On Wednesday night Ivan and I went to the tasting for our wedding meal. It was so yummy! We are really excited to share it with our guests! And...don't tell anyone, but it is completely vegan. We are so happy that the amazing chef at La Costa (the place that caters events for the Burlington Art Centre) was able to put together a great vegan meal. Having a vegan meal was very important to us (since we both eat vegan) and we are beyond thrilled with how the tasting went!!
Here are a few photos...
and just for good measure...one super cute photo of ivan :) I am a lucky girl.
Now, I have a question and I want you to answer it honestly. How would you feel if you went to a wedding and the food was completely vegan? I guess this is a question for the meat eaters out there because I'm sure vegans would be thrilled, haha. Would you have any concerns? If so, what would they be?
♥elycia
the bf and i are both vegetarian and we often talk about getting married... and what we would do for food. we don't want to have meat at the wedding, but my family would probably be really offended. we also really really love "ethnic" food... like indian and thai... which my family also really dislikes... so it's that fine line of pleasing yourself, or pleasing your guests...
ReplyDeletei would like to have things that "taste" like chicken... but that are actually tofu... but again it would be not telling people beforehand... they would probably go ballistic...
i think when all else fails... the open bar wins. haha.
haha, it was a tough decision but most people we have talked to seem to be ok with it. we are definitely not telling everyone though. The one thing i didn't get a photo of was the main course which is a "meatloaf". It was very tasty, i think people will know it's not really meat though, haha.
ReplyDeleteand yes, luckily we are having an open bar so hopefully that will make anyone who is grouchy about no meat happy :)
NOM! Looks delicious.
ReplyDeleteWhen I had my grad party all my food--which was just pizza & cake mainly--was vegan/vegetarian & a few people didn't know, but I'm assuming they enjoyed it since I didn't get any upfront complaints about it. My dad says I tricked them, but I just assumed since it's no huge secret I'm a vegan that people would expect vegan food...
One thing ive noticed that people forget that your wedding is about the couple getting married, no one else, the guests are there to celebrate you, and if you eat vegan that is part of you. So I say deffinately go for it, you may even win some people over ;)
ReplyDeleteThe appitisers look amazzzzing!!! I went to a christmas dinner where they made something almost like this for me- so good!
My bf is a meat eater so one day when we get married there will have to be a meat and a vegan choice! Eeek. And im sure it will be hard here in Adelaide to find somewhere that is willing to do vegan wedding food.
Thanks for sharing :)
Rose
I'm a meat eater...though I'm trying to slowly convert to vegetarian and maybe vegan someday. That considered-I personally would be really excited. I think for a lot of people who aren't vegetarian/vegan...the word scares them because it's something new and some people are afraid of new. If you are worried about specific people not liking it, I would just not let those know. If they don't hear the word they probably won't think about it. They'll eat it and say yum and not even know they just had a vegan meal :) It looks very yummy by the way :)
ReplyDeletehaha! I think it's great that you are going with exactly what you like. the only question I would have is does it taste that much different, and would I like it? :) It looks yummy!
ReplyDeletewell, to be honest, it wouldn't be my first choice as i'm not a vegan...but then again, it's not about me, is it?? it's about you guys. it's your day and hey, i've never eaten a completely vegan meal so maybe i'd find something different that i liked :)
ReplyDeleteHi! I'm a new reader and so far really loving your blog :)
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to have my own vegan wedding. Though I have worried a little that obtaining vegan catering would be a little tricky and thinking I'd have to make all the food myself. It seems like you had a fairly easy time of it!
I would go crazy for those hummus tartlets. Sounds so tasty!
Oh, and I would be so loud and proud about my vegan wedding! Are you really keeping it hush hush?
I am not Vegan..but as long as the food is delish then who cares...it is all about the yumminess!
ReplyDeleteYum yum yum yum
ReplyDeleteI say either don't tell anyone and just act like it's really fancy food, or else tell everyone right on the invitations "THERE WILL BE VEGAN FOOD, WE DON'T WANT TO HEAR ANY COMPLAINTS"
I'm also planning my wedding, and I'm also vegan. My fiance, though, isn't. And his family is from Texas! They cannot imagine a meal without dairy, let alone meat. I've avoided the "why no meat?" question by just planning a dessert buffet.
ReplyDeleteBut before we decided on that my mom and I were talking about what to serve. We decided that some criteria we would need to have are 1. is it filling because a lot of people think vegan is just salads and "rabbit food", 2. does it scream weird because again, family from Texas... vegan is weird to them, 3. will a caterer cook it for us, and 4. does it taste good.
