Farm to Fire by Hudson Valley BBQ Co.

best wedding dinner we had ever had. That's impressive enough, but it was also "just" a chicken breast, which was not gonna be my guess for the star protein of "best wedding meal ever." So when we decided to get married, it was a no-brainer. We asked Brandon to please make whatever he wanted: if he could surprise us so much with a chicken breast, we just wanted to see what he could do when given free rein. So at our outside, campground wedding out in the woods, he and his team built a fire and roasted chickens and a whole pig over it. That's not for everyone, I know, but for us it was perfect (and to be clear, they also do plated meals, we WANTED a big public live fire cookout, it's not a requirement of working with Farm to Fire). The fire was a focal point of the whole celebration, it was entertainment as much as it was food. I'm sure it made the team's job harder to have guests constantly walking up and asking questions and taking pictures of the process, but they were awesome about it. It was like a wilderness demonstration kitchen. Several guests wanted to be friends with the chefs, because they were so joyful and patient and welcoming and all-around great. And as for the food? SO MANY guests told us it was the best reception dinner they'd ever had. My wife(!) was born and raised in Memphis, TN, so needless to say her family has strong opinions about barbecue and smoked pork in particular. One Memphian told me that he didn't think you could find good barbecue in Upstate New York, and he was SO wrong that he over-ate and made himself sick. My father-in-law, who is a man of very few words, was absolutely giddy about finding cracklins, his favorite food in the world, in Upstate NY, and thought they stood up to the best Memphis had to offer. Working with Brandon and his team also couldn't be any easier or stress-free. Brandon himself is the nicest guy in the world, and every time the inevitable curveball got thrown our way, Brandon 's response was always "you two don't worry about this, I'll figure it out." And he always did. Most notably, we used Farm to Fire as both our caterer and our bar service, and there was a problem with our venue changing its policy on liquor licenses that had us really freaking out, and with basically no input from us Brandon and his team just handled it, with all involved parties being happy with the outcome. All in all, I would say the two best decisions I made for my wedding were 1) marrying my gorgeous wife, and 2) hiring Farm to Fire.

unlike anything our guests had experienced at weddings before—including an Italian-inspired cocktail hour complete with a cacio e pepe pasta station in a cheese wheel, a Puerto Rican dinner of pernil roasted over an open flame with arroz con gandules, and Greek desserts like baklava and loukoumades. Not only did Chef Brandon and Ali say yes—they were excited to take on new cuisines and execute a totally custom menu for us. Chef Brandon cooked everything on-site over open flames (epic for guests to see live), using fresh, local ingredients. The smell alone was unforgettable. We had a roaming oyster shucker during cocktail hour, who was not just shucking but entertaining—our guests are still talking about it. The food was not just served, it was experienced. But what really blew us away? It rained. A lot. Our outdoor wedding turned into a logistical challenge, and not once did we see the team flinch. They adapted. They hustled. And they delivered an incredible array pf food with warmth, grace, and a level of service that made the chaos disappear. The serving and bartending staff were friendly, proactive, and genuinely joyful. Chef Brandon, Ali, and your amazing team—you made the impossible happen. Thank you for letting us build a menu that felt like home and pulling it off with style. If you’re a couple that dreams in flavor, this is your caterer.

for the wedding. The food was absolutely outstanding—our guests are still raving about it! Each dish was beautifully presented and packed with flavor. The service on the wedding day was flawless. Brandon and his team were professional, friendly, and made everything run smoothly, allowing us to relax and enjoy our celebration. Had guests tell us this was the best food they have had at a wedding!

