Italian Wedding Receptions - Feasting and Celebrating Italian Style!
After the ceremony...it is all about the food and the wine! Italian wedding receptions are the highlight and often the most memorable part of a wedding in Italy.
Italians adore celebrations and great food, and when the two are combined, you can be sure you will experience an unforgettable time!
Just as weddings come in all sizes and styles, your Italy wedding reception can be designed to compliment the mood and ambiance and reflect the local traditions and cuisines of the region you are marrying in. What you find in the North of Italy will not be the same in the South; each region has its own particular cuisine and specialty ingredients.
What can you expect for your Italian wedding reception? First of all, for the most part, they will begin with an Aperitif Hour with wonderful finger foods or appetizers served with a glass of Italian bubbly...Prosecco. Most of our Italian reception locations are in scenic settings, allowing you and your guests to enjoy the amazing vistas of sea or countryside while experiencing amazing cuisine.
Often, the appetizer hour consists of an abundant buffet showcasing different local specialties such as an assortment of fried vegetables, local cheeses and a marvelous selection of cured local meats including Prosciutto.
YOUR RECEPTION STYLE
Depending on the region you choose to marry in the style can be rustic or very formal; the choice is up to you! Our team can guide you to the perfect location.
Food is art in Italy! No detail is left to chance, the eye must have its part as well as the palate.
For a formal wedding in Venice, the city's private palaces along the Grand Canal await you as well as luxury 5 star hotels such as this 14th Century Palace. The bride can arrive by gondola!
If a wedding in the Italian Lakes is more your style, there are a huge variety of lake view villas with stunning views of the Lakes and its amazing gardens.
One of our favourites is this legendary Lake Como luxury villa hotel: the 19th Century villa in Bellagio. Nothing could be more perfect than a beautiful reception overlooking romantic Lake Como.
A TRADITIONAL ITALIAN WEDDING RECEPTION MENU
Following the aperitif hour, a multi course seated reception generally follows. This can be a selection of 1 or 2 Appetizers, 1 or 2 First Courses, 1 or 2 Main Courses and then Fruit AND Dessert plus Wedding Cake! Below is a sample menu for a Tuscan castle or villa wedding.
Welcome Cocktail
Buffet:
Prosecco from Conegliano Contarini
Champagne cocktail with green appl
Non alcoholic tropical cocktail
Freshly squeezed orange juic
Mineral water: still or sparkling
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Served by gloved waiters circulating amongst guests:
Parmigiano cheese flakes with salty toasted almonds
Small corn flour and black cabbage turbans with Cinta pork meat
Brioches sweet bread with rosemary pate
Stuffed crepè rolls
Small vegetables strudels
Spicy white meats skewers
Shrimp tails with bacon
Fried foods:
Cinnamon Parmigiano cheese cubes
Rice balls with ewe’s cheese and truffle
Milky white onion rings
Small fried breaded chicken cutlet
Zucchini flowers
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Seated Dinner
Cream of zucchini and leeks soup with goat cheese pearl, pistachios and olive oil
Home made pasta Funghette with duck white ragout and Porcini mushrooms
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Fillet of Cinta pork with mediterranean aromas
Rosemary roasted potatoes
Eggplant and scallion flan
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Wedding Cake
Undoubtedly the overall ambiance and menus are dictated by the final location you select. A wedding in a Tuscan castle will reflect the specialties of Tuscany and its amazing wines while a reception along the shores of Amalfi or Positano offers a completely different, lighter cuisine - usually seafood based accompanied by white wines.
Castle weddings in Italy offer you the chance of celebrating your Italian wedding reception with great style and elegance. The finest castles are in Tuscany, the Veneto, Friuli and the Alps. Our favourite is this Fairytale Alpine Castle surrounded by vineyards and incredible vistas of the Dolomite mountains and valleys. There are castles along the Lakes such as this Lake Garda castle in Lonato for a magical outdoor reception.
If views of the sea are a must - exclusive private villas, oceanfront restaurantsand elegant villa hotels await you.
Distinctive Italy Weddings works with the finest floral artists in the country. Our staff will assist you in creating exquisite flower decorations to match whatever style you wish to create for your Italian wedding reception: from a rustic country wedding in Tuscany to a sophisticated Italian Lakes Villa.
Music is a focal point for the reception: from a soft harp playing in the background to a Renaissance folkloric group or a band for dancing, we can provide every option under the sun.
The highlight of the wedding reception is of course the cutting of the wedding cake! Italian wedding cakes are not only gorgeous to look at but absolutely delicious. They often reflect the heritage and flavours of their particular region. In the Amalfi Coast they may be flavoured with the local lemons and lemon liquor. Puff pastry, luscious cream fillings and delicate sponge cake layers combine to become the memorable highlight of the entire wedding banquet.
Including the non traditional of course...the "crostata di frutta" a fresh fruit and cream tart in the form of a star.
A very successful idea for larger weddings in castles or villas is to have a midnight dessert buffet....and of course end the evening with a spectacular fireworks display!
Our goal is for you and your guests to remember your Italy wedding reception for the rest of your lives as a time of happiness, amazing food and incredible surroundings.
