4.7
Verified reviews from real couples
Creative. Fresh. Delicious.
Cailey and the entire Culinary Concepts management and staff were wonderful and instrumental to creating our dream wedding. Our guests raved about the food, and from start to finish Cailey was engaged, patient, calm, kind, and so, so helpful. She guided us in creating our custom menu and BYOB bar with Culinary Concepts bartenders, and in accommodating several guests with dietary restrictions and allergies. Cailey also found us shortly after we were seated to ask whether we needed anything, and she went above and beyond by coordinating a group photo when our events went slightly out of order, and then she and the staff promptly served our guests upon their return to seats. All of the wait staff were attentive, eager to help, professional, and considerate. They even packed us up bride & groom meals to go to ensure we got plenty of their delicious food during the days busy events. The food was served warm, beautifully plated, and Cailey coordinated a churro station for us in place of cake when learning of our preference for that dessert! We cannot recommend Culinary Concepts highly enough. If you love excellent cuisine and the best people and customer service, pick Culinary Concepts.
Kayla S.
5.0
Wedding planning is a stressful time by itself, but we are so thankful we chose Culinary Concepts as our caterer. They went above and beyond to make the whole experience really wonderful and fun for us. We felt so special, from beginning to end and we were excited to get married and feed our friends and family for our wedding.
We knew our situation would be a bit difficult because we were planning from out of town, but Cailey at Culinary Concepts accommodated us at every turn, making us feel truly valued. When our schedules didn’t align for a tasting at their normal venue, Cailey took the opportunity to book a tasting at the venue where we chose to hold our wedding. We were lucky that Culinary Concepts had such a good relationship with our venue and it made us confident that both parties would work together seamlessly for our big day.
On our wedding day, Culinary Concepts continued to deliver the high-quality food and service that we had expected from day 1. Not only was the food beautiful and delicious, but the catering manager was even sweet enough to ensure we as a couple had enough food and small bites throughout the night. The servers were professional and attentive, many of our guests told us that our food was the best wedding food they’ve ever had! 10/10 would use them over and over again.
Megan S.
5.0
Culinary Concepts is a quality wedding and event catering company based in San Diego, California. With over 30 years of experience in the industry, this passionate team is skilled in delivering delectable cuisine based on your style and vision. They aim to elevate your wedding event with their visually stunning and utterly delicious dishes to help create a celebration to remember.
The skilled professionals at Culinary Concepts are dedicated to creating artfully-crafted and ethically-sourced cuisine to suit your style and budget. They pride themselves on offering a vast array of international cuisines such as Indian, Italian, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Spanish, Thai, and many more. These culinary specialists will work with you to create your dream menu that is sure to impress your guests. Executive Chef Donald Coffman is passionate about creating stunning cuisine using local, sustainable, and responsible methods. Your menu and service can be designed to suit your specifications and can be tailored to suit a number of dietary requirements. These include:
Gluten-free
Lactose-free
Vegetarian
Vegan
Organic
No pork
Having served events in the California region for over 30 years, this company knows many of the surrounding venues intimately. This allows for impeccable service for your event, with a symbiotic relationship existing between your catering team and your venue proprietors. These culinary specialists have a wealth of experience in ensuring that every dining experience is flawlessly executed for maximum effect. Your chosen menu can be presented in an array of styles including plated, French service, stations, buffet, and many more. Delivery, setup, and cleanup is also included to allow you to simply enjoy your special day. A selection of event items are also provided for your convenience. These include:
Linens
China
Flatware
Glassware
Barware
Chairs and tables
Woman-owned Business
Details
Cuisine
American
Food & Catering
Buffet
Catering Clean Up
Catering Delivery & Setup
Chef Stations
Family Style
Menu Tastings
Passed Appetizers
Seated Meal
Servers
Any questions?
Reviews
4.7
out of 5.036 reviews
Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help
you make those big decisions with ease.
