Today, in honor of Memorial Day this past weekend (and that summer and grilling season have really begun!), I’ve asked Ryan to share one of our brand new menus that he personally developed with Utah products and grilling in mind!  It is truly delectable!!!  And, if that wasn’t good enough, Ryan has also shared one of his new barbeque sauce recipes as well – and it just may work its way into your family’s traditions for summer!  (Seriously, you need to try this sauce.)  Enjoy!

Happy grilling everyone!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

On the heels of yesterday’s super exciting announcement, we have ANOTHER awesome bit of news to share with you!  Culinary Crafts is opening a venue, unlike any other, in downtown Salt Lake City!  It will also be the Salt Lake offices for Culinary Crafts, Event by LMG, and Pepper Nix!  (Wow!  That’s a lot of great talent under one roof!)  While we can’t release a ton of details about the space (just yet!), I do have a teaser of the space undergoing some changes!  Enjoy!

Stay tuned for more in the coming weeks, my friends!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

Photo credit Logan Walker of Pepper Nix Photography

Today, we have exciting news to share with you!  Mara Marian-Harwood of Events by LMG (who we love!) has taken over private event sales of the historic (and GORGEOUS) Salt Lake Hardware building in downtown Salt Lake City!  This space is an unsung hero of venues in the downtown area and we are so excited to see Mara take it and get the word out!  We love this venue and you can see past blogs of the events we’ve done there here and here.  We even have a new wedding to show you that was held here and catered by yours truly!  This wedding was chock full of delicious food, custom details, and a bright and poppy color palette!  Take a look!

The Salt Lake Hardware building is SERIOUSLY a gem of a venue. Exposed brick, rough hewn beams, heavens scraping high ceilings with giant skylights, vintage tile work, and gorgeous architectural details throughout, it is a one of a kind building for all out of this world events!

The couple brewed all their own beer and created six (yes, six!) custom varieties just for their special day, plus they created custom labels for each selection.  The neckband label even featured the couple’s dogs who donned bow ties in the wedding colors!

The pizza was created by our friends at Surefire Pizza and they took these custom selections to the top!  Pear and gorgonzola,  finnochiona salame and black olive, and traditional margherita – all we stellar and their mobile brick oven was such a cool addition!

These desserts were AMAZING and had something for everyone!  Culinary Crafts’s housemade gelato was butler passed to the guests who had the choice of lemon sorbetto or pistachio (or both!)  As if that wasn’t delicious enough, they also had their pick of the chipotle chocolate cupcakes, red velvet cupcakes, strawberry shortcakes, and fresh fruit tarts – plus guests were given custom labelled favors of rich and delicious caramel corn from the Nutty Kernal!  Yum!

If you are looking for a venue that is like no other and is centrally located in downtown Salt Lake, look no further!  The Salt Lake Hardware building is diverse, beautiful, and amazing – plus Mara is great to work with!  We are so excited to see this space take of under her management!  (Also stay tuned for news of another downtown venue that will be opening soon involving yours truly!)  Happy planning everyone!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

Photography by Heidi Ann, Logan Walker of Pepper Nix Photography, and Kelli Bramble of Pepper Nix Photography

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

To help us win Utah’s Most Admired Company, ‘like’ us here!

Hi all!  We are so psyched to be featured on Bride Access’s You May Kiss the Blog today!  They posted the loveliness of Mary and Rick’s wedding (which is fastly approaching their 1 year anniversary!  Congrats!)  You can see it here.  Thank you to Marcie and the entire Bride Access team for sharing!  We appreciate you and all of the fabulous information you share with Utah brides and grooms!  Happy weekend everyone!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

Hi all!  Today I want to share a really cool trend I see in catering right now.  Serving your appetizers with a perfectly paired mini beverage!  Not only is it tasty, but it quenches your guests appetite and thirst!  And, luckily for you, I have a whole bunch of awesome examples to show you!  Take a look!

Starting at the top from left to right: Chianti and Beef Pot Roast, Fried Chicken and Coca-Cola, Chocolate Donuts and Milk, Fried Oysters and a Blood Orange Mojito, Mini Tacos and Patron, Sugared Donuts and Hot Chocolate, Ahi Tacos and Margaritas, Ale and Short Rib Sandwiches, Beer and Beef Tenderloin, Brownie and Chocolate Milkshake, Milk and Cookie, Sugared Donuts and Espresso, and PB&Js with Milk

So cool, right?  And completely delicious!  But, there are so many more options!  How about a mini slider with a milkshake?  Or a cherry coke?  Or sushi with a mini sake shooter?  Caprese salad with basil lemonade? Fried chicken and sweet tea? Mini Champagne bottles and a macaron?  Seriously, the possibilities are endless!  If you are thinking about serving appetizers at your event, you should definitely consider pairing it with a mini beverage to take it up a notch!  Your guests will be impressed (and grateful) that you’ve thought of it! Happy planning!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

Photo credits – Row 1: Both Images Peter Callahan; Row 2: Donut image via La Receta de la Felicidad, Fried Oyster Image and Patron & Taco Image via Peter Callahan; Row 3: Hot Chocolate & Donut Image via Martha Stewart, Taco Image via Colin Cowie Weddings, Beer and Shortribs Image via Peter Callahan; Row 4: Beer and Beer Image via Peter Callahan, Milkshake and Brownie image via Project Wedding; Row 5: Milk & Cookie Image via Peter Callahan, Donut and Espresso image via My Wedding Reception Ideas, PB&J Image via ME Events & Design

We are so thrilled to attend The Art of Catering Food conference this July!  And we a equally honored to have been asked to speak and share ideas and advice with so many of our fellow caterers!  Mary Crafts, Kaleb Crafts, Ryan Crafts, and Jocelyn Ball will all be speaking and we can’t wait to hear it!  If this is something you just can’t miss, here is the info to get registered:

