groom calls and said they will only have 285 (from 350). Ok, we sent the new invoice and they (the parents) sent the check right away. All good....so far.

The wedding was yesterday and the menu was Tri-tip, chicken, baked beans, green beans with bacon and onion and ceasar salad.

They planned to eat at 6:00 PM so we showed up at 3:30PM and immediately the father of the bride comes over and asks "you're going to serve on time...aren't you??? I said "we are if you still plan to eat at 6:00 PM."

With myself, I had 5 staff and my new pit (Ole Hickory) to make this all happen.

Well, I put the beans on the smoker first and decided because I needed a bit more room that I would put the pans in deep instead of sideways so I could sit 3 per shelf instead of only 2.

Now you have to remember, this pit has 4 rotating racks with 3 shelves on each rack.

Well, first off, I forgot to turn the switch on that allowed the racks to roatate once the door was closed...but THAT was not the problem.

When I put the beans on they 'seemed' a bit off balance so I had my son-in-law try to adjust the height by raising and lowering the jack on the tounge...didn't help.

So I said.."that's ok, just close it up and let it go"

Well, when I opened it to put the chicken on.....the ENTIRE rack had tipped toward the back of the smoker and DUMPED beans out into the bottom of the smoker.....OUCH (that was NOT the word I used though).

I managed to save most of the beans...I figured I lost about 50 servings in the bottom of the smoker...

Ok, so we got the chicken on and the tri-tip and the smoker just didn't SEEM to be climbing in temp as fast as I thought it should and the serving time was getting closer so I bumped the temp to 325 (max).

Well due to the rain (been raining all week here) we had to serve inside the barn (yes, I said BARN..more later on that).

So I was the 'runner/filler'...running back and froth to the smoker.

The MOTHER of the bride comes up right before serving and asks "Now we aren't going to run out of food are we". I politely said.."no madam, we are not going to run out of food" (should of been more specific...like said "We won't run out of food UNLESS"...) (I should have known that was a 'loaded' question).

So we start serving RIGHT ON TIME and the line seemed to NEVER end...

We had put out 300 forks (remember that is how I keep track of how many guests eat?)...Well guess what...I had to put MORE out...50 MORE...Yes, they had PAID for 285 and had 350 show.

The only think I can think of is he had asked about leftovers and how much we usually had and we said we serve/bring lots and LEAVE the leftovers...we think he was counting on that to serve his 'extra' guests.

We bring about 10% extra food ONLY to cover our own butts incase there are a FEW extra people...certainly not 65 more people.

I will say, my crew did an AWESOME job and there were only about 10 that didn't' get SOMETHING to eat...maybe not EVERYTHING...but something.

One guy THREW his plate at my wife because he didn't get SECONDS!!

I felt the need to speak to the groom and let him know that I knew he shafted me....He TRIED to act supprised that there were more guests than what he paid for...When I spoke to the bride later and let her know what I knew and that it was MY reputation that was at stake here and I did NOT appreciate what they did....She started crying and then her new husband (groom) came up and I said..."Hey, I don't want to ruin your day here, consider this a wedding present but I would appreciate that when your guests complain that the caterer ran out of food.....you tell them the truth."

Now about the barn.....

This was an OLD barn that someone decided would be 'cute' to rent out for parties. Well, they did remove all the stalls and added a small kitchen and bathrooms but it is STILL an old barn.

There is an upstairs (loft) where they actually held the wedding..

The parking is nearly nonexistent and what there is, certainly is not level by any streach of the imagination.

End of story...........

[G's BBQ]

And thats why I recently added this to my contract...

[marvsbbq]

I have that in my contract as well but I really felt it would be more hassle than it was worth to fight it.

[G's BBQ]

[BBQMAN]

Good Grief Marv!!!!!!

Sounds a lot like a wedding we did this past May.

Now normally, I would have done like you did, made the best of it, and gave the couple the extra meals as a "gift".

However, after being treated like that (including the obvious bait and switch on the guest count) they would have gotten the bill. The A-Hole with the plate throwing fit would then have gotten an assault charge throw in for good measure.

I would send these people a letter, stating the obvious, along with a new bill.

It would seem that your new smoker is not quite as "set it, and forget it" as you first thought!
_________________
BBQMAN
"I Turned A Hobby Into A Business".
Providing "IMHO" Since 2005.

[Slamdunkpro]

Ah weddings, what fun! Marv, you'll know when it's time to stop doing weddings when you walk past a bakery and you have an irresistible urge to run in and twist the heads off all the little bride and groom statues on the cakes in the window

Something that has worked for me in the past - when I get that funny feeling about a head count I contact the venue and ask if the seating requirements have changed. I had a banquet try the same bit with me last year, they dropped the head count from 150 to 100; it didn't smell right so I called the reception hall and asked if the number of tables/chairs had changed and they told me"Yes that party is now for 165" I called the client, told him what I knew, he confessed and ponied up the bucks for the correct number.
_________________
Real Barbecue gives you time to get drunk after putting it in the smoker and sober up before taking it out!