Kayla S
5.0
8/14/2024
Cailey and the entire Culinary Concepts management and staff were wonderful and instrumental to creating our dream wedding. Our guests raved about the food, and from start to finis...
h Cailey was engaged, patient, calm, kind, and so, so helpful. She guided us in creating our custom menu and BYOB bar with Culinary Concepts bartenders, and in accommodating several guests with dietary restrictions and allergies. Cailey also found us shortly after we were seated to ask whether we needed anything, and she went above and beyond by coordinating a group photo when our events went slightly out of order, and then she and the staff promptly served our guests upon their return to seats. All of the wait staff were attentive, eager to help, professional, and considerate. They even packed us up bride & groom meals to go to ensure we got plenty of their delicious food during the days busy events. The food was served warm, beautifully plated, and Cailey coordinated a churro station for us in place of cake when learning of our preference for that dessert! We cannot recommend Culinary Concepts highly enough. If you love excellent cuisine and the best people and customer service, pick Culinary Concepts.
Megan S
5.0
7/31/2024
Wedding planning is a stressful time by itself, but we are so thankful we chose Culinary Concepts as our caterer. They went above and beyond to make the whole experience really won...
derful and fun for us. We felt so special, from beginning to end and we were excited to get married and feed our friends and family for our wedding.
We knew our situation would be a bit difficult because we were planning from out of town, but Cailey at Culinary Concepts accommodated us at every turn, making us feel truly valued. When our schedules didn’t align for a tasting at their normal venue, Cailey took the opportunity to book a tasting at the venue where we chose to hold our wedding. We were lucky that Culinary Concepts had such a good relationship with our venue and it made us confident that both parties would work together seamlessly for our big day.
On our wedding day, Culinary Concepts continued to deliver the high-quality food and service that we had expected from day 1. Not only was the food beautiful and delicious, but the catering manager was even sweet enough to ensure we as a couple had enough food and small bites throughout the night. The servers were professional and attentive, many of our guests told us that our food was the best wedding food they’ve ever had! 10/10 would use them over and over again.
Any questions?
Alice F
5.0
6/08/2023
The Culinary Concepts team exceeded our expectations. We hired them for our wedding reception (seated dinner for the main day, and a low key sandwich lunch for the next day). They ...
were on top of things from the beginning to the end.
- The food was delicious and fresh. We were worried that the food made for 70 guests won't be as good as a couple of portions carefully prepared for the tasting, but we didn't have to worry at all! The food was amazing, and even our most picky foodie friends appreciated the taste and quality. When we met with the chef during the tasting, he made me confident that we can trust him pick the best quality vegetables and ingredients, most appropriate for the season. Hot churro station was a great and memorable surprise for our guests too.
- The presentation of food was great too, so it didn't just taste good but it looked festive and appetising as well.
- The communication was impeccable. Our main contact was Cailey and she patiently guided us through the entire process for over6 months of preparation, including numerous quotes and menu options, and countless modifications we made to the order along the way. It was a destination wedding for us, which added layers of complexity, but the team professionally helped us with everything, and was flexible enough to squeeze a tasting in a very small window of opportunity we had.
- The team is very helpful, kind, and caring overall. There are so many little details that showed their care, like keeping a separate plate with appetisers for the bride and the groom running late to the cocktail hour because of the photoshoot. The Culinary Concept team offered to help us with rentals too, but we decided to take care of it ourselves. Nevertheless, Cailey was so attentive that she checked our rentals order, to make sure we covered everything. They also helped us move chairs from the ceremony site to the dinner area, arrange the napkins/cuttlery/etc on the tables, and quickly collect the items (including decor) from the table to prepare rental equipment for pickup same night. We didn't have the day-of-the-event coordinator, but Culinary Concepts helped us stay on track with the timeline too. For the tasting, they even decorated the table according to our theme, which was a delightful surprise and demonstration of care again.
Wedding prep is really stressful, especially if you do it without a planner. But the Culinary Concepts team really went out of their way to make the preparation and the event go as smooth as possible. Big thanks to the entire team, including the coordinators and especially Cailey, captain Xavier, chef Dough and his sous chefs, bar tenders and staff (especially Victor who was so sweet that we and multiple guests remembered his name and bright smile). Thank you all so-so-so much! If my friends have a wedding in San Diego, I'll insist on hiring you for catering <3
Risa J
5.0
3/02/2021
We were told by a number of friends that doing tastings with candidate caterers for our wedding would be one of the most enjoyable parts of our wedding planning - and they weren’t ...
wrong! But Culinary Concepts stood apart by a lot, and we are incredibly happy that we went with them. Katie was our point of contact and she did such an amazing job helping us understand the whole process from the tasting to glassware rentals and then the big day.
