Donovan's Dish

I LOVE Donovan’s! My husband and I used them as our wedding caterer and the entire experience was phenomenal! We told our wedding planner how important it was for us to have amazing food at our wedding, so she suggested Donovan’s Dish. We went for a tasting and were immediately sold! All the food we tried was delicious and all the staff we worked with were helpful, friendly, and accommodating. We loved that they offered a wide variety of dishes that were more than just your typical wedding food like the same chicken or salmon dish you get at every wedding. For appetizers, we selected the goat cheese empanadas (AMAZING), bourbon meatballs (my husband still talks about these), mini chicken and waffles, and caprese skewers. We did live chef stations for entrees and had the shrimp and grits (one of the best meals I have ever eaten in my entire life), lemon chicken with goat cheese risotto (I still dream of that risotto), and the bistro filet. The signature ham rolls as our late night bites were a massive hit - these things are so addictive. For dessert, we had the donut flambé station which was so fun! All our guests could not stop talking how amazing all the food was. We had a few vegetarian and vegan guests and Donovan’s had awesome options for them, as well! We were so pleased with our experience with Donovan’s for our wedding that we also bought their Thanksgiving dinner two years in a row! Everything comes packaged with the cooking instructions on the containers and you get everything you could possibly want. We have had two years of totally stress free Thanksgiving dinners. I am also a massive fan of their takeout market! We always have one or two of their meals in our fridge or freezer for when we don’t feel like cooking. I seriously tell everyone I know about how much we love Donovan’s! The owner, Jill, is incredibly sweet and she has a fantastic team!

Donovan's Dish did such a wonderful job with our wedding this April! Not only was Ashley incredibly helpful in the months and weeks leading up to the wedding, but we got so many compliments on the food & service the night of our wedding - we had multiple people tell us how nice all of the staff were and how smoothly everything went. My husband and I were also so well taken care of, we seriously didnt worry about anything - I dont think I had to get myself a single drink all night. Everything was perfect!

We used Donovan’s Dish for our wedding in Feb 2022. The food was absolutely amazing and we couldn’t have been happier! We received many compliments from guests. We chose the stuffed chicken and the tenderloin! Excellent food and service. I would highly recommend them!

I don't know where to begin! Donovan's was hands down one of the best people we hired for our wedding. Their food is AMAZING and it made it hard for us to choose dishes! We went with a three course meal with Shrimp and Grits and Beef Tenderloin as the entree choices. Everyone at the wedding loved the food! My favorite was the salad...yes...THE SALAD. That's how great their food is - they put care into every dish and don't offer basic iceberg lettuce and sliced tomatoes. They went above and beyond in every aspect to make sure our event was as seamless as possible. Their sales manager (Sydney) is also FANTASTIC and super responsive which made the booking, contracting, and planning process so smooth. I can't recommend them enough!!

The food was amazing and the staff were professional and kind!

Donovan's Dish was delicious! Our guests raved about our food - we had the East and West BBQ selection. Sydney was wonderful to work with and was very accommodating with out guests with food allergies. The staff during the wedding was just fantastic - they made sure that my husband and I actually got to eat and were full!

Yum! We are so glad that we chose Donovan’s Dish to cater our wedding. Sydney and the team were wonderful to work with. We were lucky enough to use Donovan’s throughout our entire wedding weekend and they nailed it every single time! They brought food for our bridal brunch, lunch for the bridesmaids and groomsmen the day of the wedding, catered our wedding, and provided trays for the day after the wedding. They are delightful to work with and so accommodating and responsive. Guests raved about food across all of the events. The service was phenomenal. We highly recommend using Donovan’s for your next event!

We loved having Donovan's Dish cater our wedding! We had two stations with the Bistro Filet and the Famous Shrimp and Grits. Both dishes were absolutely delicious. Not only that but they were incredibly professional. They made sure my husband and I were served right away so we could enjoy the food before interacting with our guests. I highly recommend them for your wedding/event. If we lived closer we would be ordering take-out from them daily.