I think your vegan meal will be perfectly accepted and tasty. If you're worried about getting flak at the wedding then tell the guests ahead of time and if they really want to they can eat before they come!
i lOVE that you are having a vegan wedding! if we were to get married, we would have a wedding in the summer with lots of raw, local in-season veggies. who can resist colorful fresh food?
ReplyDeletesome vegans have told me that they didn't do vegan food because of their family and guests - pish posh i say! it is YOUR special day and you get to decide the details. it's one meal - the meat-eaters will survive.
i'm sure the food will be so good no one will mind. for the ones who may be too stubborn to try the food - their loss. i guess they'll have to hit up a mickey d's on the way home!=)
ps - did they serve you burnt tartlets?
My biggest fear when I hear 'vegan' is no cheese. So as long as you through in some vegan cheese I'd have nothing to complain about. I also think that it would be a great expereince for people how haven't gotten a chance to try homemade (not store bought) vegan food.
ReplyDeleteBasically.. do it.!
I'm a full on carnivore, with a love for dairy products.
ReplyDeleteWith that said, if I was at a wedding that only served vegan foods, as long as the food was good it wouldn't matter to me. It's your wedding, and everyone should be pleased if you are.
Westly and I are actually going to have to have some vegan food at our wedding as well, we have a friend who only eats vegan.
my oh my, that food looks DELICIOUS! yum yum yum, i think the wedding pictures you two take will be SOOO adorable! :)
ReplyDeletexo
Lauren
p.s. elycia, i emailed you a little while ago, just wanting to make sure you got it!
Wauw, it all looks amazing! I love it that you'll have a vegan dinner at your wedding: it just reflects you as a couple. It's your day and you have to do it the way you want it. I eat veggie and try to eat only vegan.
ReplyDeleteAs many people have already mentioned, the wedding is about you guys and if veganism is a part of you, your guests will get that!! I eat and enjoy meat and fish but I think vegan is tasty, healthy and if it bothers someone that much, it's only for one day!
ReplyDeleteGo for it and be proud of who you are :)
I think it's a ridiculous question: Can we do it without meat? You could have a full-on Italian wedding with a delicious salad, pasta, even a yummy desert and have it all be veggie or vegan and NO ONE would know.
ReplyDeleteWhy is there some sort of obsession with meat? It's ridic. Unless you're considering serving something, like, an entire menu that includes peanuts in everything (which would be really disastrous for anyone with an allergy to peanuts), then why can't you serve what you want?
If you've got yummy, filling food, that's all that matters.
Plus, you're paying. You're the one shelling out cash. They are GUESTS who are getting a great party for FREE. They can do with whatever you want for the party, whether it's vegan, or non-alchoholic, or no dj...it's YOUR PARTY. Make it how you want.
Hi! I am a {relatively} new reader :)
ReplyDeleteI think this is tricky - I think it's amazing that you are doing it, and I would love trying the meal, because I am open to trying anything.
But for someone who is a meat eater (Im thinking of my brother) and doesnt like vegetarian food (his gf is vegetarian)...it would be nice for him to know before-hand so he doesnt go completely hungry all night. He could eat before he goes.
But again - it's up to you two to decide what you want to do.
:) love wedding saturdays!
allison
I feel the same way. I am not a vegan or vegetarian, but as long as the food is good (and i'm sure it is) then i don't think i would care. :)
ReplyDeletezoe
I'm not vegan but I enjoy trying vegan foods. That dessert looks so tasty! And the hummus sounds very yummy too! The only thing I'd be worried about is kids who are picky eaters, who don't like veggies.
ReplyDeleteI'm vegan so I'd love it!
ReplyDeleteAnd I like the idea appetizers will be served during cocktails.
I really do think most people will be happy to try something new!
You will probably get the odd "where's the meat?" But try and not let it bother you
You never know, you may open up more people to a vegan diet!
It's a special day for the both of you and it's 100% about both of you!
p.s. Looking forward to seeing your dress!
Oh, no concerns, at all...!!! It's nice to taste good food etc, but at weddings the only thing that matters is the couple's joy and vibe that can feel from the people invited to their big day. Like, literally, you can eat crow with salt and still sent tones of positive vibes to your friends who're getting married!:) Of course, the tastier, the better, but really, for me does not matter at all! :)
ReplyDeleteHey sweetpea. I am a vegan too. I am sure that meat eaters can go without meat for one meal, and anyway vegan food rocks- and those who do eat meat will be blown away by how delicious it is. p.s we provided meat for our guests- but most of them ended up eating to vegan food!