This was our most expensive option out of the set, but we truly believe it was worth every penny. Guest after guest noted to us how highly they thought of the food. And the staff was efficient, friendly, and discreet. We felt the “station” format that CC offered helped set the tone of “comfortable and relaxed” that we were looking for while keeping everything organized and on schedule.
We’re writing this review exactly one year after our wedding which, according to many of our vendors, was one of the last that they held in 2020. A big thank you to the team at Culinary Concepts for the incredible memories - we can’t recommend them highly enough.
Caitlin M
5.0
3/28/2020
We absolutely loved working with Culinary Concepts- they were super helpful throughout the whole planning process. We mostly worked with Katie, who was amazing- we went back and fo...
rth on menu and rental decisions, and she was so patient and responsive as we made changes or asked for different estimates etc.
The food was delicious! The staff was also very attentive and friendly. We did pasta and flatbread moving stations- they absolutely surpassed our exceptions. SO GOOD, but also felt more high-end than basic pizza and pasta. We also had tray passed apps, a charcuterie display, and assorted mini desserts- everything was perfect.
Irene C
5.0
2/23/2019
First things first, the food at our wedding by Culinary Concepts was so amazing that we heard A LOT of compliments from our guests, saying they wouldn’t normally expect too much fr...
om wedding food, but it surprised them that everything tastes so fantastic!
Leo and I were sure that Culinary Concepts is THE ONE for our wedding when we first had a call with Katie. She asked great questions and listened to what we had envisioned. We wanted to incorporate the cuisines from places that we’ve traveled to into our catering experience. Katie and her team came up with brilliant ideas and helped us realize our vision, and they executed it perfectly.
Katie and Anita were really friendly and easy to work with. They are so organized and detail-oriented that they helped me make sure I am not missing anything for our wedding. Overall, we are extremely satisfied with the quality of service and the food they provided!
Christa R
5.0
11/29/2018
Culinary Concepts went above and beyond! They truly made the day!
Not only was the food DELICIOUS but they seemed to just really have my back on the day! They had us taken care o...
f!
I JUST WANT TO SAY!!! KATIE is amazing! She has been sent from heaven and was the most helpful person and took the time to answer so many questions and help me out with planning. I will never forget what a stellar person she was.
Dalila H
5.0
11/15/2018
We had our wedding at the Japanese friendship garden, and we had to choose from their list of approved caterers. We were kind of worried because we only had 30 guests, and a small ...
budget since we were paying for everything by ourselves. As the caterers from the list were being scratched off for being way over our budget, the ones that seemed manageable to us just ignored my e-mails after I told them what our limit was.
I was already feeling self-conscious from other vendors snubbing us off for other services, but thankfully, Katie and her team were amazing and patient from day one.
As if the great service wasn’t enough, the food was also delicious. The day of the tasting, we were fully convinced that they would deliver the kind of experience we were hoping for on our wedding night. When the actual evening came, they were prompt in their service, able to fully communicate with the venue and the other vendors we had employed for the night's festivities. We heard nothing but compliments from all our guests on the reception food and bar service.
Great service, great food, awesome people. Thank you for making our small wedding feel more grand and amazing.
Ali H
5.0
8/01/2018
My now-husband and I fell in love with Emilie and her team at Culinary from our very first phone call - we were planning our La Jolla wedding from across the country in NYC, and sp...
oke with Emilie about our idea of giving our out-of-town guests a real sense of San Diego cuisine, and they absolutely did it! Our guests (and us!) loved our Baja Taco bar set-up and Churros and Ice cream, and I still get messages from friends who are craving more of Culinary's tasty food -
But not only is the food incredible, the entire team at Culinary is absolutely lovely to work with. Emilie in particular is so thoughtful and kind, and never hesitated to answer any question we had immediately - even in the last week before the wedding!
She also provided great suggestions around gluten-free and vegetarian options for some of our guests, and was so supportive throughout the entire process as we selected linens, discussed seating plans, and arranged additional rentals for a somewhat restrictive venue space. I strongly recommend Culinary Concepts - if you don't fall in love with them in your first phone call, just try their food at a tasting, and you'll see why they are so worth every single penny. Thank you Culinary!!!