We can’t wait – it looks like its going to be AMAZING!!!  Happy Tuesday everyone!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

We here at Culinary Crafts recently came into some old, rustic whiskey barrels (i.e. we saw them, fell in love, and HAD to have them) and we are SO excited to start using them for our weddings this year!  From dessert and cake displays, to buffet stations, to lemonade stands and favor tables – whiskey barrels find a home and purpose for so many things.  Plus, they are just beautiful!  I love the texture, the look, and the vibe you get from something with a story and a past.  Not all shiny and new, these whiskey barrels have the look of time about them, and it is SO good.  We are so looking forward to incorporating them into our event, but in the meantime, here are some of our ideas and visions for all the thigs we can (and will!) do with our newly procured barrels!  Take a look!

Stunning, right?  And perfect for a rustic and romantic wedding in a mountain setting, if you don’t mind me saying!  Happy weekend everyone and look forward to seeing our barrels make appearances in Culinary Crafts events soon!!!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

Photo credits – Board 1 (Clockwise, from top left): Sara & Mallary Photography, Tonya Joy, Rustic Wedding Chic, and Loverly;  Board 2 (from left): Heidi Claire and Style Me Pretty;  Board 3 (clockwise, from left): Style Me Pretty, Pen n’ Paper Flowers, and Inspired Bride

Today I wanted to talk a little bit about balancing bold colors with more ‘neutral’ selections when selecting your wedding color palette.  One of the easiest ways is to choose one bold color and one SUPER neutral color, much like our Tangerine Tango and Cool Grey board we posted awhile ago.  (If you don’t remember it, you can see it here.)  But what if you are hoping for a little bit more variety and a simple grey is just not your style?  Well, you are in luck!  I have found some PERFECT examples of super saturated colors paired with calming, balancing hues – all from the kinda zazzy to the ultra punchy poptone!  Take a look!

This palette is perfect for someone who wants to go a little bold, but in a more understated way.  Bright grass green, vibrant aqua, and pops of jewel toned turquoise are perfectly balanced with fresh spring green and a pastel sea foam green.  Beautiful, natural, and eye-catching – perfect for winter, spring, and even summer weddings!

Another understated palette for a classic and preppy bride.  Nude, navy, seersucker blue, and spring green are enhanced with bright splashes of orange-y reds.  This palette is fresh, clean, and stunning!  A good fit for outdoor weddings or BBQs – just be careful not to go too “patriotic” and use the reds sparingly and pump up the use of the other colors in the palette.

This palette is for the beach loving, island dreaming, bold bride.  Vibrant, colorful, and saturated – this board’s hot pink, tango tangerine, electric yellow, and fuchsia are balanced only with the neutral sand color.  Use the vibrant colors sparingly, a little goes a LONG way with these gorgeously bright colors and bring the decor back to earth with the neutralizing sand.  Not for the faint of heart!

This palette is one after a color loving, rustic stylin’ bride’s heart!  The ecru, light artichoke green, chartreuse, and coral are perfectly placed in a mountain ranch wedding with splashes of poppy orange to bring an unexpected twist to an otherwise natural and neutral palette.  Simply gorgeous!

For a traditional bride with a love of bling, this palette is a stunner with blush pink, white, corals, hammered golds, and lipstick reds.  Truly a palette in the colors of love, this ultra-feminine style shows its not so innocent with the luscious and dramatic reds.  This style definitely speaks to a bride who loves all things girly!

Lastly, an UBER neutral palette hinged on one not so neutral color – electric pink.  This pink is SO saturated that it simply will not be ignored – which is why the palette is so perfectly balanced with tonal greys and warm brown.  I love this look for a contemporary wedding with natural touches and pink pizazz!  A beautiful palette for any season!

As you can see, there are so many options out there!  The key is to make sure you stick with a few colors you LOVE and make sure to build some balancing colors into the palette to round it out.  I also have to note that we here at Culinary Crafts offer a LARGE variety of linens and buffet designs to fit every bride’s unique style (and color palette!) – so if you can dream it, we can make it happen!  Happy planning everyone!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

Photo credits: First, third, and fifth boards from Bella Figura; Second, fourth, and sixth boards from Design Seeds

I love mercury glass!  It can add such an elegant touch and be added to all different kinds of events!  A vintage romantic wedding, a rustic wedding with an air of elegance, a clean and contemporary wedding with a touch of whimsy – the possibilities are endless!  Mercury glass has a home in each setting!  Plus, it is coming back BIG TIME.  We are seeing mercury glass in tons of our events this year (which you will definitely see in future blog posts) and we couldn’t be happier!  Take a look at some of the FANTASTIC decor that we love – all with this super versatile glass!

A romantic, gold accented wedding – not overly vintage, more traditionally pretty and understated.  Perfect for the classic bride!

A chic, contemporary dessert table – exposed brick, a floating feather table, and pops of saturated reds…  What’s not to like?

A natural, rustic, and elegant centerpiece – perfect for a ranch wedding in the mountains, with a little sparkle to set it off!

Vintage, romantic decor – perfect for the bride looking for a setting filled with gorgeous flowers, rich linens, and vintage touches.

As you can see, mercury glass can be used in all kinds of settings.  From rustic to high glam – and it’s all STUNNING!  Plus, if you want to try your hand at making mercury glass yourself (like the hurricane vases below) take a look at this tutorial here.

Happy planning everyone!!!

Check out our website at www.culinarycrafts.com!

Photo credits: First image from Martha Stewart and Wedding Bee; Second image from OneWed; Third image from Entwined 2012; Fourth image from Belle Magazine; Fifth image from Take the Side Street