ReplyDeleteI say since you're vegan and your family and friends that would attend your wedding know this, you should have a menu that makes you feel comfortable. It is YOUR day afterall. I think certain family of mine would probably balk at the idea of a vegan or just vegetarian menu because they thing not eating meat is "stupid". (That's probably why I eloped. ha ha) The only thing I would suggest is having a detailed menu/ingredient list because it seems so many people have food allergies. But, once again, your wedding guests are probably close friends and family and you are probably already aware of those types of things.
ReplyDeleteI know you wanted to hear from meat eaters but this topic is quite personal to us. we are both veggies and have in the past catered that way for family functions very successfully. however when we raised the issue with our families about our wedding we were quite sad to experience lots of negativity. we had such remarks as 'we are inflicting our views on other people' and 'food will be wasted' etc etc so were really don't know what we will decide. i personally feel that i would be quite uncomfortable serving meat when we choose to exclude it from our lifestyle. i really really respect you for doing what is in your heart - i already love your blog, but you have gone up lots in my opinion for this decision! you rock!, if you want a british stalker i am happy to oblige!!
ReplyDeleteyou are all so sweet for leaving such thoughful responses! thank you so much! it is really interesting to read what you all have to say.
ReplyDeleteWhile in our everyday life we never tell people not to eat meat (i respect people's decisions even if they are different form mine) we definitely felt super uncomfortable with the idea of serving meat at the wedding.
Even if we had vegan food for ourself and meat for everyone else we would still be supporting the meat industry big time by requiring so much for the wedding. Definitely not happening.
We have been very lucky that most of our immediate family is supportive of our decision but yeah, there are a few people in the back of my mind that I am worried about. Now that I know the food will taste great I'm not so worried but definitely some people just have that mentatilty that they need meat. In making our decision we went with the idea that someone mentioned about it being one meal of the person's life. I think it's fair :)
we already printed the invites and it doesn't say vegan meal on them. we thought about doing it but decided not to draw attention to it. anyone who we think needs to know we'll tell.
and, there won't be any kids at the wedding so we don't have to worry about them not liking it :)
kelli, haha, the tartlets weren't burnt. the lighting was pretty bad so the photos turned out dark. they were just perfect!
lauren, i got your email but have been trying to come up with a good idea before i responded, haha. sorry!
you all left such great comments i really really appreciate your input.
I will definitely do a post after the wedding about our experience for anyone else thinking of doing a vegan wedding.
and...can i say thank you one more time? haha, you are all awesome.
why is vegan food so dang pretty?! haha
ReplyDeletei would LOVE going to a wedding that served vegan foodies. i'm a vegetarian, though...so kinda biased :) my family of meat lovers never feels like they've had a complete meal if it doesn't involve beef or chicken, BUT they'll have a good story afterwards. ["i tried VEGAN food! it didn't have any meat or anything!"] um, my family is hispanic :)
haha, yes, that's true, whether or not they enjoy it people will have a story to tell! some of ivan's family is croatian (they love roasted pig at weddings). however, we are basically turning his grandma into a vegan, haha. not by force either. she just really likes the food we cook and she likes learning how to make vegan food for us. she is so cute.
ReplyDeleteI think it would be awesome if there was vegan food, I eat meat but I dont actually eat it much I have gone without it for months so for me it would be quite awesome, and I love variety in vegan food, so many stuff I wouldn't have thought! If I had to go with my bf I would worry he might end hungry.
ReplyDeleteBut not really, my best friend and her bf are vegetarians and we cooked a meal for them one time. My bf ate and was full he didn't even asked for meat at all he stuck to the plan and I was proud of him lol.
By the way the hummus tartlet sounds YUM! (gotta luv hummus!)
Wow Ivan really looks different in that photo. Well if all the food was vegan I might be disappointed but honestly it depends. There are some good vegan foods that non vegans wouldn't mind eating. As long as you don't over do it with something that is like a veggie disaster I don't see an issue. Just remember vegans have a different taste for things than non vegans sometimes.
ReplyDeleteAWESOME!! If I went to a vegan wedding I would LOVE it! Im sure that there will be those kind of people who say "oh vegan food, ew Im not eating that stuff" but...I bet if they didn't know it was vegan they would eat it and think its delicious and fancy ;) Its all in the mind set I think on some people (sad) But then when they eat it and know its vegan, and they actually love it...thats when its awesome! (at the same time you could have regular meat eater people go to a "normal" food wedding and still hate the food, you know? vegan or not, you will still have people who hate anything that is different to their daily foods!