Chelsea W
4.0
7/22/2018
This review is coming in two parts
Coordination and Prep - We booked Culinary Concepts in 2016. This was the first vendor we booked since food price is a big part of the wedding ...
budget and wanted to lock in a price. While working with them they were quick to reply and clearly the most engaging of all catering companies I reached out to. They were interested in working with us to create a unique menu, that we would find fitting for a California beach wedding. Before committing 100%, we came in for our tasting (Rack of Lamb and Salmon for entrees. Tuna, Ginger wonton, crab cake, and caprese skewer for hors d'oeuvres). The food was exceptional, everything was absolutely delicious and we signed all the paperwork on the spot. Over the next year or so, there was a lot of turnover within the company. Our POC left the company, then that POC left the company, then we transitioned from the person who was responsible for gathering new clients to the person who was responsible for execution of the wedding (but not the head server). It was confusing, and to be honest, we didnt have the best response time from them since we were sending emails to people no longer with the company. With that said, once our wedding was around the corner we were able to communicate freely with them and address some minor issues without a problem (a check was lost in the mail). All in all, 4 stars.
Wedding Service and Food - Exceptional. I truly didn't think that they could make the wedding day food as good as they did during the tasting. My wife and I were thinking all along, "how is it possible that it can taste the same when they have to make a hundred of them?! Did they just give us the best pieces?" Answer: No. Everyone came up to us, before and after the wedding, commenting on the quality of the food. The service was prompt, everything was on time, and the service was quick, efficient, and kept clear of the flow of the wedding. All in all, 5 stars.
Overall the food and service left nothing to be desired. With that said, they were not cheap. Expect to set aside over 10K for their services (2016 prices). If Culinary Concepts is in your budget, they come highly recommended.
Emily M
5.0
2/28/2018
Our decision to use Culinary Concepts as the caterer for our daughter’s wedding was one of our best decisions for that day. We chose them because of the quality of the food we had ...
at our tasting, because of their top reviews and because of their obvious professionalism. We worked with Emilie at CC as our main contact point until we were getting close to the wedding and then they bring in an entire team to coordinate the day. We had a meeting just prior to the wedding at the venue where every detail is discussed from timing to tables. Nothing was left to chance. Our venue was Scripps Forum in San Diego and they have to bring the kitchen, food and all of the staff to the site. Quite an undertaking. We had a sit down dinner for 125 people. On the reply cards the guests chose one of three entrees. I mention this because the wait staff had to make sure they noted which entree each guest was to be served that night and they did that flawlessly. The service that night was incredible. Not one dinner was served cold and it seemed as if everyone was almost served at the same time. The servers were super professional in terms of service as well as dress. As for the food, it was superb. One of my friends said it was one of the best meals she had ever had. For the record we offered porter glazed beef short ribs, roasted pork tenderloin with a pear chutney and a vegetarian artichoke and rice dish. Each was served with mashed potatoes and broccolini. The appetizers and pre dinner salad were all fabulous. Instead of a cake the bride and groom wanted the apple pie from Julian Pie Company. They coordinated that for us as well and added the special touch of a shaker of cinnamon and sugar to sprinkle on the ice cream or pie.I would use Culinary Concepts again in a heartbeat. They were amazing.
Julieta A
5.0
8/11/2017
Food quality, presentation and service was excellent!!
Response from Culinary Concepts on 08/14/2017
Thank you so much! We enjoyed working with you and wish you all the best!
Gina T
5.0
10/16/2016
Culinary Concepts did such a fantastic job catering our wedding this past June at the Scripps Seaside Forum!! Merlot was our catering specialist, and she was great to work with. ...
She worked with us throughout the process, arranging our tasting, conducting a walk-through with our day-of coordinator, selecting and adjusting our menu, keeping on top of our table layout & seating (even up to the last minute!), and more. She was very careful in handling the dietary restrictions, and even helped us save a bit of money, when our guest count turned out lower than expected which would otherwise have increased the per-person price.