We used Donovan’s Dish for our wedding at the Merrimon Wynne House in Raleigh and everything about the experience was absolutely phenomenal! If you value quality food with wonderful flavor, look no further. Throughout the planning process Sydney was extremely helpful and worked seamlessly with our venue, rental company and wedding coordinator. We had passed hors d’œuvres for cocktail hour, plated salad and then opened up station service. Not only was the food incredible (so many rave reviews from guests on the shrimp and grits and chicken and waffle skewers!) but their staff was friendly, accommodating, and efficient the whole night. I would recommend Donovan’s Dish to anyone planning an event in the Raleigh-Durham area.

If you are planning any event. Chose Donovan’s Dish. The food is amazing .... The service perfect ..... They made my Daughters wedding perfect. .... Every dish , Every Detail Perfect. I have never had food at any wedding that could match Donovan’s Dish. Thank you so much to all at Donovan’s Dish.

Delicious! Good food is very much appreciated in my family and therefore, it was slam dunk using Donovan's Dish. The compliments we receive on the food keep coming. Guests loved the family style option and food with southern style. The dessert table quickly disappeared before out eyes. Everyone at DD was great to work with-helpful and accommodating as we changed up number of entrees and accounted for vegetarians. The logistics of serving a large crowd seemed effortless and was so quick! Not enough good things to say!

I cannot recommend Donovan's Dish highly enough, they were one of our favorite vendors!! The staff was incredibly helpful throughout the planning process. Kim offered to go with me to reserve our rentals, which was incredibly helpful, and Becca was very communicative as the date approached to make sure every detail was taken care of. We ended up choosing the pimento cheese chicken and chef TJ's famous shrimp and grits as our entrees, which really fit with the modern southern vibe we wanted for our reception. Seriously do not skip the shrimp and grits--our friends and family are still talking about how delicious they were! We also followed Kim's recommendation to have the shrimp and grits served as a chef-attended station and that really added an extra wow factor to the dinner service. All their attention to detail was so appreciated for keeping the catering process stress free. They even thoughtfully offered us a gift card to the Donovan's Dish market as a wedding present so we can enjoy our wedding meal again! We will continue to be customers and recommend their catering to anyone planning an event!

I was just reminiscing about our wedding the other day with a few friends (it’s been 6 weeks) and they were STILL talking about how good our food was...especially the famous shrimp and grits! Our venue had a really southern feel to it, so we opted for those choices on​ the menu. Donovan’s Dish was amazing! They took care of everything from the start. Our tasting was fun and delicious; we were able to sit down with Kim and get to know each other in a really lovely environment. On the day of the wedding, the team made sure we didn’t miss out on the food served during cocktail hour which was sweet. They did the same for us at dinner by making our plates for us. We had stations out on the lawn and it was perfect. Guests were raving about the food as we went around to chat. I couldn’t have asked for a better caterer! I can’t wait to go back to Donovan’s Dish, pick up some dinner, and have a little date night with my husband :)

Jill, Kim, Becca and the entire Donovan’s Dish team were fantastic to work with! They were extremely responsive and reliable from the day we started working with them, and the food blew everyone away. From the moment that we met with them, we knew that we were in good hands – they listened to what was important to us and helped us create a menu that fit our style. On the day of the wedding, everything was flawless and executed just like we wanted. We had many of our guests ask about the catering because the food was so great! They worked amazingly with the rest of our vendors and we could not recommend them enough! The bottom line is that they are the best at what they do and certainly worth the investment. #sawyerlovebyrds2019

