About this vendor
We don‘t know Willabys Catering and Event Design‘s story by heart. Message them to get to know more about their business.
Details
Cuisine
- American
- BBQ
- French
- Fusion
- Hawaiian
- Indian
Dietary Options
- Dairy Free
- Gluten Free
- Kosher
- Nut Free
- Organic
- Sugar Free
Food & Catering
- Buffet
- Catering Clean Up
- Catering Delivery & Setup
- Chef Stations
- Family Style
- Menu Tastings
Awards and Affiliations
2-Time 'Best of Weddings'
2022.2021.
Best of Weddings
The Knot independently assesses vendors for this award—it’s never self-reported. We base it on firsthand experiences from real couples and guests, and they must have a 4.5-star average across 7+ reviews in the qualifying year.
Reviews
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4.7
out of 5.058 reviews
Review photos
Showing slide number 1 out of 6
Willabys Catering was an absolute highlight of our wedding! From our very first conversation with Patrick, we knew we had made the right choice.
Patrick, Cody, and Megan were a dr...
eam to work with—so professional, responsive, and genuinely invested in creating a menu that was perfect for us. Patrick, in particular, was amazing. He patiently guided us through our many variations of the menu, from an initial wild idea of Indo-Italian fusion to the delicious, seasonal farm-to-table creation (with Indian and Italian influences) we ultimately ended up with. Cody was a hero, taking all our family's dietary restrictions and copious comments from the tastings to heart. He made countless changes to suit our preferences, and he did it all with grace.
Speaking of tastings, we highly recommend them—it was such a fun experience to bring our parents along to, and it ensured we got the chance to actually sit down, enjoy everything, and give our detailed feedback.
On the wedding day, the food was spectacular. Everything was delicious, beautifully presented, and served hot and fresh. We received so many compliments from our guests about the quality and flavor of the food.
The catering staff was also incredible; they were friendly, attentive, and ensured that everyone was taken care of. The entire Willabys team went above and beyond - we were so touched when we saw staff members kindly helping our aging grandma up the steep ramp to the dining area. It was a small moment of care that meant the world to us.
We could not have been happier with their service and highly recommend them to anyone looking for top-notch wedding catering. Thank you, Willabys, for helping to make our day so perfect!
Willaby’s did an amazing job for our 100 guest wedding. The communication was responsive, clear and consistent, and there were no surprises at any point. Willaby’s provided several...
options to create the perfect wedding menu and accompanying linens, and they were always willing to listen and provide input when needed. The exploratory tastings are a must, not just to figure out what your wedding menu will look like, but also to try several of their delicious entrees, sides and appetizers. The portion sizes were perfect for our amount of guests, allowing several guests to get seconds while still leaving some extra food. Their timing was spot on and they did a fantastic job working with our wedding coordinator. We could not have picked a better caterer for our wedding and highly recommend Willaby’s to cater your next event, regardless of it being wedding, corporate event or small get together. We cannot recommend Willaby’s enough!
We worked with Willaby’s for our July wedding, and they were fantastic from start to finish. From the tasting through the reception, their team made the process easy, stress-free, ...
and enjoyable. Communication was clear and responsive, and they were open to all of our questions and suggestions.
The appetizers were a huge hit—our guests are still talking about them! The family-style dinner was beautifully presented, delicious, and created such a warm, communal atmosphere at the reception. The staff were attentive, professional, and made sure everything flowed seamlessly.
We couldn’t have asked for a better catering partner on our big day. We would highly recommend Willaby’s to any couple looking for amazing food and a team that truly cares about making your event special.
Willaby's performed an amazing service at our 100-person wedding. We hired them because they were one of the trusted vendors for the venue we picked (Tin Roof Barn, White Salmon, W...
A). My wife and I went to tastings for a few vendors, and they were all just great. It's a great problem to have when you know that all the food will be good, but it's still a problem because you need to pick only one. In the end, we picked Willaby's for a couple of reasons (in no particular order).
The first reason was that we LOVED working with Megan! She shines working on the front lines, with picky clients who want their day to be "just so". Luckily for her we weren't those people (cough, cough) but we truly enjoyed going through the tasting menu with her, and we hoped that she enjoyed the experience as much as we did. For all other interactions with her, she was responsive and provided the information we needed in a timely manner. For whatever reasons our wedding planning may have caused us stress, working with Megan was not one of them.