ReplyDeleteyesterday at the thai vegan place, there were some doubters saying oh Im going to go get a hamburger after it will be gross, because its vegan food...but then they ate the "duck" and "chicken" and loved it, couldn't believe it wasn't meat, were too full from eating every last mouthfull, and it shut them up for the rest of the day hehe :)
I honestly don't think it is, nor should be, a big deal if a wedding meal is Vegan, Vegetarian, Meat-filled, Candy-filled or what-have-you. People aren't going for the food (and if they are, shame on them!) - they're going to support their loved ones who are celebrating their commitment to one another. Food is just a by-product of that day. :)
ReplyDeleteHeck, I'm happy to go to a wedding that doesn't serve a sit down meal (in fact, I prefer it). As long as there's a happy couple ... and cake! ... then it's a dreamy wedding.
I think having a totally vegan meal is an awesome idea! It brings the guests that little bit closer to you guys. They can learn what being vegan is about but also the lifestyle that you cuties lead!
ReplyDeleteThat is a super cute picture indeed, bless his little cottons! He looks a bit of a natural in front of the camera Elycia, has he been stealing yours while you're away?
I love meat. I try to have one meatless day a week but meat somehow creeps into most meals. South Africans are known for eating waaay too much red meat. And don't even get me started on cheese and cream.
ReplyDeleteBut, in answer to your question, i would definitely enjoy a vegan wedding feast. Firstly, because it is really different from what I am used to and, secondly, because I really enjoy veg food, especially when a lot of thought has been put into the different tastes.
I think it is awesome that you are tailoring your wedding exactly to your tastes and i'm sure your carnivorous guests will be surprsied at how much they enjoy the vegan food :)
My fiance and I are both vegetarian, and I make a lot of strictly vegan meals at home. I actually ate vegan for a while, but somehow gained weight? I guess because of all of the yummies I was making (vegan cheesecake...omg)!
ReplyDeleteBut anyway, we are getting married this September and we aren't serving anything that isn't at least vegetarian. Luckily there are only a few people in either of our immediate families that just simply "don't get" a meal without the meat. The way we look at it is: a) it's our day and that's all that matters 2) we both have been to plenty of weddings that ONLY served meat dishes, so we just didn't eat & d) we are paying for pretty much everything, so if they don't like it, then they can drive by burger king on their way home. haha (Also, a 2 & d... Home Alone reference... anybody?!)
We are making all of the food, along with the help of friends and family. We wanted to serve food that we love to eat! We chose to make vegan dogs with lots of toppings to choose from, vegan chili, mini corn on the cob, and 2 kinds of potato chips! All vegan, actually :) The only thing we are serving that won't be vegan are three different kinds of mini cupcakes. I am choosing to go the easy route, so all I'm making from scratch are the different frostings.
Our problem came from my family being really laid back and his family being way more conservative. We wanted to have a keg or... four (haha), but we compromised before even going down that road of talking to his mother and upsetting her. So we decided to serve water, lemonade, and sweet tea w/ oranges. I think it's fitting for our food choices :) And I have just been telling any of my friends who have asked to just bring a flask with their drink of choice if they want. No one is stopping them! haha
Congratulations, and always stick to your guns :) Whatever makes you two happiest is all that matters!
p.s. We aren't inviting children either! We are working on our RSVP's now. I was wondering, did you personally tell people with children not to bring them, or did you put something on your RSVP? I am having a tough time deciding on what's appropriate, but we both feel strongly about not having any children at the wedding.
If someone is offended, annoyed or angered by the fact that there isn't meat being served at YOUR wedding, then they are there for the wrong reasons.
ReplyDeleteYou and your man love each other, and you want the others to be there to help celebrate that. Not to pig out on, well, pigs...
my husband and i actually had an all vegan wedding and we didn't get any complaints from our guests. the food was all so amazing that vegans and non-vegans were all quite pleased. one of our pickiest friends didn't even mind :) when people understand how much it means to you, they'll totally understand, and hopefully you can open some eyes to the joys of vegan eating!
ReplyDeletei'm planning my wedding now, and while I'm a carnivore..well, omnivore, I suppose..my sister is vegan and my parents are vegetarians. I plan on having a 95% vegan wedding. there will probably be shrimp cocktail or crab cakes or some such for pescatarians. Sort of the opposite of what most events are for my sister! The reason I'm doing this is because when my sister got married, it was 100% vegan, cake included, and some of the best food I've ever had. it's no great loss for me to not have steak or whatever at my wedding, like I'm even going to be tinking about food. she found the caterer and the cake maker, I get to use that knowledge! easy for me! as for all the meat-eating guests - I mean, do you think they are going to leave my wedding saying, man, that was great, but what was up with the no steak or chicken? i think not. I suppose it might be different if I were doing a sit-down dinner, but it will be more buffet style. got that sounds so white trash. Um, i can't think of a better way to say buffet but yeah. grazing?
ReplyDelete