Donovan's Dish catered our wedding and did a PHENOMENAL job! We had a mingle-style wedding with no assigned seating and opted for food stations. SERVICE: Donovan's was the most friendly, prompt and efficient vendor that we had. Leading up to our wedding, Kim was always prompt in responding to any questions we had, and she was the ultimate problem solver. She was very helpful with our interesting set-up, offering tips as to how to appropriately manage cocktail hour and dinner and suggestions as to popular food items. She went out of her way to make sure our experience was a personal one, and she seemed genuinely excited about catering our event. On our wedding day, everything went perfectly. The Donovan's crew was very friendly and efficient. The bartenders in particular were amazing!! FOOD: Not only were the stations so fun and the servers extremely friendly, the food was absolutely delicious (and we are VERY picky about food). In particular, our guests raved about the shrimp and grits! Donovan's gave us a few extra trays of the shrimp and grits to take home, and we ate them for four meals straight haha! They are that good. In sum, we cannot recommend Donovan's enough. They did a fantastic job, and we could not have asked for a better caterer for our wedding!!!

Amazing, amazing food at our wedding. Our guests were gushing about it for days. We had a cocktail-style reception, with three different small plates: Chef TJ's famous shrimp and grits, Ashe Co. Pimento Cheese stuffed chicken, and Beef au poivre. Of course, each dish also came with sides!! That was a beefy small plate, and guests were pleasantly surprised. The staff was awesome. The coordinator, Kim, was super responsive and helpful during the entire planning process. I would do it all over again with them. I guess I should start planning a vow renewal!

We LOVED Donovan's Dish! We tried two caterers that fit into our budget for our wedding and Donovan's Dish knocked it out of the park. We tried them first and the woman we worked with (who no longer works there) told us to make sure we ask any other vendors that we try if they provide all of the materials to prepare and present the food. The next vendor we went to provided none of the materials needed, and we would've easily spent another $500+ on rentals on top of an already more expensive caterer. The food was phenomenal. We tried their prosciutto stuffed chicken and braised short ribs with a vegetable medley and roasted fingerling potatoes. Their food is top-tier, fanciest of fancy quality. We ended up going with the chicken, switching to a bistro filet (their summer version of the braised short ribs), the vegetables, and a mashed potato bar with an artisan cheese tray, house salad, and bread & butter. Y'all. This food blew everyone away. As soon as the wedding ended and we went to take pictures, one of their lovely servers came out with hors d'oeuvres plates for my husband and I to make sure we ate. It was so sweet. They helped set up before the wedding and their staff were the best we worked with for all of our multi-staffed vendors. The waitresses brought my husband and I our plates when we sat down, and y'all, I thought the chicken was good. The filet we switched to was life changing. It was all awesome and everyone seemed to really enjoy the staff and really LOVE the food. This was our biggest purchase, and my family are big foodies, so I'm glad we went with Donovan's. After we got back from our honeymoon, I was cleaning and I actually found a card from Donovan's Dish saying thank you with a gift card inside, which was SO sweet and so awesome. I'm extremely impressed and glad that my husband and I will actually be living a little closer to their storefront, so hopefully we can stop by and get some good eats to bring back home with us soon!

We were lucky enough to have Donovan’s Dish cater our wedding on October 14, 2017. Our 130 guest raved about how accommodating the staff were and how delicious the food was. The staff and our Catering Coordinator, Kim, were a dream to work with over our engagement. She made the entire process easy, pleasant and continuously went above and beyond to ensure that our foodie vision came to life and the food was perfect. She happily met with us whenever we asked and answered countless emails. I can’t speak enough about how special the staff and Donovan’s Dish made us and our guests feel. Highly recommend- it was truly the perfect service and foodie experience for us and our guests.

WOW. We booked Donovan's Dish for our wedding and it was by far the best wedding food I have ever tasted! Our guests raved about it, and I wish I hadn't been running on so much adrenaline so that I could have enjoyed more of it! Melissa and the team made our planning process very straightforward. They were extremely accommodating for our guests with (sometimes strange) dietary restrictions; I had a guest that needed no onions, egg, and garlic, and Melissa made it happen with only a week's notice. My only suggestion to future couples would be to make sure that you can take some food home afterwards- I had thought we could do this but I don't think we brought the right containers to do so. I highly recommend Donovan's if you're looking for delicious staples with a southern touch. I wanted to have some thematically appropriate food without it being too heavy, and they did a wonderful job! Thank you!

