Pamela's Traveling Feast

I cannot say enough good things about Pamela's and her wonderful event coordinator, Jayme. My entire family was super impressed with how fabulous Jayme was. She made sure every detail was tended to and everything flowed perfectly. The food was phenomenal and people are still raving about our cocktail hour. They were always quick to respond and flexible. You will not be disappointed.

First and foremost, Pamela is possibly the sweetest woman to ever live and her food is absolutely delicious. I have every intention of visiting her restaurant any time I'm in the area, and I would gladly recommend her catering services for small events. I struggle writing anything negative about my experience with her and her company because of these things, but I feel I should leave an honest review, so I will include both the positive and negative aspects of my experience. POSITIVE: Pamela and I clicked at our first meeting. My fiance and I walked out of her restaurant raving about her chicken wellington and berry pie (still dying for that crust recipe!) and literally saying to each other "she's the one". Right from the very beginning, she made us feel like she wanted to take care of us. She is laid back yet also very passionate. She puts a lot of thought into every detail and dish, and this is so important for a wedding, so I truly appreciated that from the very beginning. She was very flexible and let us add a passed hors d'oeuvre that wasn't on her menu at all, she happily accommodated the idea of having two signature cocktails, and she worked with me to special-order an English beer as a surprise for the groom. I also had a very specific request for a black and white dance floor, and Pamela went out of her way to work with a different rental company than usual to find it. Toward the end of our wedding planning process, she was available via text for any questions I had. As far as day-of coordination, Pamela and her team have it down. The timeline was smooth, the service was perfect, and the food was rave-worthy. NEGATIVE: Full disclosure: I'm extremely organized and find solace in a well-laid plan. I think I needed a caterer/coordinator with the same tendencies. If this is not you, you can ignore the rest of this review. The event coordination communication for Pamela's Traveling Feast has a lot of room for improvement. There seem to be multiple people who run her events email account, so I felt like things kept getting lost in communication and the onus of following up was always on me. I found communication very frustrating because I was constantly following up, waiting for answers, and feeling like I was being a bother for trying to get things done early. Our wedding was at a winery which only served as location, so Pamela was also the person who managed our rentals. It took more than a month to even get a sample rental proposal, and then too much time in between drafts, which caused us to be working on finishing details too close to the wedding date for comfort. There was also some miscommunication (possibly also on my part) regarding what her sister-company would be able to do for us for decorative lighting, and they booked another wedding and left us to find someone else with less than 3 weeks to go. Lastly, our cake toppers, which were handmade by a close friend, must have been accidentally thrown out as they were not in the box of items returned to us at the end of the night. I texted her the very next day, and even this required a follow up from our end when we got back from our honeymoon 2 weeks later, by which time it would have been too late to look for them. In summary, I think Pamela should have one very organized person dedicated to all events communication and it would have been helpful to see a clear timeline of the planning process and what exact services would be provided by Pamela.

Wedding 7/11/15 To Pamela and Staff : I want to take this moment to thank you for all the hard work you’ve done to make the wedding of my dreams come true. You made me feel like I was part of your family and I honestly can’t say enough about you. Every detail that we discussed during our meetings (and believe me I had many) were exactly how I envisioned them to be and more. You worked with my husband and I to adapt the menu to what was affordable in our situation and I want to thank you for that. I felt confident that you had everything under control and I did not doubt you for a minute. You were a pleasure to work with and exceeded our expectations. Your staff was very attentive and the service was exceptional; they did not miss a beat. I can truly see the love and dedication you have for your staff and the love they have for you and that says a lot about a business. The food was also exceptional. My guests are still raving about it till this day and say it was one of the most beautiful weddings they have ever been too. Which leads me to the next great thing. I honestly can’t say enough about Jayme. Jayme was absolutely wonderful with the décor and all the finite details. She pulled everything together and my guests were blown away. Between you all, my wedding was everything I had ever dreamed it could be. I highly recommend you and your staff for any wedding or event because I know that the attention to detail and the hard work that you and your staff put in is beyond exceptional and no bride would be disappointed. My husband and I were extremely lucky to have such an exceptional caterer. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for making me the happiest bride on the day of my wedding. You assured me that you were going to deliver the wedding of my dreams and you sure did!!! Sincerely, A Very Happy Bride Jennifer Polak

