Caterer for Boone, caterer for NC Banner Elk, NC, Jefferson
About this vendor
Close your eyes. How do you envision your wedding?
Our expertise in creating menus will WOW your guests with a delectable food ensemble: contemporary, comfort food, outrageous appetizers, signature desserts, or anything in between.
Food is central to any function and brings an inviting focal point to gatherings! Great food is the conduit to both culinary adventures and conversation! Flawless presentation of impeccable service, coupled with our amazing food, will be a reflection of you! We are chefs/owners with a passion for food! Regardless of your chosen menu, we promise you delicious dishes prepared from scratch!
Frugal Gourmet Catering Company is a wedding and special occasion catering service in Banner Elk, NC.
Details
Business Attributes
- Veteran-owned Business
- Woman-owned Business
Cuisine
- American
- Cajun
- Chinese
- Fusion
- Italian
- Korean
Dietary Options
- Dairy Free
- Gluten Free
- Nut Free
- Organic
- Sugar Free
- Vegetarian
Food & Catering
- Buffet
- Catering Clean Up
- Catering Delivery & Setup
- Chef Stations
- Family Style
- Menu Tastings
Reviews
Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.
4.7
out of 5.025 reviews
We were nervous about coordinating wedding vendors when we lived states away from our venue, but the Frugal Gourmet made it easy! The food was fantastic and really hard to choose because all of the options were so good. We chose to do the Tapas option and our guests really enjoyed eating the different options throughout the night. We also loved that the Frugal Gourmet offered place settings and napkins. People still bring up how mouth-watering the Brisket Gouda sliders were!
So glad we booked this team! They were so wonderful to work with - positive and kind staff the day of, so quick to answer questions and work with dietary issues leading up to the event.
They were fantastic and I'd book them again - 10/10
We are so happy that we chose Frugal Gourmet to cater our wedding. Aleta and her team went above and beyond for us. From the initial tasting to the big day, the food quality and taste was unmatched. Our guests raved about how it is some of the best wedding food they have had. I personally also love how they offer napkins, dishes, etc. It truly was a one-stop shop for us catering wise. I highly recommend them!
I had a great time working with Aleta and her team. Along with the amazing food, she provided cloth napkins, real dishes, and beautiful vintage goblets for an amazing price. All of her staff was professional and kind. We did BBQ & my friends continue to rave about her Mac&cheese! Very thankful for her excellent service.
Frugal Gourmet Catering did a fabulous job at our wedding. From responsiveness during planning and flexibility in menu changes, to delicious appetizers, entrees, and desserts, and friendly and professional service throughout our event! Would definitely recommend them!
We hired Frugal Gourmet for my daughter's wedding for 150 and we couldn't be more pleased with our decision! The food was delicious, the presentation was perfect and the service clearing the tables was excellent. They arrived on time, setup efficiently and did an excellent job cleaning up.
And the price was right!
Frugal was amazing! The food was so good, especially the mashed potato bar! (I’m vegetarian) The desserts were super tasty as well including the cake which was a cannoli raspberry swirl cake and lots of other desserts like a raspberry tart and carrot cake. Aleta was super easy to work with, very responsive and professional. Her staff was great that served at our wedding. They were there on time and made me (mother of the bride) feel completely at ease. Thanks so much Frugal Gourmet!! Would definitely hire them again!!
I have only GREAT things to say about Frugal Gourmet Catering!! Aleta and her team catered my daughters wedding this past weekend at Sugar Hollow Retreat. From the initial tasting, everything in between , to the actual reception was "OVER the TOP"!!! All the guest raved about all of the food. Aleta was great, Val, Laural and girls were great! The Food was Amazing!!. I am so very thankful and humbled at the preparation, thought and care that they put fourth in their services, the food, the dessert table, the wedding cake to the table settings. I highly recommend Frugal Gourmet !!!
The food was great! The Mac n cheese was amazing!! They were flexible with any change I threw their way!! They played the food for us (the bride and groom) and plated the hors d’oeuvres! Everyone loved the food!!