Javier was our banquet captain, and he made sure the service & food quality was top notch. He & the team served tray passed appetizers and cheese & veg displays at our cocktail hour, and served plated dinners of salad with a choice of bourbon mustard glazed tri-tip, crispy skin herb roasted chicken or stuffed bell peppers. During the ceremony, they presented a water station (very popular with the heat we had that day!) and after dinner service, they presented a coffee & tea station. We loved the food (though the versions at the tasting were a tad better) & the service, and we heard great reviews from guests for both as well! Also, my dad suffered a bit of heat-stroke towards the end of our reception, and one of the staff tended to him (along with members of my family), and regularly checked on him. (I wish we had gotten her name!) It was clear that the staff cared for our event as a whole, and not just the food, which meant a lot to us.
My husband & I being fans of food & cooking, were very careful in choosing our caterer. We found Culinary Concepts to have the most flavorful, inventive food, mostly sourced locally, with professional & personal service, for an amazing value. We wish we could have the food at our wedding again!!
Michaela D
4.0
9/17/2016
We were so happy we were able to work with Culinary Concepts for our wedding day! Our wedding planner suggested them for our wedding at Scripps Seaside Forum, and we were blown awa...
y with their presentation and professionalism during our tasting and on the actual day of!! The food was amazing and the service from Merlot was outstanding.
Our guests still haven't stopped raving about how delicious the food was! Everything was served so perfectly, we were so happy with our service. While it's a small detail, we had originally agreed to a few minor items that didn't pan out on the actual wedding day. No one else noticed but us (because the guests didn't know any better) but I was a little disappointed in these missing items (having two types of tortillas, having the salads plated vs. being in line with the buffet, not having rolls as we were originally promised). Still, they were WELL worth the money and overall we were extremely pleased with the quality of the food and service. We would recommend Culinary Concepts to anyone looking for caterers for their wedding day! They are professional, organized, and involved with you through every step of the process.
Anonymous
5.0
7/29/2015
Culinary Concepts catered our May 2015 wedding at Scripps Seaside Forum. Merlot was a pleasure to work with. She answered our questions quickly and efficiently and kept us on trac...
k with payments. The food was amazing (a small selection: lamb chop lollipops, caprese skewers, steak, salmon with avocado/mango salsa) and we and our guests were very happy!
Mikaela H
5.0
5/21/2015
While we spent a majority of our budget on the catering for our wedding, we think it was well worth it. All of our guests loved the food and we received many compliments on it! I w...
ould highly recommend spending the money to ensure better quality and taste of food. The presentation was wonderful as well and all of the servers were professional and kind!
Response from Culinary Concepts on 05/27/2015
Congratulations on your wedding and marriage!
We thank you kindly for your review of our s...
ervices, and are pleased to know that our cuisine is top-notch and our service team is well trained. We love what we do! It's always a pleasure to work with Brides and Grooms to help make their day as perfect and special as expected.
cheers to you and we hope to hear from you in years to come for any kind of celebration.
rosalinda s
4.0
11/04/2014
Culinary Concepts did an overall good job for my wedding. They are not the cheapest caterer out there but you definitely see the value in their company the day of.
The entire proc...
ess with them was a bunch of back and forth in emails that were always responded promptly.
The only minor complaints I have is that the day of the wedding there were some last minute changes their onsite manager decided to make without consulting with us (bride and groom) or even our assigned go to person for the day. I didnt appreciate the lack of communication especially since it may have been minor changes to them but were big things for us that affected the decor. We were told by our amazing DJ (Jeremy Jones party people san diego) who knew we wouldnt be happy with the changes.
Secondly...although the food was good...it was slightly different than what we were given on our tasting...so that was a bit disappointing since our tastings was amazingly delicious!
Service was great, servers were very attentive and bartender was personable.
Overall, good experience.