Working with Pamelas for my daughters wedding was an extension of my brain! She and her team had every detail attended to in a large scale. Beyond any event I've ever attended. They fulfilled our every wish,and made it feel very intimate,and filled with wow! The team was sophisticated ,polite and attentive to every desire. The food was perfection not only in taste but presentation! They were prepared, on time , adapted to any changes that occurred and calm. They have all the connects to everything needed to create the fantasy event. Suggestions to implement all!! Allow them to do their thing! and heed their advice.. You can trust it will be executed in the way you had envisioned and beyond! xoxo peter and debbie jagel

I just had my wedding on Sunday in Newburgh, NY and I am so thankful and relieved that I picked Pamela as our caterer. I knew I wanted to have the wedding in Newburgh since my husband is Greek Orthodox and the church in Newburgh was the first church I visited when we first started dating. I looked at some venues in the Hudson Valley area and Pamela's traveling feast was one of the recommended caterers in all the venues I visited. Before I even picked a venue I knew Pamela needed to be the caterer. My husband and I wanted to have fun, multicultural menu with greek and latin american staples. Pamela made us a custom menu that included cool appetizers like empanadas and chicken souvlaki. My friends and family loved the food and complimented my choices. I am one of those brides that hated the whole wedding planning process. I was nervous and anxious about the criticism and complaints especially since I was working two extra jobs to pay for everything. I had several moments where I just wanted to call it quits and not do a reception at all. However I'm glad I stuck it out. Pamela recommended Jayme Flynn as the florist for the wedding. Jayme works directly with Pamela as part of Pam's design team. At the wedding I told Jayme she was "god sent." She made me a beautiful bouquet and decorated the reception which was at the Newburgh Brewing Company. Pam and Jayme understood my vision better than I did. All I did was email Jayme pictures of what I thought would look great at the brewery and she went from there. I wanted a simple, clean rustic look and Jayme gave me exactly what I wanted and needed. Pamela is an expert in her field. She has done more weddings than I can even count so definitely trust that she will do an amazing job.

Pamela's Traveling Feast catered our wedding at Brotherhood Winery on November 2, 2013. We absolutely loved working with Pamela and Jayme in the months leading up to our wedding. They are so knowledgeable and have such an eye for style. They work closely with the rental company we used, and that really eased our minds knowing that they knew exactly what we needed to host such a large event. Their attention to detail is also impeccable, for example Jayme asked us what font we used on our escort cards so that she could match the style for the cocktail hour signs. At our first meeting with Pamela, she asked us what our vision was and what style of food we wanted. From there, every single item for our wedding was customized just for us. We wanted to do an "around the world" cocktail hour theme, and she delivered! Our guests are still raving about how unique our food was and that it was unlike any other wedding they have been to. The biggest hit was our mashed potato bar, where Pamela's team served mashed potatoes in martini glasses and had toppings out for our guests to fix any way they liked. My husband and I are so so glad that we chose Pamela's Traveling Feast!

Pamela and her team executed our wedding day flawlessly. I had to do nothing on the day of the wedding because she and Jayme had everything down exactly the way my husband and I envisioned. We had 3 stations of food that represented our cultures and the food was amazing. Pamela and her staff did an amazing job with using extra flowers the florist gave to incorporate them into the food stations and trays during cocktail hour. Once they arrived, her staff were like little elves getting all the tables set and decor out and hung up. It was amazing to look outside and see their fast progress. Jayme made sure that me and my fiance had everything we needed as we got ready for our first look. I highly recommend and trust them for any party no matter how big or small.

Our dreams came true because of this caterer! Pamela and her assistant Jayme took every aspect of our thoughts and ideas for our big day and brought them to fruition. The food was outstanding, the decor was perfection, the staff was professional ad friendly, and at every turn there was a smiling face making sure my husband and I, our parents, and even our grand parents were taken care of. We did not want something typical, we did not want a "wedding factory" wedding as my husband and I like to call catering halls; and our wish came true! There is no way we could possibly thank this caterer enough except to highly recommend her and her services to anyone who might want something slightly out of the ordinary and completely their own. We literally had the night of our dreams and threw the party of lifetime and were able to do that because of our AMAZING caterer and her outstanding staff.