The second was that Willaby's allowed us to add one of our own menu items to their lineup! I have not worked with a wedding caterer before, so I don't know if this is standard practice, but we wanted a dish that Willaby's didn't offer and so we presented the recipe to them, and they said, "No problem, we'll include it". As simple as that! And they executed to perfection on the day.
On the day of the wedding itself, the bartending and catering staff performed exceedingly well. As bride and groom, we were well taken care of, and we've heard from our guests that they absolutely loved the food. For the cocktail hour, we chose six appetizers. For dinner, we offered three proteins plus a vegetarian option, and all were very well received. The bartenders were on point during the cocktail hour, as evidenced by the many "his and hers" cocktails consumed by our guests. The hot weather may have had something to do with it, but we'll also allow for the possibility that the bartenders did an amazing job!
The one feedback item that we heard (after the fact) was that the expected bottle service at the tables was either not performed or not performed as well as our guests would have hoped. I do believe that in the end, everybody got what they wanted but in the interests of completeness, I include this comment.
My wife and I would absolutely recommend Willaby's for anybody hosting an event in the Portland/Hood River area. Their operation is very smooth and professional, and the staff exceedingly courteous.
Willabys did a fantastic job at our 50-person wedding in Dundee, OR. Planning with Megan was a pleasure, and she was very responsive and helpful throughout the process. The day of ...
our wedding, Willabys' food was delicious and the staff was lovely. Our bartender walked around with 4 bottles in his arm at once to serve our guests all wine options, an unexpected and fabulous detail! They were helpful and flexible in navigating rain delays with us. I would definitely recommend Willabys to any future bride or event host!
Willaby's was a dream to work with and made planning less stressful. Shout out to Megan who was awesome at keeping things within budget and answering all my questions. Day of staff...
was amazing and so friendly. I thoroughly recommend Willaby's. Plus the food was delicious, everyone after the wedding was complementing the dinner. From the salad, to the charcuterie, the entrees, and even down to the rolls they served. There were no issues, even day of. Very professional and efficient. Thank you Willaby's!!
Wallaby's Catering in Salem Oregon was fantastic, from the moment they answered the phone, gave us a quote, reviewed our order, came in 2 groups to the rural venue...one for set up...
, and then the chefs, food & servers, & clean up! They even left packaged plates of left over food for guests to take home. The guest count was 350-380. The food was on time, hot & delicious. We had many, many compliments! For planning a wedding in 2 1/2 months, they were so positive & helpful. Thank you Wallabys for helping make the wedding so memorable!
I had Willabys cater my wedding this past weekend and I cannot rave about them enough! As a vegetarian, I have very strong opinions about having high quality food at weddings that ...
caters to a variety of different diets. I've been very disappointed by wedding food in the past, which I didn't want to replicate at my own. Willabys was recommended by our planner, and from the first email I was incredibly impressed by their communication, professionalism, and willingness to tweak the menu to our taste. My fiance and I were blown away at the tasting, which translated well to the actual wedding when I was told "there may have been some fights over the food". Another concern of mine was the quantity of food (running out of food at a wedding is a recipe for disaster), and Willabys ensured that there was plenty to go around. They were also so flexible with our needs. For example, we purchased our own alcohol for the event and they provided the staff to serve at two different bar set ups at the cost of one. In general, they were so affordable as well - we only paid about half of what we had initially budgeted! Finally, what I didn't expect was just how friendly and amazing the Willabys folks would be at our wedding. So many guests commented on how wonderful and outgoing they were, at the bar and otherwise, and I myself had multiple awesome chats with them. 10/10 would have them for any event, and I'm so grateful to have had them at my wedding.
Willabys catered our wedding last weekend and they were terrific. From early stage planning, to our tasting, to final details and day of--they went above and beyond to make our day...
special. Willaby's coordinated our rentals as well which was so helpful. The team never made me feel crazy for asking too many questions or double-checking something; instead I always walked away feeling at ease. We did passed apps (people were raving about the steak bites), pizza that was delicious, and the team did our bar. My family keeps saying how kind, friendly, and professional everyone on staff was. The whole night they were ready to jump in to help or tweak things, and they finished off by doing amazing with our clean up! Big thanks to the whole team at Willabys!