Cassandra J
5.0
10/08/2014
We first met Chef Donald and Sous Chef Chris at the Orfila Bridal Show in 2013. We came to the show specifically to find a caterer for our 7/19/14 wedding, so we brought my best fr...
iend (and Maid of Honor), who is a chef with plenty of catering experience. She was able to ask the questions we never would have thought to ask, and she was thoroughly impressed with Donald and Chris. We also all agreed that the albacore bruchetta they brought for us to sample was our favorite of the day! We scheduled a tasting, and after working briefly with Kathy (owner), we were one of the first couples to have the opportunity to work with Christie as she started working with Culinary Concepts. Christie was absolutely INCREDIBLE to work with!!! She was professional and fun, and was extremely responsive whenever we had questions for her. She made sure everything was absolutely perfect on our wedding day, and the server staff was extremely professional and friendly! One of the servers brought a plate of hors d'oeuvres for us as we were taking bride and groom photos in the vineyard (during cocktail hour), to make sure we didn't miss out. He even followed us around as we stopped between bites for photos... so fun! When my husband and I snuck away for sunset photos, we had only gotten a chance to have a few bites of our dinner. When we returned to our sweetheart table, one of the servers let us know that our entrees had gotten cold while we were gone, and offered to bring us new ones. I said it was alright, but she insisted, which I thought was so sweet! She brought us new plates, and we were able to enjoy a hot, delicious dinner! I highly recommend Culinary Concepts for your catering needs, whether it is for your wedding or otherwise!!
Hors d'oeuvres:
-Beef wellington tart
-Curried chicken salad on coriander dusted flatbread
-Panko & pecan crusted brie with jalapeño jelly
-Albacore bruchetta
First course:
-Caprese salad
Main Course:
-Dual entree (chicken and salmon) with rice pilaf and vegetables
-Vegan/gluten free option of quinoa stuffed poblano peppers
Stephanie D
5.0
9/23/2014
The whole team at Culinary Concepts (Christie, Aubrey, and Javier) did such a great job at our wedding last weekend! We were able to customize the entire menu, and they were able t...
o do everything! Everyone at the wedding loved the food and had more than enough to eat. At the reception, they provided a private server to make sure that my husband and I had food and drinks throughout the whole night. Overall, their quality of food is great as well as their service!
Natalia E
5.0
11/07/2013
Culinary Concepts was the perfect caterer for our outdoor, seated dinner at our September wedding!
Gina was incredible. She helped us with every detail: the tasting, picking out ...
tray-passed h'ourdeurves, the coffee and tea display table, every portion of our seated dinner (from linen colors to napkin fold) and sweet additions for our dessert display.
Our guests (which included a few professional chefs) were so complimentary about the food! We were answering questions for weeks about who our caterer was to other engaged couples who attended our wedding.
We couldn't have been happier with the taste and service of Culinary Concepts.
jodi h
5.0
10/18/2012
I met with Gina of Culinary Concepts on the advice of my wedding planner. I couldnt be happier! Prior to meeting with her, she had inquired as to the types of food i like and my ...
budget. When we went for the tasting, she presented me with multiple choices within my budget.
I had met with 3 other caterers and ultimately chose them because of their food quality, presentation, and accessibility.
I couldnt be more pleased with my choice. The day of the wedding was great! Of course we were hungry after the ceremony and pictures, and on our way walking from the ceremony site to the reception site(same location, different area) we were greeted by the head server with appetizers for myself and my husband, as well as drinks. They were just standing there waiting for us--what a great personal touch!! (BTW, we both scarfed down the food) And during the reception, the staff was very tentative, especially to us. They did not serve us if we were not at the table, and gave us a fresh serving when we returned. My other guests raved about the quality and tastefulness of the food(which is rare at a wedding). And they did all of this within my budget!
I would recommend them to anyone who wants great food, great service, along with a great presentation of their food! They have many different entree options in different price points so they can work within your budget!
And ask for Gina---she was a great contact and help in arranging everything!
Emily D
2.0
10/03/2012
I had a great feeling working with the initial contact person, but it went downhill from there. The food was great, but during my tasting I was chastised for eating the entire slid...
er and told to not eat too much early on by the server. The chef was also slightly unprofessional at the meeting. We also had to work with several different people and I was never sure who was managing our wedding. The day of, they were great, the staff was friendly, the food was great and Craig was fantastic! Just a little stressful to plan with.
Michaelene S
5.0
8/16/2012
I used Culinary Concepts for my August wedding and I was so happy with the food quality and service! Guests are still raving about the food, and I agree, it was really, really goo...
d. I was hearing comments all night. They also did a really creative job in setting up the buffet stations, and matching my beach theme. I had a plated summer salad, which was delicious, and beautifully done, and then stations. Craig and Walter even had saved appetizers for my Groom and I as we missed the cocktail hour and boxed up some plates for us to take back to our Hotel, as we hardly were able to eat.
