About this vendor
We bring the unparalleled hospitality and acclaimed cuisine of Chef Jose Garces to your event. Our talented team will work with you every step of the way to ensure that your wedding is truly memorable – and a great success. Please inquire about our exclusive venues- The Kimme Center, The Academy of Music Ballroom, The Cira Centre, The Olde Bar, Stella at The Ghost Light Inn- along with our preferred venues in and around Center City.
Details
Cuisine
- American
- BBQ
- French
- Fusion
- Italian
- Latin American
Dietary Options
- Dairy Free
- Gluten Free
- Nut Free
- Organic
- Sugar Free
- Vegan
Food & Catering
- Buffet
- Catering Clean Up
- Catering Delivery & Setup
- Chef Stations
- Family Style
- Menu Tastings
Reviews
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4.6
out of 5.022 reviews
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I absolutely loved working with Garces Events. We specifically worked with Cara and Kathryn who were both excellent. They were so responsive, helpful, and professional throughout the whole process. The catering, drinks, food were unlike any other wedding I've been to. Do not expect just regular wedding food and options. Everything was so delicious. Every staff member was so helpful and kind and again, professional. Garces Events exceeded any and all of our expectations. Highly recommend!!
We had a nice wedding in spite of Garces Events. When we booked our venue in 2019 for 2021, we did so primarily because we wanted a particular venue and we had a good experience with Garces restaurants and catering at prior events that we attended. We expected to have a professional relationship with Garces Events, and it started that way primarily due to the first catering manager who sold us on going with Garces and this particular venue. Then the pandemic hit, and we had to move our event a year forward to this past April. The catering manager was replaced by someone who was not up to the task. This person rarely returned messages, or only after being harassed constantly by our wedding planner or us.
As our wedding day approached, we began to experience significant issues. First, we had negotiated an upgraded entree when we first signed our contract. We tasted the upgraded entree, which included a short rib, at a tasting event, and it was terrible. The meat was dry and did not have a good flavor. We became concerned because we had included an upgraded entree, and at first taste it was pretty terrible. Garces did allow us to taste the entree again, and it confirmed our initial impression. We therefore switched to a lower-level entree, which included chicken, because we had a more positive experience of it at the tasting event. Unfortunately, at our wedding reception the chicken was so dry that we almost choked on it. It was horrible.
Also, at the reception, Garces destroyed our wedding cake when they sliced it down and put it out on the dessert table. We didn't see it until dessert service was well underway, and unfortunately most of our guests did not have the wedding cake because it appeared as shredded crumbs on the serving platter. We had to complain and request that they slice more cake and pass it around the ballroom, but what a disappointment.
Finally, Garces lacks transparency in their pricing. Beware of getting nickled and dimed for everything once you approach your wedding date. And there's pretty much nothing you can do about it because you're locked in to your event just weeks away, and Garces starts sending you upcharges for everything, including additional costs to RENT and BUILD the dance floor (despite that cost being included in the promotional materials). Garces also told us to pick out the wines that we wanted, and then when we selected moderately priced wines, they sent us an upcharge for thousands more. Their house wine is not good.
We had a great wedding despite the poor performance of Garces. If we had to do it all over again, we would seriously consider a different vendor.
Thank you, Claire and the entire Garces team for the incredible service, attention to detail, and AMAZING food/drink for our July wedding at Appleford! I can not even explain how perfect our cocktail hour/food/drinks were. We had a taco bar and passed apps which were incredible. Our signature drink was a spicy margarita which was phenomenal. Claire was absolutely perfect to work with. She is positive, energetic, and eager to make everything run smoothly. Claire worked with us tirelessly as we managed a complete venue change from downtown Philadelphia to the Main Line. She was patient and understanding and advocated to help us make it all happen. She checked in on us as we sat down to eat to make sure everything was perfect. The staff were amazing - lines at the bars were short, food was hot, and our bridal attendant such a plus - we never had an empty hand without her asking what we needed - we felt like royalty. We can not recommend Garces enough for your next event. Thank you!!