Delicious food and fabulous service!
Our appetizers were so good - naan with blueberries and ricotta cheese and prosciutto-wrapped asparagus! Oh and the cobbler was insane! Chef'...
s kiss!
In addition to providing great food, Willaby's helped set up and take down all the tables, which was a tremendous help.
Amazing catering !!! Food was fabulous, heard nothing but raves from our guests!! Staff did an excellent job of preservation and attentiveness to detail.
The food was AMAZING! The staff was also so fun, friendly and great to be around.
We hired Willaby's for our reception meal and it was such a hit!! Everyone was raving about the food - especially the Mac & Cheese and Salmon. The Willaby's team was so wonderful t...
o work with, they were organized, efficient and very helpful with not only catering but with our wedding planner as well! One thing I really appreciated was when I reached out to them last minute to see if they could leave some food items on the side for allergy restrictions and they did! So grateful for that as I should've told them sooner :) Thank you so much Willaby team for helping put together our dream wedding!!
We had the best experience working with Willaby's! The entire team was outstanding to work with and executed every detail I envisioned perfectly. Our day couldn't have gone better,...
thanks to Megan, Sara and her team.
From corresponding with the owner, Jean Mateson and experiencing a complimentary tasting, we knew this was who we wanted to work with. After pushing it back almost 2 years due to Covid, we FINALLY had our dream wedding on May 14, 2022. I kept hearing from couples that something will go wrong, and you just have to plan for that. But I couldn't put my finger on anything that went wrong that day. Even the weather cooperated for us! The weather was questionable right until the last few hours leading to the ceremony. But the Willaby's staff was so flexible that they were willing to move the ceremony setup from outside to inside, up until an hour before the ceremony, if I wanted that. Luckily, the sun came out and made for a perfect ceremony outdoors, as originally planned. But they treated me as though they could make anything happen!
Megan and Sara were extremely friendly, professional, responsive and flexible throughout the MONTHS of correspondence! I sent Megan countless emails with questions/suggestions/change requests, and she was willing to do whatever it took to make me have the most epic day. She even provided several of her own suggestions, which was super helpful, considering I felt lost at times with how to go about the planning process. Not to mention, she was so upbeat and made me feel at-ease anytime I started to get a little stressed.
On our wedding day, all of our guests mentioned that they LOVED the food. Megan and Sara also made sure that myself and husband had a full plate of food and replenished our drinks at all times.
There are so many details that go into a wedding, including the timeline coordination with the other vendors, but they did not miss a beat. The other staff members from Willaby's were ALL so friendly and fun. Even one of the bartenders joined the dance floor and taught our guests the "Cupid Shuffle!"
The only bummer out of this all was that the night had to come to an end. Our day was literally a fairytale - and I owe so much of that to Willaby's for exceeding every expectation I had. I will be sure to refer Willaby's to any of my future-bride friends! Thank you, again!
Christy S.
I was so disappointed with Willaby's to the point I wish I could have a re-do with my wedding because of them. My event manager left about a month before my wedding an...
d I told her everything I wanted my wedding to look like. After she left, I expected the lead person from Willaby's to be there because I had a long conversation with her shortly before my wedding day. Willaby's never told me who was going to be the event manager on my wedding day. They sent someone brand new and she didn't know any of the details I wanted my wedding to look like. However, Jamie was very kind and did the best she could...but STILL! I was very disappointed that Willaby's didn't let me know the day before at least who was going to be my event manager. So disappointed!! Also, I know they aren't in charge of decorating, but they could've at least gotten the table numbers correct on the tables. I have cried time and time again of how I wish I could've gone back to have a different catering company. They had poor communication.
Willaby’s was so amazing to work with for our wedding at Zenith! I was so pleased with the high quality food, the clarity in the process and the fabulous service!
Working with Jea...
n was wonderful, she was so helpful through the process. And Sara was such a gem, she really went above and beyond to make sure we were well cared for the day of the event.
Thank you to Willaby’s, you made it easy and the food was divine!