I made an appointment to meet with Pamela to cater my wedding( I was beyond excited, given all the great reviews) and it was being set up through Jayme. We had a time set and it needed to be changed to an earlier time, which Jayme confirmed was more than fine. After driving an hour there and waiting almost 30 minutes, I was handed a phone to talk with Pamela, She told me that she was unaware of the time change and wouldnt be able to get there for another hour which would have made it too late. She was incredibly apologetic and said she would contact me over the phone to discuss. I never received a call from her, so I wrote an email to Jayme( the one who failed to inform Pamela of the time change) which was as nice as could be while getting my point across, with hopes that I would eventually get a response and hopefully reschedule. I received no response. I now know that going with them would be a bad choice since I would have the fear that Jayme would not inform Pamela of times for my wedding and it would be ruined. I would not reccommend them since my experience has been a horrible one, leaving me to feel unworthy of Pamelas traveing feasts service, and lets be honest, thats the last thing you want for your wedding.

Pamela and her team were very distant throughout our wedding planning process. There was a huge lack of communication even though she advertises herself as our day-of-coordinator. Many people's roles during our wedding were mixed up and I didn't even meet my maitre'd until right before my ceremony (first off, I didn't even know I had one). She then walked right in the middle of my ceremony to pull the runner down the aisle, even though my ushers were prepared to do it. The food wasn't great, the beef was super tough to eat and the portions were very sparing. The bright side to the food was the cocktail hour - probably the only thing our guests raved about. Our "open bar" ran out of Jameson after 4 bottles, even though we had specifically requested James for our bar. On top of that, the bartenders told my guests they were told to stop serving them after awhile and ended up making drinks that were 95% ice and 5% liquor. Overall not a great experience - cost isn't bad but I guess in the end, what you pay for is what you get.

I absolutely loved working with Pam and her staff! Pam is so incredibly talented and passionate about her work. The food for my wedding was so delicious and exactly how we had discussed. Pam was very flexible and patient with my now husband and I. We had the hardest time deciding on some of the items we wanted to serve and Pam stuck with us! She made the day run smoothly, coordinated with the DJ and photographer, and basically dubbed as our event planner. I would not hesitate on recommending Pamela to anyone. She truly is the best!

Pamela and Jayme worked with me throughout my whole wedding process and were so supportive of all my ideas. I went with a Great Gatsby/1920s style wedding, and they went head strong into it! They even did everything they could to accommodate all of our guests dining needs, and the food was absolutely delicious. Many, if not all, of my guests declared it was the best wedding they had ever been to, and I can guarantee Pamela and her staff had a huge role in that.

Pamela and her staff were AWESOME to work with! The day was so amazing, and we truly appreciated all the hard work and effort Pamela and her staff put in to making our wedding day SO incredibly personal and special. It was beyond perfect. Our guests (and us too!!) were extremely impressed with the food and all the personal touches! They really care about making your special day fun and stress-free! The entire staff was super friendly and professional. Love, love, love!!

Thank you Pamela for a beautiful and wonderful day! With you we were able to completely customize our entire wedding weekend EXACTLY the way we wanted it. You made my entire family feel comfortable and special. I just wish we could relive the day all over again!

I wanted to thank Pamela and Jayme. They were helpful and informative at all our meetings. They worked with us to have a non-alcoholic reception. They were appreciative that we had our own cake brought to the reception. Jayme went out of her way to talk with and welcome our other vendors. Jayme was on site when we brought the sparkling cranberry-apple cider and the decorations. Jayme made sure that there was a platter of fruits and cheeses for my 13 month old niece and chicken fingers and french fries for my 5 year old niece. Both little girls were our flower girls. Jayme had the staff put out the goldfish crackers and coloring books for the girls. The staff was very helpful in making sure that those little girls had all they wanted and needed. Jayme and the staff our did themselves in decorating for us. We never had to get up to get anything for ourselves, the staff made sure that everything at the sweetheart table was full and replenished. We had one waitress assigned to our sweetheart table. Jayme made the bar our bridal suite. Jayme made sure that they boxed up two extra meals for us to take to the honeymoon with us as well as the top of our wedding cake. She also added two bottles of sparkling cranberry-apple cider and extra favors. I would truly recommend them to anyone in the Hudson Valley.

Pam and Jayme were great to work with. They made our wedding very special and easy to plan. The planning meetings were quick. They always seemed to know what I wanted. Working with them is like planning a wedding with family members who only want to do what you want to do. They just make everything so easy and low key. Pam even got me out of the limo and was there until I walked down the aisle. With her headset on, I felt like I was in a movie! The only reason I gave the 4 stars is because at time communication was frustrating and there were parts of the reception that I was told would be included and were not. These are small things. I really would rate them a 4.5. I just want to be honest. Pam owns this business and you are working and meeting with her, not the event an coordinator that works for a company. My husband and I liked that aspect very much.