We loved working with Aleta! She helped us pick a menu that fit exactly what we wanted, and she had so many things to pick from. You could really pick any food you can think of. Aleta also did our dessert table & cake, and she executed my vision perfectly! We also got our bartending services through her and he was absolutely amazing! Their whole team made sure us and our guests were taken care of all night, and it was so convenient to have one vendor take care of so many things for us. We had so many compliments on the food a desserts from our guests, so I’d 100% recommend Aleta & her team at Frugal Gourmet!
Aleta was so great to work with, and the food was AMAZING! She has so many different packages and options to choose from, it is so easy to customize your menu and your price point to what you really want. I felt I did not have to worry about anything as far as food or preparation went. Aleta provides so much along with her food, that we barely had to rent anything extra. She uses real plates, utensils, and cloth napkins in SO many different colors. We chose to upgrade to the multi-colored goblets that she offered, and they were so beautiful with our color scheme! Everyone raved about the food and the desserts!
Aleta and her crew catered my daughter's wedding (July, 2021) and got rave reviews from everyone! The menu options were varied, what we chose was most delish, and we got so many comments about how wonderful the food was at the reception! The Fried Green Tomatoes over Cheesy Grits were the bomb and by far my favorite! The desserts were also outstanding, including the lovely ceremony cake. You won't be disappointed if you choose Frugal Gourmet to cater your special event, everything was mouthwateringly delish!!
I cannot recommend Aleta and her team at Frugal Gourmet enough for your catered event or wedding, particularly if it's at nearby Sugar Hollow Retreat or Villa Nove Vineyards. We were married in June 2021 at Sugar Hollow Retreat, and without Aleta we would have never even known about the venue. We had called her for a quote about another venue in North Carolina, and ended up talking to her for an hour to the point that we were completely sold on both Frugal Gourmet and Sugar Hollow by the time we hung up the phone.
We used Frugal Gourmet in a way that everyone should at Sugar Hollow Retreat, but also in a way that ONLY she could provide due to her proximity to the venue. We had 65 guests staying on-site for three nights and 110, 140, and 200, respectively, on the property for dinner/drinks each of the three nights. Due to very limited local food options and a desire to offer our guests excellent hospitality, we asked Aleta to handle breakfasts for the on-site guests each morning, as well as serving and dinner services each evening. Her prices are reasonable and we charged our guests a bit more to help cover the costs of the convenience, but it was more than worth it to them to not have to worry about breakfasts or cleaning up the kitchen. It's hard to describe this unless you've visited the Sugar Hollow property, but I cannot imagine what a cluster it would be with everyone on-site (particularly those staying in the lodge) trying to use the kitchen and then deal with clean-up. It would be a disaster and someone with OCD would inevitably end up not enjoying the weekend because they would spend too much time cleaning up the kitchen and patio while all of the other guests were having fun and making a mess.
Aleta's top assistant was Valerie, and she proved invaluable as she was there late into every evening and early every morning for breakfast. My bride came up to me about an hour after Valerie arrived on the first night and said, "This was the best idea ever! Val came in and took over everything for us. Cleaning the kitchen, emptying trash cans, directing traffic, etc." My bride and her Mom are two of those people who would have been cleaning the kitchen the entire time if you let them, so offering them the freedom and peace of mind to enjoy their wedding weekend without the stress of cooking and cleaning is a debt that can never be repaid. That's the greatest compliment I could ever pay Frugal Gourmet: They made every meal and clean-up so easy and stress-free that it allowed us and all of our guests to enjoy each other's company without worrying about anything else. If that's not the primary goal of your wedding, it should certainly be near the top of the list.
I've barely mentioned the food but it was all top notch and we've received endless compliments about it from numerous guests. Aleta's professionalism, communication, and food are all second to none. Couple that with her proximity to Sugar Hollow Retreat and familiarity with the property, and this should be the first and easiest decision you make upon booking Sugar Hollow for your wedding. You would be doing yourself a great disservice to even bother considering anyone else.
I love how this company is affordable and delicious! Aleta was also super easy to work with. Thank you for providing delicious food at our wedding. I am more than pleased with how everything turned out!
Aleta was tremendous to work with. She is innovative, creative, and has such talent. She was such a great match for me and my husband because he has lots of skills in the kitchen and wanted to have some collaboration with our chef. Aleta was the only one willing (and excited) to do something different! Replanning a wedding three times (#covidbride) really shows you the quality of your vendors. Frugal is the company you want to be with, trust me. Aleta was a great communicator, and remained so flexible as we shifted things around time and time again. She ended up going above and beyond for us, given the unique circumstances. She was lovely to work with and did I mention how delicious her food is?!!! People were raving about her food at the wedding. We are lucky to have booked her and will always be grateful for how special she made our day!