Regards,
Michael

[BBQMAN]

Now that is great idea Slamdunkpro, thanks!
_________________
BBQMAN
"I Turned A Hobby Into A Business".
Providing "IMHO" Since 2005.

[G's BBQ]

[Big Brother Smoke]

Wow! Talk about shady!

[Ranucci's Big Butt]

I can't believe you made a bride cry on her wedding day, that's just wrong. I don't care what they did, that's pretty low if you ask me. Sure they may have shafted you and put you in a bad spot, but to call them out on their wedding day is unreal. Why would you risk bringing only 10% more on someones wedding day and risk running out? Stop worrying about that $15 extra bucks and make sure the clients are happy, but I guess that is a dead philosophy now a days in this business, guess I will try to bring it back to life in NC.
_________________
Alex

Ranucci's Big Butt BBQ
www.ranuccis.com
www.bigbuttbbq.com

[marvsbbq]

[allsmokenofire]

I don't think it's any great surprise that a wedding reception has people that show up that don't RSVP. I wasn't there obviously, but there must have been something specific that happened that made you accuse the bride and groom of "shafting" you?

I've never seen a wedding party turn away guests for the reception who didn't RSVP. Perhaps the wedding party was in an awkward position because more people showed up than had originally reserved? I'm wondering if it might not have been more appropriate to address the issue after the reception via email, snail mail, a phone call, etc. versus a 2 seperate confrontations at the wedding w/ the groom and then the bride?

The way I see it, you run some risk of tarnishing your reputation if you're short on food, but why take the chance of tarnishing your rep by being labeled, let's say, "difficult to deal with"?

A wedding is a special day for any bride and groom. I'm thinking Alex's point(and correct me if I'm wrong) is, why address the situation in the accusatory manner that you did....twice...in the midst of their celebration? Would it be inconceivable that more guests showed up to their reception than had RSVP'd?
_________________
Mike
Team Enoserv

[Ranucci's Big Butt]

That's what I was trying to say Mike, thanks, still tired as hell from our vending event that over 6000 people showed up. We weren't there and didn't know the situation but I would have called them the next day to iron things out. I would have tried to spread the food thin and hope for the best, then run like the wind and call it a day but I don't do large parties so I wouldn't really know.
_________________
Alex

Ranucci's Big Butt BBQ
www.ranuccis.com
www.bigbuttbbq.com

[BBQMAN]

I think this problem was spelled out fairly well by Marv, Mike and Alex.

while I certainly agree that you don't want to create problems for anyone on thier wedding day, this problem was created by the wedding party, not Marv.

Remeber they wanted to book the party for 350? Then they wanted to pay for 285 as the initial guest count was optimistic? Then the original 350 showed up?

I would have avoided the scene with the bride. However, this should have been brought to the attention of the parents paying for this event. Remember mom being worried about running out of food? No sh!t lady, 65 more guests than you paid for showed up. Not a "few" extras guys, 65 extra!

What a bunch of crap! No offense, but someone dang sure should have been crying!

This is the main reason that I count guests at larger events. When you run out, guess who gets the blame? It doesn't make the situation any better (people still want to blame the caterer, not the tightwad that paid for "x" amount of guests) but it is helpful when bridezilla starts to bitch and whine that not everone got to eat on thier "special day"

It shuts them up real quick if/when this happens when you let them know that "well ma'am, we fed the 285 you paid for, and then yes, we did run out after we fed 300".
_________________
BBQMAN
"I Turned A Hobby Into A Business".
Providing "IMHO" Since 2005.

[Big Brother Smoke]

I would be damned if I would let 65 extra ppl go without expecting to be paid for it. $975 plus tax and tip ?

There a lot of caterers that are out of business for poor service and bad fiscal management. My distributor manager for meat etc., gave me some sound advice when I first started: Provide good service and make sure you get paid upfront! He told me he has seen alot of caterers go down the tubes moreso for not making sure their client fulfil their contractual obligations.

The only person who made the bride cry was "the bride." She was crying because their scheme did not work and they were called on it! They were trying to give Marv the "okie doke" and it did not work

[allsmokenofire]

[OddThomas]

Hi,

I think all around it sucks to get mistreated by your clients and in any business you spend a lot of time trying to avoid exactly this type of situation. At the same time though, you don't want to come off as unreasonable jerk who got loud at someone's wedding reception. Maybe there is a solution to avoid it altogether.