We booked with Garces in 2019 for our October 2020 wedding at the Cira Center and we were very excited based on the reputation. Unfortunately due to COVID we postponed to October 2021 and hoped for the best, I would say they handled this part well. During this long period of waiting for our wedding we were excited to get back into planning so when trying to pay our deposit in winter 2021 their system had an error and no longer accepted payments (which in retrospect is pretty janky) when contacting our liaison she didn’t respond for months to our inquiries about the issue. We had a quick connect with the liaison in March/April 2021 to check in to make sure our event was happening and she assured us it was and that she was going to look into the payment issue. Payment issue was never resolved. Fast forward to May 2021 after sending the liaison several follow-up emails for months with no response, I finally received a short misspelled note asking how we want to discuss options... about our cancelled wedding... WHAT?! Cancelled wedding?! Literally have been emailing you for months and you come back with this news over email? Apparently I had an email in spam (also janky) for over a week from Garces’ COO relaying that Cira Center is no longer hosting weddings therefore ours is cancelled. Where was the phone call, where was the follow-up with some sort of care?! Brides are spending too much money for this treatment. I was floored to learn that our wedding had been cancelled by a company that pretty much ghosted me for months. After learning that news we thankfully found another venue that actually responds to us and cares about their couples. I won’t be working with Garces or attending any restaurants after this, I am so disappointed. I realize COVID has been difficult for the industry but that doesn’t mean basic customer service goes out the door.
My husband and I can't say enough good things about Garces. After relocating our wedding from Olde Bar to The Shambles due to Philadelphia's COVID restrictions, Claire jumped right in to help. We were let down that we weren't able to have our wedding in their beautiful space. Still, they were more than accommodating to cater our wedding, no matter where we ended up. She was fantastic, from mapping out space to orchestrating the timeline perfectly, and kept everything running right on schedule. Claire worked with our other vendors and communicated with them directly, giving me time to focus on the wedding's further details. The food was fantastic! I have to say there was some doubt from the guests that without having a proper kitchen, the food wouldn't be as good as served in the restaurant, and that just was not true at all! Everything was executed perfectly! I'm still blown away at all the hard work they put in to bring everything to the venue.
The wait staff was the most attentive group I have ever encountered (and I've been to A LOT of weddings). All guests were raving about the food. One guest said the passed hor d'oeuvres were the best she has ever had. Other guests commented on the level of service. Overall we could not be happier with Garces Catering. They made our wedding so incredibly unique and just absolutely perfect. 10/10 would recommend. Thank you to all of you.
From the quality of the food to the top notch service, Garces was one of the best choice we made for our wedding! We had a cocktail hour and full sit down dinner and every single dish served was unbelievable. Guests are still raving about the delicious food over a month later. Garces serves food that is far beyond typical wedding food and they can create dishes specific for your taste and style. Besides the food, the hospitality of the staff was excellent. They were able to cut and serve the cake we ordered from a separate bakery and also came up with adorable dessert boxes to hand out as thank you gifts to guests. We had to make some changes to the cocktail hour stations and they came up with amazing bento boxes to serve in light of Covid restrictions. They gave us everything we could have dreamed of and were an intrical part of our big day!
Claire and the Garces team were great to work with throughout the wedding planning process. We didn't do a traditional sit down dinner but wanted our guests to have the opportunity to try lots of Garces cuisines. We've received lots of feedback about how incredible the taco station (especially endless guacamole), paella station, and slider station were from our guests. Our guests also said they couldn't stop eating the passed appetizers during cocktail hour as every one of them were delicious. The servers were all super friendly and the bartenders kept the signature drink going all night long. Our only complaint was the lack of attention Garces paid to bride and groom during the reception. As part of our package, we were told we were going to have an assigned server that was focused specifically on us during the evening to help make sure we were brought plates of food and drinks; however, that never happened.
Garces is professional and accommodating. Their menus and level of service are hard to compete with! Very easy to work with during the planning process.
As a couple that loves trying different Philadelphia restaurants, we love that Garces Events based their catering on all of their restaurants. The food was absolutely amazing! The hardest part was picking out the passed appetizers, as there were so many options we loved! The Distrito and Village Whiskey stations were delicious!
Gina and the entire Garces team were wonderful to work with. They helped us prep for the wedding day, create the floor plan, pick the menu, and most importantly made sure our wedding day was perfect.
Garces Events was a fantastic choice for our wedding. They had a variety of options and price points for us. There was flexibility of food choices for out guests. They were available and lent a vast array of knowledge to the planning and the set-up of the event. And beyond all of that, the food was delicious and one of the things people still remember a year later.