I was also able to drop off some centerpieces and decor to CC's warehouse on the Thursday prior and they put everything out for me. As I did not have a coordinator, this was really appreciated and saved me from having to worry about who was going to do this.
I heard from a lot of guests that the tray passed items during the cocktail hour were really good, and just kept on coming, which I was so happy to hear! The ahi tuna and inside-out-nachos were a big hit.
I had a slight issue in the pre-planning as my main contact went on maternity leave and I did not know she was already gone and did not know who to contact and my emails were going unanswered. But they soon put me in touch with Mallory and Craig and all was wonderful from then on. Mallory was really responsive and detailed out my BEO and had every item listed, I really appreciated how she took the time to put everything in there, so I knew it was communicated. Craig and I went back-and-forth on a few diagrams, and once set, I walked into the Reception and it was exactly as we had agreed upon. He came to a walk through the Wednesday before, and all we discussed was carried out.
Craig and Walter kept checking in with me all night and were really on top of the schedule and keeping things moving, which I was so appreciative of.
I would definitely highly recommend CC! They are very accommodating and creative with their food and open to making it exactly how you want it. I thought the price was extremely appropriate for the high level of service and quality of food you receive.
Tayler W
4.0
6/13/2012
I loved these guys. The food and presentation was fantastic! The day of ran perfectly smoothly, and they were great at clean up during and after the wedding. The only problem we ...
had is they were hard to get a hold of during the process of planning our menu. In the end we got exactly what we wanted. They are very flexible, and though they have a wide variety of specific items on their menu, they told us "And if it isn't there, just let us know and we can do it!"
Alison B
5.0
6/11/2012
We really enjoyed working with Culinary Concepts for our reception catering and they did a great job. The quality of food provided did not change from our personal tasting session...
to the actual event. Christie and the rest of the CC staff were all very available and helpful, answering e-mails promptly, talking us through menu and décor choices in person, and providing feedback on bar ordering (even though we did the purchasing on our own). I also appreciated that Christie and the team have a lot of experience working at the UCSD venues and could help guide us through the various regulations.
Because we had two locations (CC took care of the ceremony rentals for us, as well), we ended up working with probably 5 different people as we got closer to the wedding. While it complicated things a bit since I wasn’t always sure whom I should be contacting and I think some details weren’t passed on to the right people, everyone was nice and extremely professional. As a bride working without a wedding planner, I thought it was great that the CC crew acted as day-of coordinators for both sites. They had names and numbers of all the vendors that would be setting up or making deliveries and made sure that people were there on time. Additionally, my husband and I especially appreciated the personalized service we received during the reception – they saved appetizers from cocktail hour for us to taste when we first arrived to the venue, brought our meals as soon as we sat down, and made sure to leave us slices of cake to eat during a break from the dancing.
Parada K
4.0
4/08/2012
Culinary Concepts worked with us to create a special menu that went with our modern Mexican fiesta theme. We had 3 different appetizers for cocktail hour, a plated first salad cour...
se, which was good, and 3 food stations of braised short ribs, chicken mole, and street tacos. All our guests were raving about the food, and many said that it was the best food they had ever had at a wedding. Also, the service was impeccable, and everything just turned out well beyond our expectations. Without a doubt, we would highly recommend Culinary Concepts.
Silvia I
5.0
12/21/2011
Amazing!! Our guests kept raving about the food all night and even after the wedding. We were told that this was the best wedding meal they ever had. Culinary was very accommodatin...
g and followed through.
Marisa S
4.0
10/25/2011
Culinary Concepts was great to work with - and their food is outstanding. Not just your average chicken breast with boiled vegetables - CC offers a large variety of 'fine dining'. ...
We had their Tuscan chicken - chicken breast with ricotta and creamed spinach all wrapped in a puff pastry! It was amazing. And the appetizers - their butternut squash 'shooters' was awesome!
The presentation is also fantastic - CC uses trendy shot glasses and demi cups, miniature forks and plates.
The tasting they offered was fun and inviting. We sat at a dinner table all together - they even let us bring our parents at no extra charge.
I feel we got a wonderful meal for what we paid!