Perhaps it would be a good idea (I'm not sure) to require some sort of "fully refundable guest overage deposit" (in addition to your normal deposit) for, say, 50 additional guests at the agreed upon PPP--anything more and you can't reasonably be expected to come through with the extra food anyway. This amount would be held like an escrow (cleared and cashed of course) to cover surprise guests; afterwards you could refund all or a portion of the deposit as necessary. This way if you get 10% or less overage (which I plan for anyway), you can refund all of the contingency deposit and call the overage a gift -- "You were over about 10%, but we're going to call this a wedding gift and a sincere thank you for your business--here's your deposit back and please let us know when we can serve you again". In this case you wind up looking like a great guy, but you were still covered if you needed it and without having to make a stink about it.

If I were to do something like this it would probably be only for large events (like 200 or more) where a lot of unexpected guests are a real possibility--like a big wedding reception.

Thoughts? Pros? Cons?

[Slamdunkpro]

Based on Marv’s description of the events, this wasn’t a simple case of “non RSVP’rs” showing up at the reception. This was a case where the family clearly conspired to chisel the caterer. They knew damn well what was going on either be attempting to deliberately defraud Marv or in a kinder light they tried to string him out to the wire and take advantage of his safety net. They lost.

Hindsight being 20/20 I’d have stopped serving after 300 (285 + overage), gone to the father of the bride and told him “You’re way over your guest count, we’ve just served the 285 you paid for plus all our overage and it looks like there’s still about 50 people to feed. I need a check or cash for $450 right now to continue serving.”

Yeah, it’s cold, but they’re going to trash you anyway so you might as well get paid.
_________________
Real Barbecue gives you time to get drunk after putting it in the smoker and sober up before taking it out!

Regards,
Michael

[adolpho]

Just a heads up, I combined two posted topics in this one commentary. The other topic is from the "What happened" posting.
- Adolph


Big Brother Smoke puts out a monetary figure and wow that makes me think that it is unfortunate how much money can be loss when extra people show up. Of course I don't agree with the plus gratuity mark in there, but that's just me and my personal opinion.

The issues:
Mandatory Gratuity or Service Charge? (original reason why the "what happened..." thread started)
More guests than planned for (this thread)
Bride crying (this thread)

Mandatory gratuity or Service charge - I don't care what you mask it in, but the moment you are CHARGING someone, it is not a gratuity. In fact, the term "mandatory gratuity" should not exist. I've stated in posts from the past that gratuity is an appreciation for services provided. Gratuity is something you earn. Service charge is a fee for additional work, and when you're hiring an on-site caterer, serving is part of that package, not additional. A wireless phone company sells you a phone and a calling plan. You want the phone turned on while you're at the store, the CSR tell you that you need to pay a $20 service fee or you can go home and turn it on through the internet for free. You see, additional work/service. But does it make you willing to pay if the CSR tells you "for a $20 mandatory gratuity, we will turn your phone on here at the store."

More guests - That is the customer's fault, which was not the bride or groom but the parents. The moment mom came over and was worried about the food, she should've been informed of the situation and worked out a plan. Maybe letting her know that you only have enough to serve 313 people (including 10% overage accounted for) and asking her if you decrease the portions could've been worked out. Maybe they weren't reasonable and nothing would've worked. Or as BBQMAN stated, tell them ... "well ma'am, we fed the 285 you paid for, and then yes, we did run out after we fed 300".... One thing that can be done, if your not ready to accept that your reputation took a hit (even though it's not your fault), is be prepared for a situation like this. I can't remember if I've seen this on BBQMAN's website or it was an old post from a year or so ago, but he carries hamburgers ready to grill in minutes (so to speak) if food is running out. He then charges the customer. It may not be old fashion BBQ, but it will not leave the guests hungry. Of course I've yet to deal with this situation and have smaller gigs, so accounting for them is much easier.

Bride crying - I deal with brides almost every week. I gig in a mariachi band and by golly it's gotta be done their way. The wedding coordinator is the person to deal with, never the bride. And from experience, the groom can be worse. He will act like he's on your side and telling you what he's been going through with her, all the while giving you bad props to everyone else for not working with his bride. There is always a wedding coordinator, whether it be a hired one or a family member, friend or whatever. A liason is there for a reason. If the bride comes to you, listen and gripe to the coordinator afterwards if you got a gripe. It doesn't matter if the bride is a bridezilla, remember, it is her day!!! Also remember, that the parents should've been the ones you dealt with, anyway.

Marv, I know it's tough dealing with some customers. I've seen it all in my music business. People assuming I can't speak English so treating me like crap or I won't understand their directions. Treated like a little child. But it all works out when I give them one hell of a performance and EARN an extra tip! I think we can all fall down and forget we're in the service business and the saying is "the customer's always right."
Since the customer can see your Credos, I would try to find a way to avoid breaking #1 and #4 again.
http://www.marvsbbq.com/Marv_mission.php

I've taken hits on my reputation with my band and it wasn't even my fault. Yet I seem to still get more gigs than any of my competitors. I'm sure that's the same with you!

PAZ!!
_________________
"Tag line? We don't need no stinkin' tag line!"

[OddThomas]