Donovan's Dish is an amazing company. Both of our families are from out of state and we really wanted to show off the local cuisine. They delivered perfectly. The chicken and waffle's appetizers were amazing and the shrimp and grits were truly memorable. Everyone in our family has been commenting on how amazing the food was. If we ever need catering again, we are going back to Donovan's Dish.

Everything with Donovan's Dish was perfect. Before you have a tasting Melissa sends you a list of all their menu options. We did a seated dinner so we chose two passed appetizers, a salad, and two dinner options. When you go to the tasting you actually try to food you are wanting to serve at the wedding. We had been to other tastings were it's a bunch of people coming at one time and you are trying selections and not much of the actual menu of what you want. With Donovan's DIsh it's a private tasting. The food was amazing and everything turned out great come wedding day. The only thing for seated dinner is that it does take sometime to get everyone served which I was getting concerned but the waitstaff did a good job at getting everyone served in a timely manner!

Donovan's Dish catered my recent wedding, and it was amazing! There were so many compliments on the food, the presentation, and the staff. It was truly a special day made even more special by the stunning and delicious spread! This wasn't my first time enjoying DD, and it won't be my last. I would recommend Donovan's Dish for any event, large or small.

We absolutely loved working with Donovan's Dish for our wedding. Throughout the planning process they were professional, responsive, and friendly. Melissa was incredibly organized and also helped us with other aspects of the wedding including wording for our menu. The food was AMAZING from the salad to the buffet. Every single guest raved that it wasn't "wedding food" but tasted like they were at a restaurant. The servers were incredibly friendly and helpful and went above and beyond to bring extra food or drinks to people who needed them. They also wrapped all of the leftovers into handy to go boxes for us and we enjoyed them the next night. We could not have asked for a better caterer for our wedding!

Zach and I cannot say enough great things about Donovan's Dish. From the beginning, they were responsive, professional, friendly, and flexible with all of our menu tweaks. After leaving our tasting, we were sold. The food was expertly prepared and delicious. We liked our tasting so much we ended up using them for our couples shower and wedding. We received so many compliments throughout both events. The staff was amazing. Even other vendors were impressed with how well they handled the flow of service and made sure to find every last silverware at the end of the night so we were charged extra from our rental people. I think Donovan's Dish was one of the easiest, stress free decisions we made during the planning process.

I cannot say enough positive comments about Donovan's Dish. Jill and her team did an amazing job from day one. She was responsive, patient, accommodating, and full of great ideas. On the day of the wedding, the servers were on point. They were polite, professional, and made sure that my husband and I took time to eat during cocktail hour and during the reception. Our guests spoke highly of the service, as well. Most importantly, the food was wonderful. From shrimp and grits to pasta to ham biscuits, our guests could not stop talking about how delicious everything was. I would love to host another event just to have Donovan's Dish cater.

The food from Donovan's dish was absolutely excellent! All of our guests were talking about the food all night. We had some miscommunication when it came to our drink selections. We were told we could pick 2 domestics, 2 micro/local brews & 3 wines for 5 hours of drinking for all guests, but we were then told once our options ran out we had to use their default of Bud Light & Hoppyum. We apparently had to pay for the servers to eat at our wedding but were not told that in the initial contract signing and booking. At least one of the servers was seen drinking our alcohol at our wedding. One of the bartenders "hit on" our best man as well and offered him an unsavory service. This vendor also seemed to have agreed to some details but then it changed once we got closer to our wedding. We were told that we would get our cocktail hour foods since we were not present for that but only received one of the cocktail tray passed hors d'oeuvres.

We chose Donovan's Dish after they catered a bridal event at our venue. It was a great choice! They were flexible with our choices and made sure the menu matched what we wanted. Don't skip the shrimp and grits!!

