With Singapore’s varied demographic and today’s more open attitude to intermarriages, more and more couples of different races are tying the knot. That’s all well and good, but it does complicate weddings a little bit. For some, it’s solved by having a double ceremony; for others, by having one side compromise and observe the other’s wedding rituals; while others still choose to follow a modern, non-ethnic wedding ceremony.
Photo by Renatus Photography
But after the ceremony, the next question is what the couple should serve at the wedding banquet. Serving two types of cuisines would be too expensive, serving just one kind would be unfair, and serving a Western fair might be unappealing to many guests. So, how do you go about it?
Well, the best solution it seems is to have a customised menu, one that features dishes that are traditionally served in both sides. But more than that, a customised menu can also be a way to introduce traditions – and the meaning behind them – through food, and a way to foster better relations while showing cultural sensitivity.
So if you and your spouse-to-be are from different races, you need to hire a caterer or catering team who can provide a customised menu. To know whether a caterer is up to the task, and what else they have to offer, ask them the following questions:
Regarding the General Set-up
• Do you have an experience in catering to interracial marriages? If yes, can you provide suggestions and ideas in terms of foods and drinks and presentation?
• What do you think of your specialty cuisine and why do you say so? How about your entire meal package? What makes it special?
• Have you had prior arrangement with our venue? Will you be able to coordinate with them?
To make things easier, you can ask suggestions and recommendations from your friends and relatives, especially if they’ve had first-and experience with the vendor they’re recommending.
Photo by Kinici Photo
Regarding the Food
• What food choices would you recommend given our unique situation? Would those foods fit my budget, style and guest count? Do you have any specialty cuisine?
• What are included in your menu package? If there are particular dishes that we’d like to serve, would you accommodate that? How many special requests, in terms of dishes, are you willing to accommodate?
• Can you accommodate dietary restrictions? Can you source organic ingredients?
• Do you offer package upgrades like dais decorations for Muslim wedding?
• Can you do themed menus? Can you also do the decoration to match the theme?
• Given our target menu and guest count, what would be more affordable: a sit down menu or a buffet style?
• Does your meal package include the wedding cake? If yes, is it included in the per-person meal price or is it charged separately?
• Can you show me photos of cakes you served before?
• If we decide not to have a wedding cake, can you provide a display dessert instead?
• Can you provide presentation upgrades? What would be the additional fee?
• Have you served foods that are the same with my requests for your previous clients?
Photo by Under One Tree Media
Regarding the Drinks
• Do you serve both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages? What brands of alcohol will be served?
• Do you charge per person or per volume? Which is more cost-effective?
• Is tea and coffee service included in a per-person meal charge?
• Do you provide or can you accommodate specialty cocktails?
• Can we bring our own beverages while you provide the bar service? If so, would we pay for corkage fee?
• Is the champagne toast after the program included in the meal package or is it extra?
• Will your staff serve dinner with wine?
• How long will alcohol be served?
Favourites in Customised Wedding
The simplest way to go about your banquet menu – if you don’t want to stress over each and every detail – is to just showcase famous local dishes and specialties. Singapore has a rich, diverse cuisine that has produced many fusion dishes with influences from traditional Chinese, Malay and Indian cuisine.
So if you’re going to have interracial marriage, say Chinese-Indian wedding, you need not look far for ideas for your modified menu because your local cuisines will guide you to the right direction. It’s also likely that some of them are traditionally served in special occasions in Singapore like weddings.
Here are some local dishes that you consider for your customised menu:
• Chicken rice
• Biryani
• Fried carrot cake
• Wanton mee
• Oyster omelette
• Satay
• Fish bee hon
• Bak chor mee
• BBQ sambal sting ray
• Crabs (chili or peppered)
• Char kway teow
• Nasi lemak
• Duck rice
• Mee siam
• Tau huay
Different Ways to Serve
Dining with the Family
Include a family favourite dish from both sides “family-style”, that is, it’s delivered to the centre of the table and guests pass them politely after getting their share. Your chosen family favourite may even be a part of the traditional menu for weddings. That’s like hitting two birds with one stone, right? You get to provide information about the family and include traditional food in the modified menu at the same time.
Photo by Livesnapps
Themed Dishes
Select a theme for food and presentation that will help unify the diverse customs and traditions of your and your groom’s respective races. It can be a colour, ingredient or manner of presentation – what’s important is that it’s a meeting point of the two cultures. Try to incorporate traditions and personal preferences to make traditional parents happy and not feeling that you’ve overlooked your background. This can also be a memorable way of presenting foods and providing gastronomic experience to guests.
“That’s So You”
Include foods that you and your spouse love most in the modified menu. This is your wedding, after all, so why not include foods that has personal meaning to the two of you? It doesn’t matter if they are local foods, traditional dishes or from international cuisines as long as it’s what you and your partner loves. Highlight these dishes at your banquet so that the next time your guests encounter them, they’ll be reminded of your wonderful wedding.
Photo by Signature Bridal
Different races don’t have to dine at separate tables. More than about tradition, the wedding is about union. So for couples who come from different backgrounds, the wedding – especially through the food that the guests will share – should be an opportunity to make cultural bridges and not highlight each other’s difference.
