cost cutting already

On Friday evening we met with the owner of the Rabbit Room, put down our deposit and went over more of the details for the wedding so that she could put together a proposed budget for us. When it came today I was in shock. I had already put together a budget based on all the costs I knew about for 100 people and mine came out almost $3000 less than hers AND hers was for only 95 people. Granted, some of the costs are reasonable, and I just wouldn't have known with out specifically asking - for example the $2.95 per person charge for non-alcoholic beverages, or the 20% gratuity (I had calculated 17% thinking this was a very reasonable gratuity considering how much you are already spending), or the cost of the chair rentals that I knew we would need for the ceremony.

But other things seemed very unreasonable. When discussing dessert Beau and I both said that we did not want a traditional wedding cake and that we wanted there to be a number of different dessert options. Somehow this got onto a discussion on frostings and my dislike of almost all frostings that aren't real homemade whipped cream, with this information she suggested a homemade strawberry short cake. Beau and I were totally sold, until I saw the charge - $350 for strawberry short cake ($3.50 per person). Granted I have to double check if this includes other small dessert items or is just for the cake, but if its just cake, its totally getting nixed. I'm not paying $350 for one cake. Another thing on the list for the chopping block: the Champagne Toast - for $2.50 per person, people can just go to the open bar that we are already paying for. I think I may also change one of our passed hors d'oeuvres - as much as I want tuna tar tare at the wedding, $104 per 50 pieces is a little much, and as of now we are having seared ahi tuna at one of the stations.

I also cut a few people from the guest list last night, its really hard, but now I'm even more convinced it needs to be done.