We love Elysian! We got married in March 2023 (but are extremely slow at writing reviews) at the venue at New Orleans Athletic Club (NOAC) with a wedding for ~150 people (call it m...edium fanciness for comparative purposes - cocktail attire-type). Working with Jenn, Brandon, Amelia, and the whole team was perfect.
We loved all the menu options and getting a chance to sample a few of them was a great experience. Everything we sampled was great, but we wound up completely pivoting to some options we didn't try at the tasting because we thought it would work better for our guests. Loved it - I think anything we picked would have been great, but the items we picked were just right - I can't remember which package we selected specifically, but the hors d’oeuvres were excellent (crawfish pies and alligator sausage were very memorable) and the poboy station was perfect for our event (especially the cochon de lait). We considered doing plated service, but wound up doing buffet style. I think they can accommodate any setup that you would be looking for (family style, etc.)
We also ordered the raw bar package and thought it was amazing. We didn't do a lot of add ons (just oysters and all the fixings for those) and it was a HUGE hit for our guests - many of which were coming from outside of New Orleans and had never had big gulf oysters like that before. That said, I have had the pleasure of trying some of the other options like oysters from elsewhere in the country, crab claws, char broiled oysters, etc. from when Jenn and Brandon used to do a booth at Elysian Seafood at the St. Roch market and those options are also fire. You can't go wrong!
Amelia does the desserts and they are AWESOME. We wound up doing a bunch of little pies and mini-cakes (like cheesecake, not traditional cake) and those were also a hit. Every one of the desserts was great. My favorites were the cheesecake, key lime pie, and bourbon pecan pie, but you can't go wrong.
The service was absolutely perfect. We were obviously busy on the day, but they were great about doing everything we needed exactly at the right time, with very little need for direction from us or, I believe, the wedding planner. The planning process was easy, seamless, and the only hard part was deciding between great options. They are a great option if you want someone who's been there before at almost any venue around New Orleans, worked with almost every other vendor, dealt with almost every configuration, and is a steady hand for this kind of thing. Also, the staff was friendly and so kind to all of our guests (including the drunk annoying ones that you're allowed to be mean to).
As far as pricing, they are absolutely fair (if not a steal). I think we got away with spending a little bit less than some of the catering groups in the comparable reputational tier. I would put them a tier above - they actually did a few of my friends' weddings in recent years and, to a couple, we've all had such a great experience and thought it was more than worth the price.
Hope you pick them! We will absolutely hire them for our next event and really look forward to seeing them at future weddings in and around NOLA!