From the beginning Claire was so generous with her time and expertise. She offered me plenty of time to check in over the phone and email. She laid out what she thought were the best options and always let me choose and gave us time to discuss. During the set-up meeting with the venue, she made herself available and helped lay out the venue, and remembered to incorporate all of the traditional wedding staples (guest book, DJ booth) from the top, which made making adjustments easy and convenient.
When it came to choosing the food, the menu offered plenty of flexibility so we could cater to our guests who had all of the dietary restrictions (Gluten free, lactose intolerant, vegetarian, vegan, etc.). It also came with a complementary sample tasting dinner with other couples. Everything was designed to please, made to order, and Claire made sure we experienced easy and professional service throughout.
During the reception, the staff was professional, everything was ready on time, and the food was flawless. I have nothing to say other than Garces Events took care of everything so well, I didn't have to think about it all night.
They were flexible with our requests. We wanted to serve wine and beer that were special to us, and we bought those bottles up front. Garces Events made it easy to incorporate that wish into their service throughout the night.
This experience was a step above my past experience with catering, and the food was certainly delicious (a step above what I've come to expect from wedding catering). I strongly recommend Garces Events for your wedding planning needs.
The Garces staff were immensely helpful assisting us in providing charm in a casual dining experience to complement our garden wedding. We wanted to offer an introduction to many of our guests who had never been to Philadelphia to the iconic dining fare of the City, which they did from cheesesteaks to tomato pies. Moreover, as this was a marriage of people from states that cherished their seafood, Maryland and Rhode Island, they magically worked crabs and quahogs and other delicacies into the appetizers. It was a wonderful effort on their part and much appreciated by us.
Garces Catering did such a great job at our venue (The Olde Bar). We have consistently heard great things from our guests about the presentation and quality of food during cocktail hour and dinner. Would highly recommend.
We used Garces catering for our wedding at Olde Bar in Philadelphia. Having Garces food at our wedding was one of the major selling points for choosing this venue, because we knew our wedding would have the best food Philly has to offer! Our guests raved about the food being the best and most unique wedding food. We were able to customize our catering package to add an additional cocktail hour station, additional dessert options, and late night pretzel snack. My husband and I can't wait to go to other Garces restaurants for future anniversaries and special occasions.
My daughters wedding was absolutely perfect! I received so many compliments about the venue including the food and the wonderful staff! If you are planning a wedding this is the place. The background of the City is incredible at night. If I had more daughters we would not hesitate to have the celebration with Garces at the CIRA Centre.
We are very grateful for all help. Milanee and Tori were wonderful!
Food was fantastic!! People couldn't stop talking about it. Every item was better than the next. And each dish looked like artwork. Amazing!!!
We just got married at the Kimmel Center -- it was the wedding of our dreams. We were thrilled with the planning process and how the big day turned out. Darcy worked with us throughout our engagement, and she was wonderfully helpful with our rehearsal, our ceremony, and our reception. The staff, including our captain and wedding attendant, were also perfect in assisting us throughout the night. Our family and guests are still raving about the food -- especially the taco bar! We also could not be happier with the beauty of the whole venue. Hamilton Garden was ideal for our bright, summery ceremony -- it also made the perfect party space for our reception's amazing dance party. We can't recommend Darcy, Garces Catering, or the Kimmel Center highly enough for their help with coordination and the execution of a picture-perfect wedding day. Thank you again!
Hamilton Rooftop Garden is breathtaking, but working with Darcy and the Garces team is really what made our decision to host our reception at the Kimmel Center a homerun. Darcy worked with us for over a year, always responding to questions quickly, providing wonderful suggestions and helping us think through all of the details that made our day perfect. The food is unbelievable, also – guests are still raving about it, and I think the tasting was our highlight of the entire wedding planning process! We did have to pay for union labor because we had a videographer, which is a protected work form at the Kimmel Center, which ultimately became a pretty sizeable expense. It also limited some of the lighting elements we did because the expense became too great.
I sincerely feel we got our money’s worth here – between Darcy’s expertise and attention to detail, the wonderful food and world class service, including a dedicated server for my husband and me, I never once regretted our decision to have the wedding here.
the food was hands down delicious. My guests described it as gourmet restaurant food, not mass-produced bland wedding food that you typically get. Chef Jason was a delight to work with and helped me customize the perfect menu. My only hangup was they switched up some of the options available after we signed the contract without notifying us, and felt that they nickel and dimed a little. However, that being said, it was worth the small administrative aggravation to actually have good food!
