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The short answer

At La Casserole, we typically see on site catering for weddings and private parties in Brabant range from €35 to €150 per person, depending on the style of menu, the number of service hours and what the venue already provides. If you want to know what on site catering really costs, look beyond the per person rate. Staffing, equipment hire and venue requirements can account for a third to almost half of the final bill. In practice, the breakdown usually looks like this:

• Canapés and drinks reception: typically €15 to €30 per person
• Buffet or walking dinner: typically €45 to €75 per person
• A more elaborate seated dinner with table service: often €85 to €150 per person
• Service staff are usually charged by the hour, per team member, with a minimum booking
• A venue without a kitchen, water or electricity will increase costs because a mobile kitchen setup is needed

Why wedding catering quotes are so difficult to compare

This is something La Casserole regularly sees with couples in Brabant: three quotes on the table, three totals that differ by tens of percent, and no clear way to understand why. One caterer quotes €52 per person, another €78. Only when you compare the small print do you discover that the cheaper quote excludes service staff, glassware and waste removal. (Services)

That does not necessarily mean anyone is being misleading. Caterers structure their pricing differently because they provide different levels of service. Some supply food, deliver it and leave. Others also handle furniture, linen, technical equipment and event coordination. Both are described as on site catering, but they are fundamentally different services.

So the question how much does on site catering cost is really two questions. What does the food cost? And what does it cost to serve that food properly at a venue that is not already set up for hospitality? Couples who only ask the first question often run into unexpected extras in the final weeks. Ask both questions from the outset and you stay in control. Our complete approach to planning a stress free wedding or private party explains what that looks like in practice.

How much does a party for 50 people cost at home or at a venue?

Imagine a couple hosting 50 guests in a family garden, followed by an evening party for 90 people. A realistic catering budget rarely starts with the menu. It starts with four cost areas that appear in almost every private event.

Food: the visible half of the budget

For 50 people, a well catered buffet usually costs between €45 and €75 per person. A three or four course seated dinner with table service often rises to €85 to €150. The difference is not just about ingredients. It also reflects the preparation time required for each plate and the number of people needed to serve 50 hot plates at the same time.

Staffing: the cost people forget

Service staff are normally charged by the hour, per team member, usually with a minimum of four or five hours. As a rule of thumb, allow roughly one staff member for every 15 to 20 guests for a seated dinner, and slightly fewer for a buffet. For 50 guests and a six hour evening, this can quickly become a substantial cost that sits entirely outside the menu price.

Equipment: how bare is the venue, really?

A garden, barn or industrial space does not come with plates, glassware, refrigeration or hot holding equipment. Crockery, cutlery, glassware, linen, buffet tables and mobile refrigeration are hired individually or as sets. If there is no kitchen on site, you will also need a temporary workspace with prep tables, gas equipment and washing facilities.

Logistics and venue requirements

Delivery, setup, breakdown, waste removal and travel time may be included in the per person rate by one supplier and listed separately by another. Venue rules also matter. A venue with an in house caterer requirement, or a fee for bringing in an outside caterer, can completely change your budget.

Checklist:

• Compare every line in each quote: food, staffing, equipment and logistics. If one is missing, ask for the cost before comparing quotes
• Ask for the number of staff members and their hourly rate, not simply whether “service is included”
• Check whether waste removal and final cleaning are included
• Confirm whether the venue allows outside catering and what fees apply

Why a per person price does not predict your budget

The per person rate comes from traditional hospitality venues, where the kitchen, washing facilities, power supply and staff are already in place. At a private venue, none of those assumptions apply. Yet it remains the number couples tend to focus on, and that is where budgets often go wrong.

Here are three reasons why comparing quotes by per person price alone is misleading.

First: the cost balance changes with guest numbers. For 30 guests, fixed costs such as delivery, setup and minimum staffing have a major impact on the per person rate. For 120 guests, those costs are spread across more people and the per person rate falls, even as the total bill rises. A quote of €90 per person for 30 people may therefore represent better value than €65 per person for 120.

Second: the length of the event is often not included in the per person rate. A wedding that starts with a reception at 15.00 and finishes at 01.00 requires ten hours of staffing. If the party runs one hour late, the staffing bill increases, not the food bill.

Third: legal requirements cost money and are rarely shown as a separate line item. Caterers preparing food must work in line with an approved hygiene code or a HACCP food safety plan, according to the NVWA. At a venue without a kitchen, that means refrigerated transport, temperature monitoring and a workspace that meets those standards. The RIVM event hygiene guidelines state that the NVWA oversees food safety at events, while the organiser remains jointly responsible for ensuring every contracted caterer follows the required hygiene code. If a quote looks unusually cheap, those costs have probably been left out somewhere.

There is also a legal requirement to provide allergen information, in place since 13 December 2014. According to Koninklijke Horeca Nederland, every hospitality business must be able to tell guests about allergens in unpackaged dishes when asked. For a buffet serving 90 wedding guests, that means clear labels, an allergen overview and staff who know the answers. It is a small cost, but an important sign of professionalism.

Fixed price per person or itemised costs: which works best?

An itemised quote gives you control, but it can also leave you carrying more risk. A fixed total provides peace of mind, but less detail. In reality, the key difference is who carries the risk if the day does not go exactly to plan.