We are so glad we chose Donovan's Dish. The food was amazing (lots of people said it was the best food they'd EVER had at a wedding, ever). And they went above and beyond to take care of us and our guests with special food issues. We really liked working with Melissa. We'd highly recommend them! Southern food for the win!!!!

We were a little apprehensive when our go to person at Donovans (Christian) changed mid-wedding planning to Melissa but little did we know there was nothing to worry about! Donovans did an excellent job at our wedding. Everyone raved about the food, especially the shrimp and grits and the bacon wrapped scallops. In preparing our menu, the chef was so accommodating with regards to my gluten allergy. Their wait staff was so friendly, and the server who was in charge of our sweetheart table even introduced himself and we had a discussion about how he went to school in West Virginia. Melissa the day of even helped set up our napkin ring paper band that we had dropped off the day before, along with our personalized napkins. She even rearranged our contract the week before when an out of town guest decided last minute that he was coming. Finally the wedding gift (Donovans Dish tumblers) weas a great touch!

Donvan's did an amazing job. Great to work with from the tasting to the event itself. We had Eastern NC Barbeque (amazing!) and the chicken and dumplings were the best we've ever had. Several guests mentioned that it was the best food they've had at a wedding. They took care of the couple throughout the reception, and accommodated our guests with dietary restrictions. We had 120 guests and they moved folks through the buffet line well.

Donovan's Dish exceeded my expectations from start to finish! The setup was gorgeous, the food was phenomenal and my guests were very impressed. To quote the mother of the bride to be, "It was beautifully displayed and better yet tasted wonderful!" Donovan's Dish will be my go to catering company for all my future events.

From the first email communication with Donovan's Dish, especially Christian Coley, I had a good feeling towards this company. They were very responsive, welcoming and made me feel comfortable to communicate exactly what we wanted for our wedding. Our tasting with the company was very impressive with Chef TJ actually making himself present throughout and explaining dishes. It was hard to chose what to serve at our wedding because everything was SO wonderful. We served heavy hors d'oeuvres at our wedding since it was a night ceremony and every guest said how wonderful and just the right amount of food that was for our later wedding. The presentation was gorgeous. And the caterers made sure my husband and I got a sampler plate of all the foods to ensure we ate - and I was happy to! The crab cakes are AMAZING. And my husband couldn't get enough of the ham rolls. I would suggest to include both in your wedding. Christian was very attentive in getting back to me with concerns and questions throughout the planning process, and it was so nice that Donovan's Dish worked with my reception venue, which cut out a lot of work for me in ensuring things would run smoothly. I would highly recommend this company for your events!

Donovan's Dish was absolutely, without a doubt, the best vendor we worked with during our year long engagement and wedding day! I consulted with two other major Durham, North Carolina caterers and no one came close to possessing the friendliness, responsiveness, down to earth-ness (yes, I made up a word), and creativity that Donovan's Dish demonstrated every step of the way! Christian is absolutely amazing at what she does! The service she provided from our initial conversation to the very end was beyond five stars. Wedding planning is stressful enough and I felt like daily communication with Christian left me feeling stress free and confident that our reception would be amazing! I could call or email Christian about any reception details and she responded so fast and always gave her honest opinion. We had a tight budget for our 110 person wedding and I refused to have a buffet. Christian worked extremely hard to prepare a menu and setup that suit our tastes. When I gave up, she kept working and she definitely surpassed all expectations with the final menu--including price! The food--out of this world! We had shrimp and grits--better than any we've ever had; prime rib--so moist and tender and flavorful; sweet potatoes that our guests couldn't get enough of! And, you know the food is fresh and unforgettable when weeks later, guests are still saying "even the salad was better than any salad we've ever had!" No one would ever believe how awesome the price per person was for the quality and amount of food provided! On our wedding day, Christian took care of my husband and I, ensuring that we were served our dinner and dessert and that all of our guests were satisfied. The presentation of the food was incredible! I never thought rolls could look so yummy but they did (and they were). The reception went so smoothly, everyone thought I had a wedding planner--I just told them no, I had Donovan's Dish! They even packed up leftovers for us!  I can't imagine anyone planning a wedding without Christian! She is professional and fun and creative and thoughtful and she works HARD to please! Having someone who knows their stuff and is easy to communicate with is critical for such an important event. I literally miss her! We highly recommend Donovan's Dish for all catering needs! There really cannot be a better caterer in North Carolina--it seems impossible.  We do not have a single complaint or a single negative comment because Donovan's Dish is just that flawless! Jill, TJ, and Christian--you're amazing!!! We will find another way to party with you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!