Without wanting to sound like an echo of other reviewers, we planned our wedding in 2020 with a different caterer. I never thought that caterer bailing (with our deposit) would tu...
rn out to be a good thing. But it lead us to Willabys!
With 4 months to plan, we laid out what our menu was supposed to be, and Willabys gave us almost the exact thing, but BETTER. I lost track of how many people commented on how stellar the food was. They are STILL talking about it, days after our wedding. And the staff was so accommodating - one of the dishes was very popular at my table, so when I wanted a little more, they brought me an entire bowl. Every dish was such a win - my mom said she ate three servings of dessert.
I doubt anyone will remember the floral arrangements, or what music the DJ played. But they will definitely remember the food, and because of Willabys, in the best way possible. This vendor is worth every penny - can't vouch for them enough.
So we were actually planning to get married in June of 2020 with a different caterer, and then... COVID. We postponed our wedding for a year, but unfortunately our caterer had to d...
rop out because of how the pandemic affected business. With about three months' notice, Willaby's stepped in and made our wedding a huge success! Blythe and the team were a delight to work with. I found them to be spendier than other caterers, but you get what you pay for -- the food was incredible and the service and professionalism is unbeatable. Plus, they were willing to work with me and find ideas on how to lower the price, which I greatly appreciate. Willaby's also catered our rehearsal dinner! I was especially impressed with the staff who worked on the wedding day; incredibly friendly and kind and fun to boot! When I missed the salad I was really looking forward to (because of socializing), I had no trouble flagging someone down and they immediately brought me one. Our guests raved about how delicious everything was. I would absolutely recommend Willaby's -- not just for a wedding, but for any special event.
Willabys was a huge hit at our wedding! The food was fantastic, but even more than that, the people were absolutely wonderful to work with. Blythe, in particular, was an absolute l...
ife saver who went above and beyond to make our wedding come together despite all of the hurdles associated with COVID-19. She was incredibly helpful and organized and stayed calm and supportive throughout the entire process. No idea what we would have done without her. Jamie, our day of coordinator, was totally on top of things and kept it all running smoothly. She was always checking in to see if there was anything we needed and was greatly appreciated. In addition, every single catering staff member I encountered on my wedding day was polite, friendly, and helpful. We could not be happier, and would absolutely recommend Willabys to anyone and everyone!
I could not imagine my wedding day without Willabys! Their staff was so incredibly kind, attentive, and flexible. They helped our day to run smoothly and really went the extra mile...
at every turn. Their compassion and support through planning (and re-planning) a pandemic wedding was above and beyond our expectations. If we host another event in the future we will be choosing Willabys catering without a second thought!
Willabys Catering and Event Design was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding. They worked with us to create the perfect menu – which was not so easy, considering we wan...
ted many gluten free and vegan options. They gave up options and made it clear that they would try to make any of our wishes work. They took care of everything for us… the linens, table settings, servers, bar tenders, amazing food and more. We did not worry about anything catering related the day of the wedding. Blythe and her crew took care of it all. They were very professional and efficient. Willabys Catering gets a 10/10 from us and we will recommend them to anyone throwing a wedding or other event in the future.
Willaby's was great to work with! Planning the menu for our wedding was quick and easy, and when it came down to the actual day drop off was on time, the food was hot and tasted fa...
ntastic, and everybody loved it! We were thrilled about our choice.
Willaby's was referred to us by a Hotel professional who has worked with Jean and her crew in the past. Outstanding service throughout planning process. The food is not your typica...
l banquet/catered food fare. Rather the chef is creative, uses local suppliers and the food is delicious. A bit spendy but worth the money to ensure that there was plenty of everything. Willaby's contributed to making our event special and memorable.
We hired Willaby’s as our catering and day of coordinator as we were venue shopping and our tour guide had more to say able about Willaby’s service compared to what they had to off...
er. We are glad that we didn’t hesitate when booking with Willaby’s, we received a lot of compliments from our guests on how much they enjoyed the food at our wedding.
Shannin was very proactive when responding to our questions and concerns, and directing us to the right vendor that would make the day go smoothly. She broke down our bill so we knew exactly what we are paying for from individual meal pricing to the cost of staffing and listed out complimentary services that they will provide. Her team assisted us in creating the wedding layout and helped our family in the tear down and packed up the remaining food the day of the wedding so we don’t have to worry about anything.
