Wedding Taco Catering: A Choice Between Formal vs. Fun?

There are several signs that weddings are taking on tacos. Indeed, taco catering companies are reporting increased bookings with weddings – and they’re not all backyard or beachside affairs. Some are downright formal, even if most are more about a relaxed fiesta for brides and grooms who want to kick off their lives together with a fun theme and crowd-pleasing meal.

And perhaps we shouldn’t separate these two ideas – formal vs. fun – when the gourmet wedding taco caterers have shown us a third way: formal AND fun.

But let’s get back to the signs. Here are the things happening in the wedding world that tell us tacos, whether formal or informal, are making their way onto fine china and somehow looking downright comfortable there:

Etiquette advisors – EtiquetteScholar.com spells it out: crisp-shell tacos, even with table service, are to be eaten with the fingers. When fillings fall to the plate, use a fork. With soft tacos that have a sauce, a knife and fork are required. But if there is no sauce, finger eating is allowed. The larger point is that tacos are elbowing out Cornish hens and coq au vin.

Pinterest – Search on the popular social media site for “taco bar wedding,” “casual wedding,” and “margarita bar” to find visual presentations of what some brides and grooms (and likely, their mobile taco catering vendors) have devised. Note: fillings seen there include catfish, ground beef, queso cheese sauce, carne asada, green chile chicken, lime shrimp, spiced pumpkin, and cilantro lime rice …

What businesses are doing – Corporate events have embraced taco caterers whole hog, with and without pulled pork. Which is telling: business events have to veer to universal appeal, which includes vegetarians, no-pork diets, gluten free, and the calorie conscious. The fact that various forms of taco service, formal and informal, are selected by professional event planners for business events suggests that it’s truly versatile enough of a meal format that the diversity of attendees at a wedding – his family, her family, grandmothers, and much younger friends and family – will be pleased as well.

The additional advantage of taco carts is they allow flexibility to choose unusual venues that may not have a kitchen. It’s an efficient way of serving tacos at stations spaced around the periphery of the reception (although buffet-style service is another option).

In any event, the happy couple now has happy choices. There is no need to decide on formal vs. informal – the two mix happily together, like the best of marriages.