How to plan your wedding

It is always fun to meet up with old friends. Last week, I had dinner with Philip Encarnacion who is certainly not a fair-weather friend. We talked about Manny Pacquiao and the WBO judgment that after the preview of the match, he has been declared unanimously as the winner, Greece and the fluctuating euros, Barack Obama and the American economy and the forthcoming US elections in November, Hillary Clinton and what could have been had she won the presidency, Jessica Sanchez, Mark Zuckerberg and his lovely Asian wife, the Scarborough Shoal and Jenna Talackova and transgenderism. We talked about new-born babies, a promising young actor who is now a secret proud father, a nasty separation between gay lovers — one who happens to be a friend of ours and who has not stopped crying since four weeks ago. But he’s better now. Then we talked about weddings and Philip talked with zest and vigor.

Philip said that the wedding industry has grown. There are now wedding planners who in the ’70s were yet unheard of. Philip now doubles as a political consultant while he runs his upscale catering company, RichGold Weddings whose clients are mostly those who want a modern look yet elegant, lean and sleek. 

“We try to come up with a set-up that provides more space for the couple to party and do away with the eat-and-run style. Weddings are opportunities for two families to unite and for families and old friends to reunite,” said Philip.

Philip also offered an advice on what to get for a catering service. “Have an idea of what you want, what you want to spend before you talk to caterers. When you meet with the caterer, don’t be shy about describing your hopes and plans for the day. You want to be confident that you can entrust this important event to the right person. And count on a caterer to guide your hopes within your budget and situation.”

He added that a caterer should be someone who can work magic for you and this includes conjuring up a beautiful meal in a field, moving the schedule along, and keeping the salmon from drying out when dinner is delayed by an hour.

Weddings on weekends are on high demand. Almost all event venues are full on these days. But how many weddings or events can a caterer handle? Philip said that it is good for a caterer to personalize its service. RichGold Weddings do not allow volume events. They turn down bookings of more than three a day even if the company has the equipment capacity to handle more. It’s RichGold Weddings way of keeping the quality of service above par. All their weddings are ably supervised by a chef to check the quality of food from time to time.

“We want to stay long, if not forever, in this business where, if you can do weddings, you can do anything. Nothing could be more difficult than to prepare weddings because they involve actual human drama given the details and all the tradition that comes with them.”

Preparing for weddings is almost like mounting a TV show. In weddings there are also pre-prod meetings, where the wedding coordinator meets all the suppliers of bridal cars, florists, photo and video people and everyone relevant to the event. Pre-production meetings are endless when preparing a TV show. Meetings with writers, set designers, stylists, producers, directors are spirited, emotional even just like weddings. And the stars are the stars. Just like brides and grooms, stars are fragile, fidgety and overly sensitive.

For caterers like RichGold Weddings, the other star is food. With a culinary team headed by its executive chef Bryan Regis, RichGold does not look at styling alone but wants to offer exquisitely presented cuisine and extensive menu selection. “Catering seems pretty straightforward and simple: You cook food and serve it, that’s the basic idea, but there is more to it, from the initial client-caterer meeting to the big event. While others pride themselves with themed set-ups and the works, we definitely consider food as the primary concern in the catering business,” explained Philip.

Whether it’s a small cocktail party for friends or a grand corporate event, the goal is the same: Deeply satisfy your guests. And RichGold has them all.

All the best of luck to Philip and his hardworking, passionate team in RichGold Weddings.

(For details, log on to www.richgoldweddings.com or visit them at the 2F, Jardin de Zenaida, 34 Sgt. Esguerra, Quezon City or you may call at [02]415-6887.)