We were so happy to have Willaby's as our caterers! They catered our wedding of 182 at Zenith Vineyard in September. We worked extremely closely with Shannin and can't say enough w...
onderful things about her. We had multiple in-person meetings, phone calls, tastings and emails for over a year prior to the wedding. They worked with us to design and decorate the spaces (linens, lighting, basically everything but the flowers), coordinated rentals, worked with outside desserts (pie, tarts, cupcakes and a cake), set up a timeline and prepared food for the bridal party to eat on the day of the wedding. We had constant questions and changes and they were extremely patient and accomodating, balancing our "vision" with their expertise to ensure that we and our guests had a wonderful experience.
On the day of Shannin was present and she and her coworkers adapted quickly to changes in the flow and needs of the guests. They were extremely polite and friendly to everyone at the venue. They also made a great effort to make sure that my husband and I were enjoying the wedding! They set aside plates with the food that we wanted, provided us with desserts for our table and as we completed the ceremony and went to sign the certificate we were given drinks and hors d'oeuvres. The food was delicious and beautifully presented- we did sandwiches prior to the ceremony, appetizers, a full buffet with three main entree options and a late night snack. We had a wonderful experience!
My husband and I worked with Willaby's Catering for our wedding day and they were absolutely incredible. We first tasted several of their dishes at an open house at our venue, and...
from there we knew we wanted to sign a contract with them. Three weeks prior to our day, we tasted our final menu and were completely blown away by the quality of the food and professionalism of their staff. The wedding day was so seamless, our guests LOVED the menu, and the staff neatly boxed up the leftovers for us to take home. We purposefully chose vendors in the Salem/Portland who have worked together, and I think it all worked out beautifully. I cannot say enough praise for Willaby's Catering, thank you for doing such a great job!!
Willabys provided top notch service on our wedding day. I highly recommend hiring them for catering and coordination. They made decision making easy and provided vital feedback to ...
my questions and concerns. Everything was taken care of on my wedding day and I am grateful I had their services! I would 100% book them again. Highly recommend!
Willaby's was fantastic! We had our wedding at Youngberg Hill where Willaby's is a preferred vendor. Shannin and Jean were so helpful throughout the whole planning process. We went...
with an Italian menu and Jean had us in for a private tasting and helped us come up with a menu we were very happy with. The food was delicious! We got so many compliments. Shannin helped coordinate our rehearsal and Courtney was our Day Of Coordinator. Courtney was wonderful and made the day run so smoothly. Would highly recommend!
We got married at Youngberg Hill in July 2019 could not have been happier with the services provided by Willaby's! Jean and Shannin were really helpful with the initial planning pr...
ocess, and helped us put together a great menu. The food was delicious and our family and friends still talk about it! They also took care of all the details like linens and any other decor we wanted from the venue. Courtney was our day-of coordinator and she was an absolute lifesaver. She made everything seem flawless and assured us to not worry about a thing! As the bride and groom she made sure we were well-fed and always had a drink in hand. We had the perfect day and would absolutely recommend Willaby's!
Shannin and the Willabys team did an amazing job listening to our vision for our wedding and making it come true! Not only was the food and drinks great, but the service and execut...
ion were seamless! Would highly recommend to anyone who is looking for a catering company who goes above and beyond to make your day as worry free as possible. Thank you Willabys!
We hired Willaby's at the recommendation of our venue Youngberg Hill for our wedding in early August 2019 and we could not have been happier with our decision. Shannin was fantast...
ic to work with! She helped us with our catering needs, as well as partial planning. Partial planning was an extra fee, but she was SO WORTH IT! She helped keep us on task, reminded us of our deadlines, chose place settings and linens, and organized all the rental items. The day-of coordination was included with the catering and we would not have had such a smooth day without her and the rest of the Willaby's staff. Shannin kept us on track and on time, knew where everything went, helped with set up, and even had some food and desserts waiting for us in our limo at the end of the night. The food at Willaby's was delicious as well. Everything from the garlic butter and bread to the main courses were fabulous. Entrees were cooked perfectly and came out hot to all our guests (150+). We still have friends and family raving about the food! We would recommend Willaby's to anyone in need of a caterer for an event big or small. Between the service and the quality food, they are worth it.
