Wait.... What? Thai Wedding menu??
Yes, that's right! Our first, and biggest update of the year so far, is that the boyfriend and I are now married! I guess that means I should stop calling him my boyfriend 🙂
We celebrated our love and commitment to one another in a beautiful outdoor ceremony last Fall. It was an intimate affair at a local garden, filled with many of our favorite people and things. Because the venue was smaller, we had the ability to really personalize many aspects of the wedding with items that are special to us. This, of course, translated to serving Thai food for our guests! Here's a rundown of what we served:
After our ceremony, we started people off with a choice of beverages including Thai tea, lemonade, wine, and Chang beer. Our original plan was to serve our favorite Thai-inspired ginger lemonade, but that turned out to be a little too much to get together at the last minute!
Then it was on to appetizers, with an array of choices including chicken satay with peanut sauce, spring rolls, fried tofu, pork-filled tapioca balls, and everyone's favorite - grilled pork shoulder. We also had a fruit platter complete with an intricately-carved watermelon, courtesy of a wonderful friend. I'm still amazed that she was able to create such a beautiful work of art with only a single introductory Thai fruit carving lesson under her belt!
Dinner was served in the courtyard area of the gardens, with a fantastic buffet of Thai food set up just inside the French doors.
When we were starting to plan our wedding early last year, we knew we wanted Thai food, but we didn't know exactly what dishes would be best to serve. Fortunately on a trip to one of our favorite local Thai restaurants, the chef and owner sat down with us and produced a really thoughtful menu without a moment's hesitation. He included various types of meat as well as vegetarian options, choices that would appeal to both Thai palates and those less accustomed to Thai food, and dishes with special symbolism such as a curry dish with noodles to signify a long love life. It was really perfect.
There were two choices of salad to start with, chicken salad with fresh herbs (larb) or bean thread salad with shrimp (yum woonsen). Both were spicy and limey and really yummy. Then we had two fish dishes, catfish and green beans stir fried with a spicy sauce (pla duk pad ped) and deep fried fish with a tamarind-based sauce (pla sam roat). A choice of curries was also provided, with yellow chicken curry and panang beef curry for those whose palates are less accustomed to Thai food, and a nice green chicken curry or red fish curry served over fermented rice noodles for those a little more adventurous.
To top the meal off, we ended with an assortment of traditional Thai desserts (in addition to wedding cake, of course!).
The desserts were something that I really wanted, as they are meant to convey special blessings upon those who eat them, and are often served at Thai weddings. I searched high and low for Thai dessert shops that could make them, going as far as researching shipping regulations from Bangkok to the U.S. and more.
Fortunately, at the last minute, we realized that one of our friends was coming from L.A. and was willing to pick these desserts up from a famous Thai dessert shop in the area, get through airport security, and lug them in his carry on luggage all the way to us. Amazingly, they arrived fairly intact for the big event!
Needless to say, our wedding was an absolutely wonderful celebration, made even more special by being able to share food and other items we love with some of our favorite people. Of course, the best part is that we're now married! "The boyfriend" is officially "the hubby" and we couldn't be happier 🙂
We owe very special thanks to:
- our family and friends, without whose help we could not have had such a beautiful wedding
- Danang Krung Thep restaurant for designing the menu and providing our delicious Thai buffet
- Bhan Kanom Thai for providing the wonderful array of Thai desserts
- James Thomas Long for taking these amazing photographs of our special day
jewelry stores near me
The good wedding menu is very good. Thank you for sharing.
Sara
Congratulations! I'm a long time reader of your blog, and so happy for you. A question for you: I live in Phrae, Thailand (I'm an English teacher) and am soon moving back to America. I've never seen KanomJeen before in America (didn't even know they existed before I lived here in Northern Thailand), and I'm going to miss them quite a bit! Where did you find them?? Will I be able to when I move back to the US?
Congrats again!
Rachel
Thanks for the sweet note, Sara! Kanom jeen are unfortunately really hard to find here, and most people end up substituting Japanese somen noodles for them...
Sara
Congratulations! I'm a long time reader of your blog, and so happy for you. A question for you: I live in Phrae, Thailand (I'm an English teacher) and am soon moving back to America. I've never seen KanomJeen before in America (didn't even know they existed before I lived here in Northern Thailand), and I'm going to miss them quite a bit! Where did you find them?? Will I be able to when I move back to the US?
Congrats again!
Rachel
Thanks for the sweet note, Sara! Kanom jeen are unfortunately really hard to find here, and most people end up substituting Japanese somen noodles for them...
Anh @ FoodandFont
Congratulations and best wishes to you both!
Your wedding looks amazing, especially the wedding table. Can't wait for you to get back into the groove of things and post more recipes.
(I swung by to find a green curry recipe and stayed for the wedding post.)
Rachel
Thanks, all, for the sweet comments! We're really happy with how our wedding turned out, and best of all, to finally be married 🙂
Anh @ FoodandFont
Congratulations and best wishes to you both!
Your wedding looks amazing, especially the wedding table. Can't wait for you to get back into the groove of things and post more recipes.
(I swung by to find a green curry recipe and stayed for the wedding post.)
Rachel
Thanks, all, for the sweet comments! We're really happy with how our wedding turned out, and best of all, to finally be married 🙂
Cath
Rachel,
I am so happy for you. I got so excited when I read the post title that i almost dropped my iced tea. Best wishes to your married life.
love,
Cath
Cath
Rachel,
I am so happy for you. I got so excited when I read the post title that i almost dropped my iced tea. Best wishes to your married life.
love,
Cath
allispinkk
Wish you both a happy married life!- smiles from India
allispinkk
Wish you both a happy married life!- smiles from India
rita
A very hearty congratulations to you and hubby. The pictures are beautiful.
rita
A very hearty congratulations to you and hubby. The pictures are beautiful.
Dyepotgirl
Welcome back and congratulations! You've been missed. Your pictures are lovely and your reception looks beautiful! I can't wait to see what new recipes you share with us.
Dyepotgirl
Welcome back and congratulations! You've been missed. Your pictures are lovely and your reception looks beautiful! I can't wait to see what new recipes you share with us.
Gemini
Congratulations and best wishes! Looks like a beautiful wedding. 🙂
Gemini
Congratulations and best wishes! Looks like a beautiful wedding. 🙂
Christine
Rachel, I'm a silent follower, really admire your blog but never left a comment until now.
Congratulations for both of you. Really beautiful settings!
Wish you a happy long life together!
Christine from Indonesia
Christine
Rachel, I'm a silent follower, really admire your blog but never left a comment until now.
Congratulations for both of you. Really beautiful settings!
Wish you a happy long life together!
Christine from Indonesia