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Quick summary

La Casserole is a full-service event partner based in Best, combining catering, styling, technical production, rentals and project management. From working with couples looking for a wedding venue in Eindhoven, the team knows that the per-person price on a quote is rarely the full story. For 100 guests, food and drinks for an entire wedding day typically come to around €10,000 to €21,000. Your final budget depends on the style of service, drinks package and venue facilities. Five elements drive the cost: the menu, drinks, staffing, equipment and kitchen facilities, plus any additional food moments. If you know whether your venue has its own kitchen, you have already removed a major unknown.

Key takeaways

• For 100 guests, food and drinks for a full wedding day typically cost €10,000 to €21,000. Dinner is usually the biggest expense.
• A venue without its own kitchen often requires additional spending on a mobile kitchen, power and refrigeration. The NVWA requires perishable food to be kept below 7°C.
• Budget for the guests who will actually be seated, not everyone on the invitation list. A wedding with 60 daytime guests and 40 evening-only guests has a very different budget from one with 100 dinner guests.
• A plated dinner usually requires one staff member for every 10 to 12 guests, while a buffet needs roughly one for every 20 to 25 guests.
• Only compare quotes when service, equipment, setup and VAT are all included.

Why do wedding catering quotes vary so much?

In practice, two quotes for the same 100 guests can be thousands of euros apart, even when the menus look nearly identical. The difference is rarely the steak or risotto. It is what has been left out of the quote. (Services)

One caterer may include chefs, waiting staff, crockery, glassware, setup and washing up in the dinner price. Another may quote only for the food, then add the rest later as extras. Couples compare €55 with €80 per person, choose the lower number and only discover at the final invoice that the two packages were never comparable.

The order in which you book suppliers matters, too. Most couples secure a venue first and look for catering afterwards. Yet your wedding venue in Eindhoven largely determines what catering will cost. Does it have a kitchen? How much power is available? Can you choose your own caterer? If you ask these questions after signing the contract, part of your budget is already locked in. For the full process, from choosing a venue to styling, see this guide to planning a wedding or private party without the stress.

The market is moving, too. According to CBS (2026), revenue from canteens and catering rose by 2.6 percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the previous year. Popular wedding Saturdays are therefore often booked more than a year in advance.

How much does food cost for a wedding with 100 guests?

Wedding catering covers the food, drinks, staff, equipment and logistics needed to look after every guest throughout the day, not just the menu. Breaking the budget into these five areas makes it much easier to see where you have flexibility. The figures below are indicative prices based on real-world experience and exclude venue hire.

1. The food itself: menu and service style

This is usually the biggest cost. A buffet often comes in at around €40 to €65 per person, while a three or four-course plated dinner is more likely to cost €60 to €110 per person. For 100 dinner guests, that means roughly €4,000 to €11,000. The service style often has a bigger impact than the ingredients, as a plated dinner requires more staff and more plate changes.

2. The drinks package

Drinks are often underestimated because a wedding day can easily last eight to ten hours. A package covering the reception, dinner and party generally costs around €25 to €45 per person. Paying based on actual consumption can work out cheaper, but it makes the budget less predictable.

3. Front-of-house and kitchen staff

Staffing levels depend on the service style. A plated dinner generally requires one staff member for every 10 to 12 guests, while a buffet needs around one for every 20 to 25. With hourly rates often sitting at €35 to €50, the difference can quickly add up to hundreds of euros for each part of the day.

4. Equipment, tableware and kitchen facilities

Crockery, cutlery, glassware, table linen and chafing dishes generally cost €5 to €15 per person. If your wedding venue in Eindhoven does not have a kitchen, you will also need to budget for a mobile kitchen, additional power and refrigeration. These are not optional extras. The NVWA states that perishable food must be stored below 7°C and chicken must be heated above 75°C.

5. Additional food moments: reception bites and late-night food

Canapés during the reception and a late-night snack around midnight often add €10 to €25 per person in total. It helps to base this on the people who will actually be there. For a reception-specific breakdown, see what a reception for 100 people costs in 2026.

The table below compares common service styles for 100 dinner guests. These are indicative ranges only, as the final price depends on the menu, venue and season.

How to use these figures:

• Ask every caterer for an itemised quote covering food, drinks, staffing, equipment and additional food moments.
• Check the staffing levels. Fewer than one staff member per 12 guests for a plated dinner often means long waits between courses.
• Set aside a buffer of around 10 percent for extras and late additions.
• Confirm whether prices include or exclude VAT, as the difference can be 9 or 21 percent.

Which wedding venue in Eindhoven suits your catering budget?

Imagine a couple invites 60 daytime guests for dinner and 40 additional guests for the evening party. There may be 100 names on the invitations, but only 60 people will be sitting down to eat. Budgeting dinner for all 100 can mean spending thousands of euros on empty chairs. If the couple budgets for 60 dinner guests and provides a generous late-night snack for the rest, the overall cost is often significantly lower without anyone missing out. At a wedding venue in Eindhoven, this split also helps you plan how guests move through the day. This guide explains how to combine daytime and evening guests without awkward gaps in the schedule.

The venue itself is the second major factor. The type of space you choose determines what your caterer needs to bring.

Venue with its own kitchen and in-house caterer

A wedding venue in Eindhoven with a fully equipped kitchen can save on transport, mobile equipment and setup time. The trade-off is that you may be required to use the in-house caterer. That is not a problem if they can deliver everything you need throughout the day. At its own venues, including Het Ketelhuis in Eindhoven, La Casserole works with kitchen facilities and guest flow built around the event schedule, so chefs and service staff do not have to improvise. This comparison shows what that can mean in euros: getting married at Het Ketelhuis or a castle, and what the catering really costs.