Willabys was fantastic! They let us customize our menu to fit out budget, everyone loved the food, and they were really well organized from planning all the way thru the day of! Wo...
uld definitely recommend!
We are so happy that we chose Willaby's. The food was delicious and presented beautifully. They were flexible and listened to all of our special requests regarding the meal. They a...
lso helped with table setting ideas (such as suggesting gold colored silverware and gold rimmed plates which we loved). They did all of the coordinating with vendors related to meal (special chairs, tables, linens, etc.). Jean and Shannin were great about communicating with us throughout the process. Our "day of" coordinator Courtney was exceptional. She made everything seem flawless and even kept me (the bride) hydrated throughout the evening (bringing me drinks and checking if I needed anything). We could not be happier with the level of service and professionalism.
Very amazing work, our day turned out amazing and everything went so smoothly and stress free! The food was so good we got so many compliments from guests on how delicious everythi...
ng was. Very helpful and fun staff. We couldn't have done it without them!
The Richardson's
Willaby's went above and beyond! Our guests loved the food, many coming up to us and letting us know they loved it. And the day of coordinator was such a big help!! We would recomm...
end them to any of our friends.
The food was absolutely delicious! Several guests said that it was the best wedding food that they had ever had. The catering staff was friendly and professional. Jean was the only...
caterer that gave me a quote within my stated budget, which I appreciated. We did have some confusion about the bar setup requirements that required some stressful last minute adjustments. All in all, I would use Willaby’s again.
Willabys was very professional and easy to work with from the start. I changed my mind/food options a lot throughout the process and they easily accommodated these changes. Also, t...
he food and service was fantastic! We received lots of compliments from guests.
I would have them do my next event. The food was exactly as we wanted it and the service was wonderful! I truly wish I had another child getting married so I could use them again...
. They were professional and helped at every turn. I truly don't know how they didn't miss anything we asked for as our list was long. The care they provided was what was so special. Thank you for all you do! If you want a caterer for any event this is the one you should select!
I want to thank you and give my biggest compliments to all of you for a perfect wedding/event at Youngberg Hill - but especially Courtney! You covered every detail and we did not ...
have to do anything but enjoy our daughter’s wedding. Courtney seemed to have a good read on everything from the moment she arrived. She rolled with changes and made it all feel seamless. The staff that worked with her was efficient and timely in every way. That woodfire pizza was incredible! I was a little worried that it would not meet the expectations of the venue but it was perfect.
In the end and almost the most important thing…my husband said all of the money for everything was “totally worth it” – that is the highest compliment in my opinion!
Thanks again – you helped create some pretty incredible memories for us and all of our family and friends.
If you want terrific food for a great price, excellent and friendly customer service, and the utmost professionalism, this is the caterer for you!!!
After doing a lot of online re...
search, and reading through hundreds of reviews, we decided to go with Willaby’s Catering. One of the first things they offered was group tasting event, where they served everything we had initially selected for our menu, plus items from other people’s menus so that we could try multiple options, allowing us to make changes if we wanted. The food was so good we knew we had made the right choice.
From the beginning, Shannin the coordinator, was so helpful and quick to respond and I cannot say enough good things about her!! She helped me throughout the entire planning process, answering all of my questions and keeping me calm with her efficiency and responsiveness. We asked her to be a part of the rehearsal the night before the wedding and she handled the wedding party with such confidence and obvious experience, it immediately put my mind at ease. I knew that with Shannin in charge, everything was going to be ok. The day of the wedding she was onsite, regularly checking in with us to see if we needed anything. Bad planning on my part left us a corsage short for one of the moms and Shannin came to the rescue by making a corsage from the flowers in one of the arrangements!! Mom was none the wiser thanks to Shannin’s quick thinking!
