BBQ Wedding Reception: How to Plan an I Do BBQ

Whether you’re planning classy or casual, BBQ is a great way to feed your guests. It’s delicious, filling and fun. With barbecue, you can choose a menu that fits your wedding style - and your budget. BBQ food is an affordable option when you’re hiring a caterer. If you’ve got a smaller budget, you can order BBQ from your favorite restaurant and semi-DIY your wedding meal.

If you’re on a super tight budget, you can even buy the ingredients and do a complete DIY for your wedding menu. You can make all the side dishes ahead of time. On the day of your wedding, you’ll probably have lots of volunteers to work the grill. For more about making DIY wedding food, read this next: Self Cater Your Wedding: How to DIY Your Wedding Food.

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Is BBQ at a Wedding Tacky?

No - it’s not tacky at all. As long as you feed your guests a meal that fits the time of day, you’re covered as far as etiquette goes. To keep your guests comfortable, make sure your meal suits the type of wedding you’re planning. If you’re having a fun, laid back wedding at a community center or home, a casual barbecue with burgers or ribs is a perfect fit.

But if you’re planning an elegant style wedding, your guests will show up in fancy clothes and expect a sit down meal. If you ask them to eat with their fingers you’ll probably get some side eye. It’s not impossible to serve barbecue at a formal wedding, just be careful how you do it.

BBQ Wedding Reception Themes

Once you’ve chosen your venue, you might want to add a theme for your wedding. You can use BBQ as your entire wedding theme. Decorate with traditional red gingham fabric and BBQ accessories. Or add some rustic decorations, like wildflowers and string lights. BBQ food goes great with a lot of wedding themes:

Barn
Country
Sunflowers
Daisies
Campground
Rustic
Boho
Mason jars
Cowboy boots
Fall
Spring
Summer
4th of July
Picnic

Choosing a Venue For a BBQ Wedding

Some venues will be a perfect fit for a barbecue wedding. If you’re planning a cookout style BBQ, think about venues like a state park, a local beach or even your own backyard. If you’re planning a more formal or semi formal wedding, look at traditional venues like a ballroom or banquet hall. Or check your local listings for unique venues, like a ranch or a barn.

Hotel ballroom
Banquet hall
Community center
Local park
Family home
Church hall
Cabin
Cottage
Ranch
Barn
Campground
Nature reserve
State park

How to Serve BBQ at a Formal Wedding

If you’re planning a formal wedding and serving BBQ, you’ll need to make sure all the details are elegant. A formal wedding is usually more expensive. Double check your budget, then make sure you have a formal, plated meal and elegant decorations.

An Elegant BBQ Menu

If you want to have an elegant wedding, don’t serve cookout food. If you want a formal event, you can’t have people eating with their fingers. So think about a plated menu with traditional BBQ foods, like grilled chicken or smoked brisket. Then add side dishes like baked potatoes and green salad to round out the meal.

Classy BBQ Wedding Decor

To get a formal look at your reception, choose all white linens. Make sure your centerpieces all match. Choose elegant glassware, white candles and flowers for stylish table decorations. If your venue doesn’t include real china, see if your caterer can provide dishes. Or look into a rental company for your dishes. For a formal wedding, you’ll need to have china dishes and real flatware.

How to Serve BBQ at a Casual Wedding

BBQ is perfectly suited for a casual wedding - it’s delicious, filling and fun to eat. And if you’re trying to save money, it’s a great way to serve a full meal at a reasonable price.

Menu For a Casual BBQ Wedding

With a casual wedding, as long as there’s enough to eat, your guests will be happy. Serve the nicest food you can afford. If you’ve got a bigger budget, book a caterer or order from a BBQ restaurant. You can serve pulled pork or roasted pig, plus side dishes like corn on the cob and baked beans. If your budget’s on the smaller side, try planning a cookout menu. A burger bar with condiments and toppings is fun, tasty and affordable.

Decor For a Casual BBQ Wedding

For your casual wedding you can pick up glassware, lanterns, candles or knick knacks at a thrift shop, dollar store or craft store. Mismatched items are fun, easy going looks for your centerpieces and decor. If you need to provide the dishes, it’s ok to choose inexpensive or disposable pieces. If you’re having cookout style BBQ, you don’t need full tables set up, but you should have enough chairs for every guest to sit down. If you’re having a buffet, borrow or rent enough tables and chairs for every guest to sit and eat.

How to Serve BBQ at a Semi Formal Wedding

Semi formal is a wedding style that gives you the best of both worlds. You can mix and match which elements you’d like to spend your budget on. You can spend a little less than a formal wedding and a little more than a casual wedding.

