Food trucks usually cost less per head, feel relaxed and need almost no service staff, but they queue guests, need power and firm ground, and give you less control over timing.
Traditional catering costs more and needs a kitchen, water and a bigger crew, but it seats everyone at once, keeps the run sheet on time, and handles dietaries and speeches cleanly. Plenty of weddings use both: trucks on Friday, a caterer on Saturday.
At a BYO venue this is a genuinely open question. Nobody is telling you which caterer to use or handing you a set menu, so the format is yours — and food trucks and traditional catering produce quite different evenings.
Here is the comparison on the things that actually change how the day feels.
The feeling in the room
Food trucks feel relaxed, social and a little festival-like. People get up, wander over, come back with something hot, and end up talking to someone they would not have been seated next to. Trucks arrive with their own crew and equipment, so there is very little to arrange around them.
A caterer creates a different atmosphere: everyone seated together, courses arriving at once, the room moving as one. If you want speeches to land in a clean gap and dinner to feel like an occasion, that is what it buys.
Both are good weddings. They are just different evenings.
Timing
This is the practical difference between the two.
A caterer serves everyone at once. Entrées land together, plates clear together, speeches happen in the gap. The evening moves in blocks you can plan around.
Food trucks serve from a window, so people eat across a stretch rather than all at once. For a larger guest list, two trucks improve the flow considerably and give you two menus at the same time. Many couples also move the speeches to the cocktail hour and let dinner run loose, which suits the format.
What each one needs
| Food trucks | Traditional catering | |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Firm, level ground and a turning circle. | Vehicle access for load-in. |
| Power | Often self-contained. Confirm what they carry. | Ask what they need, including three-phase, early. |
| Water | Usually carried on board. | Potable water and a wash-up area on site. |
| Shelter | Guests order outside, so plan a covered path if rain is likely. | Service happens under cover. |
| Staff | The truck's own crew. | Kitchen and floor staff, scaled to guest count. |
| Waste | Mostly disposables. Ask what they take with them. | Usually handled as part of the service. |
Have your supplier walk the site before they quote. It is a short visit and it means everyone knows what to expect.
Matching the format to your guests
Trucks suit a crowd that likes to move around and mix. For a cocktail-style wedding or a Friday welcome night, they are close to ideal.
If a good share of your guest list would rather be brought their food — older family in particular — seat them and let a caterer bring the plates. A shared feast is the happy middle: everyone at the table, platters arriving together, no queue at all.
On dietaries, a caterer will handle a long list quietly. Two trucks with different menus usually covers it just as well.
Trucks give you atmosphere. A caterer gives you the timeline. A shared feast gives you the table.
You do not have to pick one
It is not a binary, and the strongest weddings often sit between the two. On a three-day weekend you can use a different format each day.
- Shared-table or family-style service. A caterer brings platters to the table. Cheaper than plated, faster than trucks, and it makes tables talk to each other.
- Grazing plus one truck. A substantial grazing table on arrival takes the pressure off the queue later.
- Caterer for dinner, truck for late night. A seated dinner, then something hot at 10pm when the dance floor has been going for two hours. This is the combination guests talk about afterwards.
- Trucks Friday, caterer Saturday. On a weekend wedding, the obvious answer.
How to choose
- Seated wedding with speeches? Caterer.
- Cocktail reception, standing, loose? Trucks, and book two.
- Winter, or a wet-season date? Caterer, or trucks with a covered path to the window.
- Guest list skewing older? A shared feast, or plated service.
- Want the most food for the money? Trucks, with their numbers confirmed up front.
What we provide
Adeline is BYO, so every format works and there is no preferred list, no kitchen hire fee and no markup on food. Trucks on Friday, a shared feast on Saturday, pastries on Sunday — or any other combination that suits your guests. The homestead kitchen, power and water are part of the hire, there is firm level ground for trucks near the marquee lawn, and the amenities trailer provides four hot showers and five private toilets, in addition to the farmhouse bathrooms, which means you are not adding portables for a catering crew.
Send us your caterer's or truck's requirements and we will confirm exactly what the site provides before you sign anything.
Both formats work here — what the site provides a caterer is set out in full.
The short version
- Trucks feel relaxed and social; caterers give you a tighter timeline.
- You can use a different format on each day of the weekend.
- For a larger guest list, two trucks improve the flow and give you two menus.
- Shared feasts bring the table together; canapés keep people mingling.
- Nothing here is a set venue menu — the format is entirely yours.
- On a wedding weekend, use both — trucks Friday, caterer Saturday.
Common questions
What couples ask when they are choosing a food format.
Are food trucks cheaper than wedding catering?
Generally yes, and they need far fewer service staff because they arrive with their own crew and equipment. Confirm each truck's numbers and requirements up front so the quote you compare is complete.
How many food trucks do you need for 80 guests?
Two works well. It roughly halves the wait, gives your guests a choice of two menus, and covers most dietaries at the same time.
Do food trucks work for a formal wedding?
They can, though they change the shape of the evening — guests get up and move, which suits a cocktail-style reception. If you want everyone seated for speeches and courses, a caterer or a shared feast is the better fit.
What does a caterer need on site at a private property?
Ask them early. Most need a preparation space, potable water, waste disposal and enough power for their equipment. At Adeline the homestead kitchen, power and water are part of the hire. A site visit before they quote is always worth it.
Can we do both at a BYO venue?
Yes, and it is a common pattern. Food trucks for the Friday welcome night, a caterer for the Saturday wedding, and something simple on Sunday. Because you book each supplier directly, nothing stops you mixing formats across the weekend.