We’ve lost count of how many weddings we’ve attended where we’ve tried to discreetly stash a forkful of terrible food under our napkin while smiling politely at the newlyweds.

It’s those very experiences—the ones that made us wish we’d grabbed a burger on the way—that got us thinking about whether good wedding caterers are hard to find. 

Determined to save couples and their guests from tasteless tragedies, we’ve taste-tested and reviewed our way through Wellington’s best wedding caterers. 

After all that delicious research, we’ve rounded up the best wedding catering services in Wellington that are actually worth booking! Here’s who made it to our list!

1. Blue Carrot Catering 

Blue Carrot is for couples who want creative cakes and show-stopping food that’s visually stunning as it is delicious.

We scrolled through their Instagram, and honestly, their platters look like art. Posh appetisers, vibrant salads, and mains that make you want to skip the speeches and head straight to the buffet.

We’re still thinking about their cheese “cakes”. They’re actual wheels of cheese stacked into a tiered showpiece, decorated with fresh figs, berries, and flowers. 

What we love most is they help you organise a menu based on your wants and needs. Couples told us that even those with every dietary need under the sun will have a plate worth eating.

We also like that Blue Carrot doesn’t just drop off the food and leave. They organise staff, table settings, and flowers—if you want to enjoy your day, they’re up for it. 

If we had to nitpick, their email follow-ups can be a bit pushy if you’re the type who likes to take your time making decisions.

Still, many love how involved they get in the planning. They even send couples a run sheet so they know exactly what is happening, when, and where.

The food is always consistently fresh and delicious

“We proudly use Blue Carrot Catering for our Perfect Little Weddings and have been happily serving their canapes to couples and their guests for 6 years.  We get great feedback and the food is always consistently fresh and delicious.  Adrian and the team go out of their way to provide the highest service possible.”

• Frances Thompson, Google Reviews 

The food, the staff and the service was outstanding

“Had blue carrot cater for my wedding early this month. Everything was so absolutely amazing! The food, the staff and the service was outstanding. The grazing table was so amazing with such a variety of different foods. Dinner was delicious!! All of it.The staff were constantly on top of things and ensured everyone was happy. So pleased with how it all turned out. Guests countless times commented on how great the staff was and how yum the food was. Definitely recommend!!”

• Sam Reid, Google Reviews

2. Black Dog BBQ

If you love BBQ, Black Dog BBQ is the caterer we’d call. We tried their brisket ourselves and, honestly, it almost ruined us for all other BBQs. 

The meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender, with just the right amount of smoke, and their homemade sauces had us going back for “just one more bite” until we started regretting not wearing our stretchy pants.

We like that Black Dog BBQ is all about custom menus. Couples have gone all-in with brisket, juicy tri-tip, thick-cut steak, buttery cornbread, tangy slaw, mac and cheese, and grilled corn on the cob.

When it comes to the wedding day, their staff is friendly and laid-back. Several people love that the team are pros at setting up buffet-style stations and family-style at long tables. 

They make sure everyone gets plenty to eat. Others told us the team keeps everything running smoothly and quickly clears plates and tidys up, so you can just focus on enjoying the day (and the food).

That said, if you or your guests aren’t into BBQ, this probably isn’t the caterer for you because they don’t serve up anything else. 

The food was absolutely delicious 

“We hired Black Dog BBQ for our wedding which we held at home. We are a pretty casual relaxed couple and Black Dog BBQ suited us perfectly. The food was absolutely delicious and different dietary requirements were well catered for! The pulled pork and brisket were to die for, buns lovely and soft and lamingtons were great and not at all dry like some can be. The sauce options were delicious with many of our guests loving the hot sauce options. Clint was great to deal with and responsive to emails and happy to deal with all my questions. We have the left-over meat in our freezer and are going to continue to enjoy it over the coming weeks! I would recommend Black Dog BBQ to anyone wanting a really good BBQ company for their event.“

• Faye de Ste Croix, Google Reviews

These guys are the best

“These guys are the best! The food was amazing and thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. Superb taste! Clint was super chill and friendly to work with. Great comms too.”

• Ana Sciascia, Google Reviews

3. In House Catering 

Couples who like straightforward catering packages that make planning a breeze should go with In House Catering.

They give you three options. The Gold Package gives you a buffet dinner with a main, three sides, a dessert, and a selection of bread. On top of that, it comes with five canapés. 

The Premium Package ups the ante with two mains (plus a vegetarian option), three sides or salads, two desserts, and a big grazing table for guests to nibble from. 

If you want something luxurious, go with the Elite Package—a three-course plated dinner with five canapés to start.