Menu For a Semi Formal BBQ Wedding

Buffet is the perfect food service for a semi formal wedding. Choose the menu that fits your budget best. Catering is always the easiest choice. If you can fit it in your budget, you can choose your food and beverage packages and let them do the rest.

If you want to save money, or have more food options, you can order delivery from your favorite BBQ restaurant. For your buffet, you can serve a selection of BBQ, like smoked brisket, steak or ribs plus side dishes and rolls. Make sure to include lots of your favorite barbecue sauce!

Decor For a Semi Formal BBQ Wedding

A semi formal wedding can be hosted anywhere from a traditional banquet hall to a rustic barn. Try to match your decor to the venue you’ve booked. If your venue doesn’t include dishes, you can use china or disposables - whichever fits your budget. But you should make sure to rent enough tables and chairs for everyone to have a sit down meal. Remember to add table linens, centerpieces and decorations.

BBQ Appetizers for a Wedding

Appetizers are the perfect savory treats! Appetizers allow you to easily manage portion sizes, which can save you money on food costs. They can also be prepared ahead of time, saving time for you and your wedding team. If you’re planning an I Do BBQ, consider these appetizer options:

Kebobs
Deviled Eggs
Cheese Bites
BBQ Meatballs
Fruit and Veggie Platters
Salad Skewers
Grilled Veggie Skewers
Grilled Shrimp
Mac and Cheese Bites
Caprese Salad
Potstickers
Smoked Salmon Bites

Wedding BBQ Buffet Menu Ideas

Grilled chicken
Pork ribs
Sirloin steak
Smoked brisket
Roasted pig
Pulled pork
Baked beans
Corn on the cob
Baked potatoes
Cole slaw
Garden salad
Rolls and butter
Barbecue sauce

Wedding BBQ Sides Ideas

The main course usually makes the meal, but an excellent side dish can quickly win the spotlight. BBQ food can be very heavy, so it’s important to balance delicious and savory with light and crisp to keep guests (and the bride and groom) from feeling bloated after dinner.

When it comes to BBQ, a rule of thumb is one to two meats, one to two starchy sides, and 2 fruit and vegetable options. When choosing your wedding BBQ menu, consider these sides:

Starches

Mac and Cheese
Mashed Potatoes
Cornbread
Hush Puppies
Potato Salad
Baked Potatoes
Macaroni Salad
Fries

Vegetable & Fruit Options

Grilled Peppers and Onions

Grilled Pineapple
Collard Greens
Green Bean Casserole
Salads
Grilled Asparagus
Baked Beans
Grilled Corn
Corn Salad
Grilled Squash

Cookout Style BBQ Wedding Food Ideas

Burger bar
Sausages
Hot dogs
Toppings and condiments
Corn on the cob
Baked potatoes
Potato salad
Pasta salad
Cole slaw
Garden salad

Affordable BBQ Wedding Catering

If you’re trying to save money on your wedding, barbecue is a good choice for your food. The cost of wedding catering will depend on where you live and the time of year you’re planning your wedding. Your costs will also depend on the type of food service you choose, as well as your menu.

Most caterers offer 3 different types of food service:

Plated meals are the most expensive. Each guest will have their meal served to them on individual plates. Family style is a mid-priced style of food service. Each dish will be served to the table on platters. Guests around the table can help themselves. Buffet style is the least expensive service. The food will be served at one main table. Guests help themselves at the buffet and carry their plates back to their seats.

When you hire a caterer, remember that you’re paying for more than just the food. If you decide to DIY or semi DIY your BBQ, make sure you’ve got enough people to help you cover all the tasks.

Most caterers will:

Provide trained and uniformed servers
Provide trained and certified bartenders
Set up your tables, linens and dishes
Set up and stock the bar
Serve the food and beverages
Keep buffet tables clean and stocked
Cut and serve your wedding cake
Clear off tables
Clean up the kitchen

Save Money on Your BBQ Wedding Catering

Choose a less expensive menu, like chicken or burgers
Stick with a buffet or food station as your food service
Consider offering a limited bar or signature drinks instead of an open bar
If Saturday night is too expensive, think about hosting your wedding on a different day
Consider hosting your wedding during the off season, when venues and catering will be less expensive

Backyard Wedding BBQ

Planning a backyard wedding is great idea, especially if you’re on a tight budget. You won’t have to pay any rental fees. You’ll be free to do as much DIY as you want. And you can hire the vendors that are the best fit for your budget.
Look over your backyard and decide how many guests you can invite. Consider where your ceremony will take place. Can you fit enough chairs for everyone?
Once you’ve figured out the ceremony space, think about where all your reception events will happen. Where will everyone sit to eat? Do you want a dance floor?
If you need an easy checklist for a backyard wedding, read this next: What Do You Need For a Backyard Wedding?