The service from the rest of the team was also top notch. All the servers and staff were incredibly professional, polite and on top of it. I never had an empty water or wine glass 😊 One of the things that our guests keep commenting on, weeks later, is how friendly and helpful everyone was (in addition to how good the food was!). As an unexpected surprise, the staff packaged up some leftover food for us to have later that night. They put together a Bride and Groom box so that we could each have a snack after the reception, which was much needed after a night of dancing! We ate all the leftovers that night! Can't say enough good things about this company - we are recommending them to anyone who needs catering
Willabys did wood fired pizza for my wedding, and it was a complete hit. The pizza flavors were creative and it was absolutely delicious. All of the staff was helpful, experienced ...
and professional. I would highly recommend them.
We were very pleased with Willaby's catering at our daughter’s wedding. The staff was very pleasant, accommodating and efficient.
Best of all, the food was so delicious and well...
prepared. We had many compliments and lots of guests said the food was some of the best they have had at a wedding.
All of my guests raved about the food and the service. They made my wedding even more elegant and made planning so easy. I would hire them for any catering event big or small.
Unfortunately, the wedding venue we chose required that we use Jean at Willaby’s for our wedding planning services. Jean’s service was beyond disappointing. I truly regret not choo...
sing a different venue/wedding planner. My two primary complaints:
1. Jean was consistently unprofessional with regards to money. She never attempted to clarify how much her services would be, and then served us a bill that was much more than the initial information we received from her and the wedding venue. She initially said a tent would cost under 2k, and it ended up costing nearly 4k. I understand sometimes things cost more, that’s not the problem, the problem is that she NEVER communicated the change in price until we receive the bill. Then, when we requested a receipt from the tent company she was super defensive and hostile about it – we simply wanted to understand what we were paying 4K for – but for some reason that really upset her. It was weird.
2. She charged a lot for her services and then failed to actually follow through on a bunch of important details: she never clarified the walking order with our procession, I had to do it. She almost forgot to put out some of our party favors – thank god my mom remembered! She failed to move a bunch of flowers from our ceremony décor to our reception table décor even though we’d had explicit instructions about it. She failed to recognize or act when the caterer missed a table where my dad was seated – and
claimed that was not her problem when informed about it. My mom had to go into the kitchen to do something about it.
I am a small business owner and, based on my experience, I cannot believe the level of unprofessionalism of Willaby’s. Basic conversations about money and following through on details are how you keep customers satisfied. You are forced to work with Jean if you get married at Youngberg Hill - in our experience this meant that we had to put up with abysmal service because we were forced to use her services. All of our other vendors were professional and awesome, I rarely write negative reviews – I’m not a hypercritical person but having unprofessional, unreliable service leading up to the wedding made my wedding day much more stressful. You should really trust your wedding planner to do a good job - that and the venue – are the most important. I wish I understood that when I started planning!
Unfortunately, the wedding venue we chose required that we use Jean at Willaby’s for our wedding planning services. Jean’s service was beyond disappointing. I truly regret not choo...
sing a different venue/wedding planner. My two primary complaints:
1. Jean was consistently unprofessional with regards to money. She never attempted to clarify how much her services would be, and then served us a bill that was much more than the initial information we received from her and the wedding venue. She initially said a tent would cost under 2k, and it ended up costing nearly 4k. I understand sometimes things cost more, that’s not the problem, the problem is that she NEVER communicated the change in price until we receive the bill. Then, when we requested a receipt from the tent company she was super defensive and hostile about it – we simply wanted to understand what we were paying 4K for – but for some reason that really upset her. It was weird.
2. She charged a lot for her services and then failed to actually follow through on a bunch of important details: she never clarified the walking order with our procession, I had to do it. She almost forgot to put out some of our party favors – thank god my mom remembered! She failed to move a bunch of flowers from our ceremony décor to our reception table décor even though we’d had explicit instructions about it. She failed to recognize or act when the caterer missed a table where my dad was seated – and claimed that was not her problem when informed about it. My mom had to go into the kitchen to do something about it.
I am a small business owner and I cannot believe the level of unprofessionalism of Willaby’s. Basic conversations about money and following through on details are how you keep customers satisfied. There’s no way Jean would get away with this if she didn’t have a captive clientele. All of our other vendors were professional and awesome, I rarely write negative reviews – I’m not a hypercritical person but having unprofessional, unreliable service leading up to the wedding made my wedding day much more stressful. You should really trust your wedding planner to do a good job - that and the venue – are the most important. I wish I understood that when I started planning!