Their lamb shoulder slow-braised in rosemary and red wine, had many talking for days. Sides like gochujang Brussels sprouts and desserts like cheesecake mousse cups add a modern twist to the classics.

Although they are expensive, we love that there are no hidden fees. Food and staff are included, and if you need to hire plates, glasses, or even tablecloths, they’ll sort it all out for you.

The team is attentive without being overbearing, quickly topping up drinks and clearing plates. Plus, the food arrives hot and beautifully presented, with generous portions—no one leaves hungry.

They were a dream to deal with 

“I can’t recommend In House Catering highly enough. They catered our wedding and did a really wonderful job. The food was delicious (lots of guests commented on it), the staff were incredibly friendly, and they were a dream to deal with in terms of the venue and menu. Honestly, they were just fantastic.”

• Katie Cooper, Google Reviews

All the guests are still talking about how good the food was

“Beth, Dylan and their incredible team made our wedding better than we could imagine. All the guests are still talking about how good the food was.  The menu was tailored to our requests and they surpassed our expectations.  Their team are professional and personable with an eye to detail and a flair for laying out the space. Nothing was too difficult, they went above and beyond to make our event stress free.  We could not recommend them more highly – you won’t be disappointed.“

• Lien Bui, Google Reviews

4. NOSH Catering + Events

If you want a catering team that feels like your own personal wedding planner, NOSH Catering + Events is the one we’d try to book.

They offer full event management, which means they’ll handle all the hire equipment, set up the venue exactly how you want, and—maybe best of all—clean up afterwards.

NOSH is all about the details. 

Their chefs specialise in food that is elegant but not intimidating. We like that they pull off menus that have both foodies and the pickiest eaters going back for seconds.

They get bonus points for presentations too. Couples told us that whether it was elegant canapés or mains, every plate looked straight out of a magazine.

Another thing we love is that NOSH is prepared for last-minute tweaks. An extra guest? Changes to the menu? No problem.

However, sometimes there are mix-ups with meal delivery like a vegetarian guest accidentally being served the beef main.

Friendly, professional, easy to deal with

“We hired NOSH for our wedding catering and they were amazing! Friendly, professional, easy to deal with virtually (as I live outside Wellington), and great organisation with attention to every little detail. NOSH helped me plan a smoothly run reception with delicious food and drinks! EVERYONE said the food was the best they had ever had at a wedding! During the night their staff were quick to help out and they went above and beyond making sure everyone had a fun and safe night! Highly recommend!!!”

• Adele Vasta, Google Reviews

Food and staff were amazing at our wedding

“NOSH food and staff were amazing at our wedding. Tasty, filling food in canape style were passed around our guests and they all raved about it. Excellent timing, presentation and flavour. The staff were all very friendly and accommodating. Definitely recommend”

• Lauren Wyatt, Google Reviews

5. Food Envy

Food Envy is perfect for people with big weddings (a minimum of 30 guests) who want ready-to-go set menus that make life easy, but still crave flavours that are anything but basic.

Several people told us they’re still dreaming about the pineapple upside-down cake with coconut and lime chantilly. Others said their antipasto skewers disappeared before they could grab seconds.

We love that you can choose between family-style buffets—like chicken roulade with Italian herb velouté or seared lamb rump with salsa verde—or go all out with a formal plated dinner. 

The plated mains are a step above what you usually get at weddings: aged sirloin with triple-cooked chips and beer onions, or grilled baby octopus with nduja and burnt butter.

Service-wise, Food Envy is super flexible. You can have them serve canapés and drinks, or run the whole event from setup to pack down.

If there’s a catch, it’s that Food Envy’s set menu approach doesn’t leave room for last-minute changes or custom requests. So if you’re the type who wants to tweak every detail, you might find their system a bit rigid.

Delicious food, but they’re easy going, adaptable, helpful

“Cool vibes and great service! I was stoked to work with Food Envy at a recent wedding and they really are an incredible catering team. Not only do they put out delicous food, but they’re easy going, adaptable, helpful, hard working and overall just really great people! I can’t wait to work with the crew again”

• The Wedding Coach, Google Reviews

The food itself was amazing

“Food Envy catered our recent wedding. We cannot praise them enough. Quick responses, the helpfulness in customising our menu, taking away the stress of wedding food, and proving excellent service on the day, we cannot thank them enough. The food itself was amazing, our guests commented on how good it was and there was hardly anything left at the end of the night. Some platters disappeared in minutes as our guests happily ate the food! We truly appreciated how much they understood the fact that we would hardly have eaten during the day and made sure we had no shortage of food at our head table. Ash was absolutely amazing as was the entire team at Food Envy.”

• Nicole Braun, Google Reviews

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