Rachelle F
5.0
10/24/2011
Culinary Concepts is amazing! The entire crew there is on their "A" game. The food was amazing! They pay very good attention to detail and are so helpful. They make you feel so lov...
ed and valued. I would use them again for any other event and would definitely recommend them!!!
Erica O
4.0
8/14/2011
I was debating between Culinary Concepts and one other catering company. The reason why I went with Culinary is because their food was delicious and they are a very experienced ca...
tering company. They had catered at the venue I chose so I knew they were familiar with the space (Which I think is very very important). They helped coordinate rentals as well because my venue was a museum and I had to get chairs, table, etc. Everything went smoothly but because I am a perfectionist there were a few things that I did not like. Firstly, I noticed that the salad was not preset like I asked which meant that dinner took longer than I wanted it to. Secondly, I encountered a slight miscommunication with the catering company because they added some tables to my order that I did not preapprove which I did not appreciate. They said that the client is responsible for kitchen tables which I did not know until I saw them on the rental order. So my suggestion is find out all the details about what you're responsible for so you aren't surprised like me a week before the wedding. Otherwise they were great. I got lots of compliments on how delicious the food was.
Jenna P
5.0
7/12/2011
Everyone at Culinary Concepts is amazing! My husband and I are major foodies, so the caterer was a booking we did not take lightly - and did Culinary Concepts deliver! They have ...
an excellent selection that includes nearly every dish you can think of (and if they don't have it listed, they will make it for you!), but the highly varied offerings certainly does not affect the quality. Everything we tasted was delicious and everything we served tasted even better the day of. The salmon was moist, the beef was tender and not at all overcooked, and the brie pops are TO DIE FOR! Service was also excellent - even though we used another company to manage the bar, the service staff happily (and promptly) kept the Bridal Party's beer mugs full. Christie and Craig are a joy to work with and Chef is extremely talented. We will definitely be working with Culinary Concepts again for any of our catering needs =D
Anonymous
4.0
5/31/2011
Culinary Concepts catered our cocktail hour and did a great job. Only notes are that we had requested tray passed wine and champagne to be available after ceremony, which they did...
not do. They also provided recommendation on how much beer to provide and we needed much more, so ran out during cocktail hour (our fault).
Katrina W
5.0
5/25/2011
I don't want to sound like one of those overly positive brides, but Culinary Concepts was the best possible caterer for our event and went over and above each and every time. The f...
ood was fantastic, the presentation was beautiful, and the staff was warm, helpful, and so graciuos. We worked with Gina, and from the very beginning she made everything so easy. She was a joy to work with, from helping us to settle on the menu (they have tons of options), to the high quality of the tasting, to letting me come to her warehouse and choose the "look" for the serving dishes, etc. She really was on top of everything, really quick to respond to emails, and I knew that she cared just as much as we did about pulling off a fantastic event. I just cannot say enough good things about Culinary Concepts. We went to about 3 or 4 different tastings before choosing them as our wedding caterer, and the quality of the food, the presentation and the wonderful staff made them stand out above and beyond anyone else in San Diego. And, they are great quality for money. They weren't any more expensive than the rest, but they are better.
Teri V
5.0
11/02/2010
Our biggest request was to avoid the "wedding food" taste and look. CC knocked it out of the park! They designed a meal for us that fit our Italian themed wedding that was perfec...
t!
Our evnet manager with CC (Gina Eliason) was fantastic! She understood big picture to a tee, and executed perfectly! We'de recommend that you use HER for your coordination!
Our cost per head i hight because it includes all rentals, cake, food, and service. We were very glad that we had CC also do our cake because it took that additional worry off of us.
The service staff that CC brought was the best I have ever seen. They were friendly, funny, and polite. Someone was assigned to me and my husbant to make sure that we got to taste everything, run to the bar for us, and took time to enjoyt he food that we paid for! That was awesome!!
nate s
5.0
10/11/2010
Arranged to have Culinary Concepts cater our wedding reception. Everything went smoothly, the guests really enjoyed the food, and the service was excellent.
Tammy M
5.0
9/16/2010
Everyone at our wedding commented on how delicious the food was from Culinary Concepts. We sampled food at a lot of different places and were very disappointed until we found Culin...
ary. Delicious food and friendly staff who really know their business!
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Culinary Concepts
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