tever we threw at him. From our initial conversation with endless questions about food options, food allergies and how those would be handled, set-up, serving and everything in between, Brandon had the right answer and put our minds at ease. Within a week of making the decision to go with Farm to Fire, Brandon sent over a menu that blew us away. We had given him a few ideas we'd seen at other weddings as well as some of our favorite dishes, and from those notes he created a diverse menu that perfectly reflected us. From there he was incredibly communicative; getting back to emails, texts or calls almost immediately. A few months prior to the big day we were able to sit down with Brandon for a tasting and while we expected that it would be good, he exceeded those expectations. Of course that was for just the two of us but when it came time to cook for 150+ people the quality didn't waver. Brandon's giant open-flame rig was such a fun and unique site to greet our guests and certainly piqued everyone's interest as to what was in store for dinner. Everyone got their first taste during the cocktail hour where the grazing table and hors d'oeuvres drew rave reviews (special shout-out to the bite-sized reubens!). Brandon's staff was on top of EVERYTHING during that time; constantly circulating the hors d'oeuvres and even taking the time to make a special platter for my wife and I, as they noticed how busy we were conversing and posing for pictures. Obviously the big part of the night was dinner and once again, these guys went above and beyond. From the perfectly cooked cedar plank salmon to the mouthwatering picanha served with a variety of toppings - a special request so that people were able to dress their steak how they liked with either blue cheese crumbles, chimichurri or horseradish cream - everything tasted incredible. Finally, we ended the night with a classic - cookies & ice cream - and despite a muggy night, they pulled it off! Almost forgot to mention that somehow Brandon was able to do his open-fire cooking not just on a hot, muggy day but also on a day that saw a steady rain for a good half hour prior to the ceremony. Still not sure how he pulled that off. It was truly a pleasure to work with Brandon but just as much of a pleasure to watch him work; a true master of his craft who takes great pride in what he does. I would HIGHLY recommend you allow Brandon and his crew to make your special day that much more special!

the music, and boy did the food live up to mine and everyone’s expectations! From the initial call where Brandon described what our wedding day would be like, to building our menu, tasting the food, then the actual wedding day, every step of the way was an absolute breeze! We are so happy we chose HVBBQ to cater our wedding. Every dish was vibrant looking and so fresh, my guests won’t stop talking about it! One thing I would like to note, wish I had known earlier before hiring a Day of Coordinator, that Heather offers planning services. Heather was so helpful and so communicative that at times I felt like she was my wedding planner. I would’ve 100% hired her to help with the entire wedding if I had known in time. So just a note to future brides, you will love her. Thank you Brandon, Heather and staff for gracing us with your cooking and services on our special day. It was a day that will never be forgotten!

he normally would have cooked in the covered area on this property, but they wouldn't let him. The venue confirmed that he lied about that. Then he ghosted me. 3 Tables told us they did not get to eat main courses. Some of the fried chicken from cocktail hour was brought back out to serve to later tables. As the mains were served, no one called tables to go up and I had to ask who should be. Nick was supposed to be doing it, when I went to him, he was unaware that it was his duty. Neither water nor wine were poured before or during dinner. No water was available to anyone until we asked, which was one of several such instances. Even then, it was Kate's crew that ended up pouring water and wine. Wine was meant to be poured during dinner as per our signed contract. Prosecco was meant to be included for the toasts. My wife and I had no water, no wine, and no bubbles for our toasts. We toasted with empty glasses. The paella was woefully undercooked. When I finally had a chance to serve myself, the only food remaining was pork loin and paella, but the only thing left in the paella was gray shrimp and unopened clams and mussels. A guest said our money was wasted. We paid for food that could not be eaten. We paid over $30k and there wasn't enough food. His and Her tacos and mini margarita shooters were not served at all. They were supposed to be passed at cocktail hour as per our signed contract. The signature drinks and prosecco for cocktail hour were not poured ahead of time and passed as per our signed contract. These steps were meant to be taken to specifically alleviate the line at the bar, which was "brutal" according to a guest. My wife confirmed in an email on March 29th and Brandon confirmed that signature drinks would be pre poured. The late night food was not ready, and I had to go ask where it was at 10pm. My wife's sister also had to ask about the late night food as well as dessert. Brandon said that he thought we were having food at 10:30 even though the hard stop for Hayfield has always been 10, including all the other weddings he's done there. Street tacos were not served and I saw maybe 5 plates of runny mac and cheese. We felt like we were constantly wondering where things were and why they were taking so long. It seemed obvious that there was not enough staff. For the price we paid, we should not have felt like we were part of the staff, worrying about what needed to be taken care of. We both specifically told our friends and family how good the food would be and how they should look forward to it, yet it was the only aspect of our wedding that anyone complained about. We were embarrassed. Multiple guests told us there was not enough food. By the end of the night, it was clear that things had gone so wrong that we asked Kate to return to us the check that was going to be for your gratuity. Brandon never followed up with us about that, even though he had originally tried to get us to pay 6k in gratuity weeks before the wedding took place. And yet, we believe the non-payment of gratuity for the products and services that were (or weren't) rendered does not begin to cover our grievances. We paid for services and food that were not supplied to us. We were massively overcharged based on the quality of goods and service that day.