Empty hall, barn or private property

An empty space may seem inexpensive to hire, but everything has to be brought in: a kitchen, refrigeration, power, furniture and sometimes a marquee. Choose a wedding venue in Eindhoven without these facilities and those costs can rise quickly. If you are holding the event in a public space, local rules apply. According to Ondernemend Eindhoven, a notification is often sufficient for events with fewer than 250 visitors, while larger events generally need a permit. If you take this route, ask your caterer to inspect the power supply and delivery access before you sign the venue contract.

How can you keep catering costs for 100 guests under control?

Cutting back on the menu usually saves less than planning smartly. The biggest savings come from decisions you make before the menu is even discussed. This checklist will help.

• Count dinner guests and evening guests separately: this ensures you only pay for dinners that will actually be eaten.
• Ask about the venue kitchen before booking: a working kitchen can save hundreds or even thousands of euros on mobile equipment.
• Choose the service style to match your schedule: a buffet suits a relaxed evening, while a plated dinner works well with speeches between courses.
• Set the drinks package by the hour: a fixed package prevents surprises if the party runs late.
• Keep equipment and staff in the same quote: separate rentals and separate service teams can look cheaper, but transport and coordination costs soon add up.
• Schedule a tasting two to four months beforehand: there is still time to change dishes without extra charges.
• Confirm final guest numbers one to two weeks in advance: most caterers use this point to set the final headcount.

Before booking, also ask whether the wedding venue in Eindhoven has room for setup, refrigeration and, if needed, a mobile kitchen. One point of contact for catering, furniture and technical production makes this checklist much shorter. The coordination between kitchen, service and setup then sits with one supplier rather than the couple.

What mistakes do couples make with their catering budget?

The most expensive mistake is setting a per-person budget without knowing what is included. A price of €60 per person means very little if it is unclear whether service, crockery and washing up are part of the package.

The second mistake is assuming food trucks are automatically the cheaper option. They are great for an informal evening celebration, but one truck often creates long queues for 100 guests. Two trucks solve that problem, but narrow the price difference compared with a buffet. Discuss in advance where the trucks can be parked at your wedding venue in Eindhoven and how much power is available.

The third mistake is treating food safety as an afterthought, especially when a friend is cooking or you are using a hobby caterer. According to the NVWA, anyone who prepares and sells food several times a year must work with a food safety plan. The requirements are set out in Regulation (EC) No 852/2004. On a hot summer day with 100 guests, this is not a box-ticking exercise.

How to avoid these issues:

• Ask the caterer how refrigeration and hot holding will be managed at your venue.
• Request confirmation that they work with a food safety plan.
• If you choose food trucks, allow for one truck per 50 to 70 guests.
• Include in the quote what happens if guest numbers are higher or lower than agreed.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a wedding for 100 guests cost?

The total cost of a wedding depends on the venue, outfits, photography and music, but catering is usually the largest individual expense. For food and drinks for 100 guests, the typical cost is €10,000 to €21,000. Add venue hire, styling and entertainment separately, and allow a buffer of around 10 percent.

How much does wedding food cost per person?

The per-person cost for food alone is typically €40 to €65 for a buffet and €60 to €110 for a plated dinner. Drinks usually add another €25 to €45 per person. Always ask whether staffing and equipment are included, as the headline figure otherwise tells you very little.

Is a wedding food truck cheaper than a sit-down dinner?

Food trucks are often cheaper per person, at around €30 to €55, and work well for an informal celebration. For 100 guests, you will usually need two trucks to avoid long queues. For a seated dinner with speeches, a plated dinner or buffet is generally more practical.

Does a wedding caterer need a food safety plan?

A food safety plan is required by the NVWA for anyone who prepares and sells food several times a year. This includes keeping food chilled below 7°C and heating chicken above 75°C. Ask about this specifically when working with a small or unfamiliar supplier.

How does La Casserole help with wedding catering for 100 guests?

La Casserole provides catering, styling, technical production, furniture and project management through one point of contact, all within one quote rather than across multiple suppliers. With its own venues, including Het Ketelhuis, and a network of trusted partners for food trucks and entertainment, this event partner coordinates the menu, service and guest flow around your wedding-day schedule. That makes quotes easier to compare in advance and helps prevent unexpected extras later on.

Conclusion

Food and drinks for 100 wedding guests typically cost €10,000 to €21,000, but that figure only becomes meaningful when you break it down into five areas: menu, drinks, staffing, equipment and kitchen facilities, plus additional food moments. The biggest savings rarely come from choosing a cheaper dish. They come from budgeting for the real number of dinner guests and choosing a venue where the kitchen and power supply are clear from the start.

Start by asking which wedding venue in Eindhoven or the surrounding area suits your preferred service style, then request catering quotes. Compare them using the table in this article and use the checklist to spot missing costs. To see what an itemised quote looks like in practice, visit catering in Eindhoven with on-site chefs, where La Casserole explains how on-site cooking, service and clearing are coordinated.

About La Casserole

La Casserole is a full-service event partner from Best, combining catering, styling, technical production, rentals and project management for corporate and private events. With more than 40 years of experience, over a thousand events delivered and its own event venues in Brabant, including Kasteel Henkenshage and Het Ketelhuis, the company provides one central point of contact. Find out more at la-casserole.nl.

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