Food and Catering: Bellagio
We chose a sit down dinner with a soup, salad and entree course. The wedding cake was the dessert. We also had passed canapes for the cocktail hour. The menus are completely customizable and we were able to make substitutions freely. I thought the food was outstanding. The two things our guests still rave about are the food/alcohol and the DJ.
Canapés
We chose three: crab cakes, mini beef wellington, and croque monsieur. The Bellagio had all three appetizers plated and waiting for us when we arrived at the reception, but we only tried one before running off to talk to the guests. I tried the crab cake and thought it was very good. Groom thought the mini beef wellington was fantastic. The dark horse of the night was croque monsieur, though. For whatever reason, our guests loved "those little ham and cheese sandwiches." I wish that Groom and I tried each one before running off to mingle with the guests.
Soup
The soup course was a lobster and cognac bisque with a lemon and tomato napoleon. They initially served bowls with only the napoleon in the bottom. This led to a couple guests ribbing us about serving miniature portions. The servers quickly came out and individually poured the soup into the bowls, however.
Salad
We went a little quirky with the salad course choosing a tomato and mozzarella salad. Caprese salads are a favorite of mine, and I like how it almost presents like an appetizer. I thought it was very good. I wish I had time to enjoy more of it, but Table 3 was acting up. After ordering multiple rounds of shots for themselves, they decided share the love/alcohol and send rounds to other tables as well. Imagine a sixty year old guest taking a shot glass off a tray and asking the waiter if it should be poured over the salad.
Entree
We originally intended to have our guests choose their entree, but I forgot to include the options on the RSVP card (oops). Instead, we choose to do a duo of grilled filet mignon and miso-glazed sea bass with potato gratin and various vegetables. I was a bit concerned that some guests would only eat one option and would still be hungry. That wasn't a problem as the portions were generous. The filet was tender and was served with an excellent port sauce that was poured by a waiter table-side to taste. The sea bass had a flavorful crust on the outside and was cooked perfectly.
Cake
The cake wasn't a detail that I focused on. We aren't dessert people - Groom has a nut allergy. Also, (unfortunately), we were in rough shape when we had our tasting a few months before the wedding (working on less than an hour and a half of sleep after a marathon gambling session the night before). In retrospect, I wish I would have enjoyed our tasting a little more because it was quite a production put on by the Bellagio (waiters, wine, champagne, ect). Prior to the tasting, I told Bellagio that I didn't have anything in particular in mind for the cake and they could come up with the design. At the tasting, they had five mini cakes, all with different designs, prepared to choose from. I chose a basic "Chanel" pattern in ivory fondant. The flowers were a surprise, but I didn't mind; they matched the colors of my ceremony bouquet.
We went very traditional with the flavor. We chose a vanilla cake with strawberries and vanilla filling. We received several compliments on it. Groom wished that we had done different flavors on different levels. He especially like the red velvet with cream cheese filling option, but he didn't speak up at the tasting (tip: don't be hungover at your tasting). I was a little worried ordering fondant because I hate having to "peel" it off, but after we did the ceremonial cutting of the cake, the Bellagio took the cake in the back, peeled of all the fondant, and cut the rest of the cake before serving the guests. They also saved the top for us, but we, unfortunately, didn't have a way to get it home.
We went very traditional with the flavor. We chose a vanilla cake with strawberries and vanilla filling. We received several compliments on it. Groom wished that we had done different flavors on different levels. He especially like the red velvet with cream cheese filling option, but he didn't speak up at the tasting (tip: don't be hungover at your tasting). I was a little worried ordering fondant because I hate having to "peel" it off, but after we did the ceremonial cutting of the cake, the Bellagio took the cake in the back, peeled of all the fondant, and cut the rest of the cake before serving the guests. They also saved the top for us, but we, unfortunately, didn't have a way to get it home.
Quick tip: smashing cake in each others face isn't the best idea when you are scheduled to give a toast immediately after cutting the cake.