La Casserole takes the opposite approach: first, confirm the venue requirements and event schedule, then decide on the menu. It may sound like a small detail, but it avoids a common mistake. Couples fall in love with a four course menu, then discover that the venue has no kitchen, no high voltage power supply and no washing area. Once you understand the practical limitations, you can choose a menu that can actually be delivered properly. See how this works when venue, catering and styling are managed together in this overview of a wedding celebration near Eindhoven.

There is also a commercial reason to secure clear pricing early. According to the Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek, canteens and catering recorded the strongest revenue growth of all hospitality sectors in the fourth quarter of 2025, at 6,2 percent. The previous quarter showed the same pattern, with CBS reporting 6,4 percent growth for the same sector. In a market with growing demand, the best caterers book up early. Leave it too late and you may pay more or have to compromise on quality.

What a fixed price should include

A total price is only valuable when its boundaries are clear: the finish time, guest number tolerance, staffing levels and what happens if the guest list changes by thirty people either way. Without those details, “all inclusive” is simply a marketing phrase.

Checklist:

• Get the finish time and hourly overtime rate confirmed in writing
• Agree on a guest number tolerance, such as plus or minus 10 percent until four weeks before the event
• Ask which hygiene code or HACCP plan the caterer follows
• Include the allergen overview as a deliverable in the agreement, not simply as a request
• Ask for one named contact person for the event day

How do you build a catering budget that holds up on the day?

Budgeting for on site catering works best when you plan backwards. Start with the non negotiables, not the menu.

1. Set your total budget and guest numbers. Separate daytime and evening guests. They eat differently and cost differently.
2. Cost the venue before choosing the menu. Is there a kitchen, power, water and drainage? Is there a mandatory in house caterer? These factors often account for 20 to 30 percent of your catering costs.
3. Calculate staffing hours. Include start time, finish time, setup and breakdown. Multiply this by a staffing guideline of roughly one team member per 15 to 20 guests for table service.
4. Choose the menu format afterwards. Only at this point does the per person rate fit into the calculation.
5. Keep a contingency of around 10 percent. Extra guests, bad weather and a longer party can always happen.

Couples who budget this way often find that the menu format is not the biggest variable. Choosing a walking dinner instead of a seated dinner usually saves more on staffing than on food. That can free up budget for better wines or a longer evening service. If you want to combine daytime and evening guests without awkward gaps in the schedule, see this guide to wedding catering concepts.

A garden party requires extra attention to power, refrigeration and a rain plan. Our practical guide to garden party catering explains which facilities to arrange in advance and which ones your caterer can handle.

Checklist:

• Cost the venue and staffing hours first, then choose the menu
• Split your budget into food, staffing, equipment and logistics, with an amount for each
• Allow around 10 percent for contingencies
• Request quotes from two suppliers using the exact same schedule and guest numbers, otherwise you are not comparing like with like

Frequently asked questions

How much does a party for 50 people cost at home?

For 50 guests at home, fully catered event costs typically range from €3.000 to €7.000, including service staff and equipment. The menu format is the biggest variable. Canapés and a buffet will usually stay below €60 per person, while a served dinner can rise to €85 or more. You should also allow for crockery, glassware and refrigeration hire, as a private home is rarely equipped to handle that volume.

How much does a party for 30 people cost?

For 30 guests, the per person price is often higher than it is for 80 guests because fixed costs, such as delivery, setup and minimum staffing, are divided across fewer people. In practice, the per person rate for a small group is usually €10 to €20 higher than for a larger group choosing the same menu. At this size, a private dining setup or a chef at the table can offer better value than a buffet because you get more from those fixed costs.

How much does a caterer charge per hour?

Service and kitchen staff are generally charged by the hour, per team member, usually with a minimum booking of four to five hours including setup and breakdown. Always ask separately for the number of staff and the hourly rate. Two quotes with the same total can conceal a difference of three staff members. For a seated dinner, around one team member for every 15 to 20 guests is a workable guideline.

Is everything included in the price for on site catering in Brabant?

Rarely, unless you specifically ask for it. Waste removal, final cleaning, overtime charges and furniture or marquee hire are often excluded as standard. With a supplier that combines catering, equipment and project management in one booking, as La Casserole does from Best, these costs appear in one quote rather than across four invoices. Always ask for an itemised breakdown, even when you are given a fixed total price.

When should you book wedding catering in Brabant?

Usually nine to twelve months in advance for a Saturday during peak season, and six months ahead for an off season date. As CBS figures show, catering is the fastest growing hospitality sector, so popular dates fill up quickly. Book the venue first, then the caterer, because the venue requirements determine which caterers can work there in the first place.

Conclusion

If you are asking how much does on site catering cost for a wedding or private party in Brabant, expect a range of €35 to €150 per person. But that figure is the outcome, not the starting point. Start with the venue: what is available, what is permitted and how long will the event run? Then consider staffing hours, equipment and logistics. The menu comes last, not first.

Take three practical steps in the coming weeks: request two quotes based on exactly the same schedule and guest numbers, get the finish time and overtime rate confirmed in writing, and check that the caterer works with an approved hygiene code. Start this way and you are far less likely to face surprise costs in the final month.

That is why La Casserole starts with venue requirements and only then designs the menu. It is not a formality. It is the only way to build a budget that still works on the day itself.

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