We were really pleased with Willabys Catering, and so were our guests. We requested an entirely gluten-, dairy-, and nut-free menu with three different appetizers, three different ...
entrees, and two late night snacks. It was a lot to ask, but they delivered! The vegetarian entree (a corn cake stack with avocado puree and arugula tossed in honey vinaigrette) was a big hit with the vegetarians (who are often subjected to mediocre options at catered events). Since two of my bridesmaids were vegetarian, I wanted to make sure they were well fed - and so they were. I went to one of Willabys's tasting events, which was a good thing, since our other two entrees were originally beef and chicken, but after going to the tasting, we switched out the chicken for salmon because their salmon is amazing. So if you can get to a tasting event, I recommend it. Jean, who helped us build our menu and figure out what other elements we needed, was always willing to give us her professional advice when we had questions. Do make sure to look over your whole contract carefully and really think about what serving items you need for all the food/drinks, since in the couple months before the wedding, both Jean and I were still finding items that needed to be added (like plates for the appetizers). Even if you decide to rent linens or china/glassware from another vendor (we rented linens elsewhere), still make sure you cross reference with your food/drinks menu. Overall, working with Willabys was a pretty stress-free experience that resulted in great service and great food on our wedding day.
I don't even know where to begin. Willaby's was such an amazing company to work with - not only did they cater our wedding but also provide coordination services. This relieved so ...
much stress on my end as a bride. They took care of everything from the rehearsal to the vendor communication on the day of the wedding.
At our initial meeting, they worked with my husband and I to make a menu that not only fit our budget, but fit our dream wedding dinner: PIZZA! Not only was the pizza yummy, but the flavors were UNIQUE, FRESH, and HIGH QUALITY. My favorite pizza was the Cherry City: Chorizo, Goat cheese, Dried Cherries - sounds crazy but WOW it was tasty. The salads we had to accompany were also incredibly unique, fresh, and used local ingredients. I was so happy with how our food turned out!
Willabys invited us to a tasting event to try some of there food - but because we had a unique menu for our wedding, they also set up a private tasting for my husband and I to try the food we would have at our actual wedding. Both tastings were high quality, and definitely represented the quality we got at our actual wedding.
Thank you Willabys for making our day so special and memorable.
Would choose Willaby's a million times over again to cater our wedding! Jean was amazing to work with; very professional, accommodating and a lot of fun! Guests were raving about h...
ow great the food was, and we had plenty of it. Shannin (coordinator) was also amazing to work with both leading up to the wedding and day of, keeping everyone on schedule. We will definitely use Willaby's again in the future and HIGHLY recommend.
I do not have enough kind words to say about Willaby's- this company is by far the best in the business. The food is just spectacular and they are incredibly thorough about every ...
single detail. Jean contacted all of our vendors, multiple times, and ensured that the day ran smoothly. Because of Willaby's, we can truly say that our day was perfect. There were no flaws, no issues! Everything was flawless. Our guests are still talking about the food! I really appreciate how kind Jean is. Every time we met, she made sure to discuss all of our details so kindly with us and would always say, "I'll treat this like it's my wedding", which I really appreciated. I was not stressed at all about our wedding, and this is 100% because of Willaby's. Thank you Willaby's!!!
Amazing food and cocktails! I married the love of my life at Zenith Vineyard the end of June 2016. All of our guests are still raving about the food. We had a salmon and smoked tri...
-tip entrees served buffet style with rosemary potatoes and salad. The food was so amazing our guests were even raving about the garlic bread! Shannin about the planning progress fun and pain-free. The only reason I am not giving Willabys a full 5 stars is because I was under the impression Shannin would be our day-of-coordinator. I was surprised to see a different person and she had a very timid and hesitant personality. On our wedding day, our day-of-coordinator got lost in the shuffle. I feel the lack of authority contributed to our wedding timeline getting off track. I would suggest being more clear during the wedding planning progress who is going to be your day-of-coordinator and do not assume that the person you are contact with during your planning is going to be your day of coordinator. Food, Drinks, Service - A+ Day of coordinator - C
Contact
765 Liberty St SE, Salem, OR
Willabys Catering and Event Design