I inquired with this company, and they take days to respond, and don't answer questions.
I asked about their price ranges and they kept referring me to other caterers, and said "it varies" -I understand it varies, I'm asking what the variations are.
Mind you I am unable to call during normal business hours, so it's not like I could have just picked up the phone and talked to someone about it.
I will not be using this company.
Aleta’s food and team is still being talked about to this day! Our guests raves about how her mac n cheese shouldn’t even be called that because it is far beyond the title! She was extremely easy to work with the presentation of the food was everything we pictured :)
We booked frugal gourmet for my second wedding after a strong recommendation from Kim and Ray at the Barn at Cornerstone and were blown away by the quality of the food and service. Everything about the entire process from the tasting, to yes even the payment as well as the actual events themselves were spectacular and exceeded expectations. We had a lot of last minute changes due to inclement weather and Aleta and her team did not hesitate to accommodate everything. They all went above and beyond to ensure that our satisfaction and happiness. We are extremely pleased in our decision in choosing them for our special day. A big thank you goes out to Aleta and team, from the bottom of our hearts!!!
Aleta and her staff are amazing! The logistics, food, and wedding cake were all perfect!!! Our only regret is that we didn't sneak away with more of the cake for ourselves!
Aleta and her wonderful staff at the Frugal Gourmet Catering Company went above and beyond! From our initial conversation, to our tasting, and finally our big day, Aleta was there every step of the way to offer advice and help us create the perfect menu. She was such a blessing to this disorganized bride! Our friends and family are still talking about the delicious food...her coconut cream pie was a favorite! We are so appreciative of her and the heart she put into our wedding - her passion for food is palpable. Aleta comes with our highest recommendation!
Unfortunately, I think I learned a lesson of "you get what you pay for" here. As the name indicates, the price was good. However, the service of the company's owner and the food itself was not as enjoyable. They showed up on time and the food was edible, but warm items were not very warm, some items were virtually flavorless, and I was missing two items from my menu. The caterer agreed to heat a vegan meat product that she wasn't familiar with that I had shipped to her, and when we spoke after the wedding she complained about how difficult it was and how that should "make us even". I didn't feel like pushing for any money back, but definitely would not recommend this caterer.
As mother of the bride, I could not have been happier with the catering for my daughter's recent wedding. Aleta's food was unique, beautifully presented and, best of all, it tasted wonderful. Our guests were thrilled with the food and our family received many complements on the catering. The staff went above and beyond, helping out with lighting hundreds of candles and making sure every guest was happy. It was a wonderful evening, thanks to the help of Frugal Gourmet!
Aleta and her staff did an amazing job catering our wedding. I have Celiac Disease and I was kind of stressed about finding a caterer who could make an entirely gluten free (and affordable) dinner for our wedding. Aleta was a dream to work with - she contacted us with any ingredient questions and made sure I could eat every component of the meal. Not only did she cater our wedding, my husband's parents asked her to cater the rehearsal dinner, and my parents asked her to cater a sunday brunch for the guests. Aleta did an incredible job with every event, and I highly recommend her!
Frugal Gourmet catered our daughter's wedding recently, and everyone was so impressed with the food! Aleta is an amazing cook, and she goes above and beyond to make sure everything is perfect. We did 3 stations-Mexican, Southern, and Asian- and all were incredible. Everyone still keeps commenting on how great the food was and how nice it was to have so much variety. She provided plenty of food at a very reasonable price. I can't recommend her enough. If you're looking for a truly memorable reception meal, you will not go wrong with this company!
Great food, great service, and they really went above and beyond for us at our wedding. Everything was well priced, delicious, and Aleta made sure that we had some to take home since we didn't get to eat much at the party. I definitely recommend them!
Contact
64 Cornerstone Cir, Banner Elk, NC 28604, Banner Elk, NC | Caterer for Boone, caterer for NC Banner Elk, NC, Jefferson
Frugal Gourmet Catering Company