I had a small wedding so the dinner part of the evening was extremely important to me. We did a plated dinner and all my guests raved about the food. The dinner was better than any upscale restaurant in the area. My husband is gluten and grain free and they created a beautiful menu that everyone could enjoy. Can't say enough nice things about the quality of food and service.

Donovan's did a great job for our wedding day for a cost that fit our budget very pleased with the selections and would well recommend this company thanks

From my first e-mail and phone call to Donovan’s Dish to the end of a PERFECT Wedding Rehearsal Dinner event, I could not have been more impressed. First, the people are amazing—they treated us like family. TJ, the chef, proposed a terrific menu based on just a few initial comments about what we had in mind. He invited the prospective bride and groom for a tasting and happily made a couple of adjustments at their request (such as having only meatless appetizers as some guests are vegetarians). The meal was amazing not only in terms of being absolutely delicious, but also being impeccably presented. The event planners Jill and Christian were meticulous in detail, starting with listening attentively to what we had in mind, offering suggestions, and flawlessly executing the dinner for 65 guests at the Durham Arts Council in North Carolina. They went out of their way to make things easy for us, as we had to plan the event mostly over the phone and by e-mail because we live out of state. Finally, the evening of the dinner, the staff was outstanding. Everyone made it look easy (I am sure that designing, preparing, serving, and cleaning up after a large dinner event is NOT easy). Most importantly, the staff from Donovan’s Dish were not only extremely professional and focused on every detail, but also looked like they were having fun! Each one smiled continuously, and was gracious with every guest. This was a wonderful and memorable event and I am most grateful to Donovan’s Dish for making it happen.

Everything about our daughter's wedding was exactly what we wanted! We selected Donovan's to cater our daughter's wedding after meeting Kyle (Donovan's floral designer) at the Bridal Expo in Raleigh last year and trying a sample of Donovan's delicious food. Then after meeting with Jill (Donovan's Wedding Coordinator) to discuss catering and decorations, we were confident Donovan's would make our daughter's wedding visions a lovely reality. Jill and Kyle helped us plan a wonderful menu, gorgeous floral decorations, catering services, rentals and a beautiful reception. Our daughter wanted to provide some DIY decorations for the reception and Jill and Kyle were happy to incorporate them and offered many helpful tips. We are still getting compliments on the reception weeks after the wedding. Guests definitely remember the food at weddings... and Donovan's Stuffed Chicken Saltimbocca (a signature dish at Donovan's) and the Poppy Salad were unforgettably awesome! Chef TJ was amazing! Not only was the food out of this world delicious, but Chef TJ served at the pasta action station and was having as much fun as our guests. The service at the reception really was 5-star! Jill and her staff were so friendly and did so much to make our guests happy and our evening perfect! We didn't worry about anything the entire wedding day because we knew Jill and Kyle and Chef TJ had it covered! Thank you, Donovan's, for allowing us to just enjoy this most special day!

Donovan's Dish gave our reception that extra wow factor! They took care of everything and even let me and my new husband get a chance to come in and see the reception before everyone came in! They were so accomidating with all of our wishes and made our dream reception a reality. I would recommend to anyone and I most definitely will in the future!!