There really isn't much else to say. In fact, I am speechless. From the amazing staff, the delicious food, and all of the special little details (my biggest one from spending many years in the service industry, NO TRAY STANDS! Someone has finally gotten wedding catering right!) everything was beyond perfect. Carly, our bridal attendant, actually pushed a cart of all of our gifts, our cake, our champagne flutes, etc. down broad street at 11pm. She rocks, that's the bottom line, but all of the staff was THAT accommodating (cheers to the server with the tray of gin and tonics outside the elevator for my dad, uncle, groomsmen and now hubby after wedding photos!).
Onto the food, I knew we were in great hands after meeting Adam at our tasting, but our food was BETTER at the wedding than at the tasting (and it was awesome at the tasting, by the way). Everyone we talked to raved about the food, many saying that it was the best food they had at a wedding. I couldn't agree more. Our cake was different because we had chosen an interesting flavor pairing, but so beautiful and delicious, and even though we didn't have a chance to enjoy an entire slice, the staff sent us home with a takeout box of cake for later (again, service was on point!). Jessica has a very impressive resume, and her work proves it. She made, by far, the best wedding cake and macaroons I have ever had.
I have to say, my how-hubby and I are very picky when it comes to food and alcohol, and Vicki organized everything. She listened to everything we had asked for and delivered. I can't thank her enough for making our day so special!
So, if you are looking for the best caterer in Philadelphia, it's Garces.
And to everyone who worked our wedding on July 27, 2013- THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!! You guys were awesome and made our day so much fun! We can not praise you enough!!
Garces Catering was wonderful to work with and gave us a delicious vegan wedding. They were unfazed by putting together a menu without meat, dairy, or eggs, and even though ours was their first vegan wedding, they were excited by what they saw as a professional challenge. From Vicki, whom we worked with most closely, to chefs Adam and Jessica, to the day-of staff, everyone's enthusiasm shone through.
Our only letdown was that the wedding meal wasn't quite as good as our tasting, which was out-of-this-world -- and possibly set too high a bar! The food was pricey, but we felt it was a worthwhile investment. We really wanted to show our guests (most of whom were not vegetarian or vegan) that vegan food can be delicious and that they wouldn't miss animal products.
Our favorite dishes were our beautiful hors d'oeuvres, including grilled peach and heirloom tomato tartare and a Japanese steamed bun with hoisin-glazed zucchini and carrots, pickled radish, kim chee, and peanuts; a delicious chickpea bread salad with baby spinach and spicy tomato was one of our favorite family-style entrees; and we enjoyed three outstanding vegan desserts, including orange- and maple-infused beignets. (Don't miss out on Chef Jessica's desserts!)
When we picked the Kimmel Center's Hamilton Garden as our wedding location, we chose it because we loved the space. We can't believe we didn't know anything about the Garces Group then. We would certainly work with them again and we wholeheartedly recommend them for your celebration!
My daughter was married this past weekend at the Kimmel Center, with a reception afterwards.
We had about 120 guests. The unanimous, unabated, honest assessment from everyone? "Best wedding we've ever been to".
Food was absolutely perfect. Service was spot on. The small things from a service standpoint, the things that make a difference, were all done perfectly. Plates were brought out without tray stands, there weren't covers on the plates, wine was refilled promptly, plates cleared quickly, etc..
More about the food....it was restaurant quality. If you've been to a Jose Garces restaurant, it was the same level of quality. The appetizers were incredible, as was the lettuce/beet salad, filet/chicken/salmon entrée, and the wedding cake (lemon with blueberries, cherry fig filling) was unique and made with love.
As far as the Kimmel center, amazing. The light during the ceremony was perfect, at night the architecture and cityscape were awe inspiring. We had our cocktail reception outside on the 2nd floor patio, overlooking Broad Street with a straight shot towards City Hall.
Cannot recommend it enough, and our family operates several restaurants, so we're harsh critics.
We used Garces Catering for our wedding and everything was perfect: the food was amazing, all of the servers were friendly and helpful (one helped get a grass stain out of my dress!) and Beth and Adam were a pleasure to work with. They were very flexible and even extended our cocktail hour 30 minutes day of because the receiving line took longer than anticipated. They also made sure that my husband and I got to eat. The food was incredible. Really, just amazing, the same quality as is served in the Garces restaurants. Everyone raved, even less adventurous eaters in our families. Garces Catering was great in every aspect and I would highly recommend them.
Contact
300 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA
Garces Events
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