budget wedding rehearsal dinner

I’ve been to so many wedding rehearsal dinners. and for all of the ones I’ve attended, it’s always the bride and groom who paid for it. I don’t know if it’s a rule, but somehow I think it’s also a way for the couple getting married, of thanking the wedding party for all their help in the wedding planning process, and also for attending the rehearsals before the wedding.

So if you’re getting married, you have to keep this on the list of added expenses. It doesn’t necessarily have to be expensive, I mean, I’ve been to a rehearsal dinner where we just went for pizzas. It ranges from really fancy restaurants, to casual eat in diners. Personally, I prefer the diners because it’s not too much of an expense for the bride and groom, who are already paying so much for the wedding itself, and the ambience is very relaxed, like you’re just having a big family dinner, you know?

Anyway, if you don’t want to break the bank with this added expense, you should consider having it in your own backyard.

If you have a backyard. there are so many ways to make your backyard ready for that event.

Here are the things you would need for a cozy backyard dinner:

DECOR

Pop up tent - you know the ones they put up at camping? If you don’t have that already, maybe you can borrow from one of your friends, this is just for some shade or some cover for night time. You can also either buy or rent it for a very cheap price, less than $100 I believe. I prefer buying them because you can always use it for something else after, not just for this event.

Big Long table/tables - the perfect set up for a casual dinner so that everyone can sit together and have a fun evening chatting.

Chairs- chairs you can put around the long table. again these can be rented for a very cheap price, depending on the type of chairs you want, or if you have some inside your home, bring it outside, as long as it’s not raining.

Lighting- you can put string lights across the pop up tent, to provide some lighting. Or if you don’t want to waste electricity or don’t have a plug outside your backyard, you can buy solar string lights, there are so many in Amazon you can choose from. Make sure you charge it at a direct sunlight for the whole day so that it’s ready and bright at night time.

For extra lighting, you can buy smalls battery operated lamps at the dollar store or any thrift stores. Those added layers of lighting makes the dinner feel more cozy.

Flowers - pick some flowers from your garden as a centerpiece on the tables. If you don’t have any, pick up some at your local grocery store, or at Costco. Just buy a cheap bouquet bunch and separate the flowers at the table. Buy small glasses or jars at a dollar or thrift store, where you can put individual flowers in.

FOOD

Pizzas - yes, you can just order some pizzas to be delivered. Then you can cook up some pasta. WIne, pasta, and pizzas, what else can you ask for?

For me the best pasta that goes very well with the pizza is the sundried tomato pasta. Here’s a link of my favorite recipe:

https://www.themediterraneandish.com/sun-dried-tomato-pasta/

Burger - you can either grill some burgers, if you have a barbeque grill in your backyard, or if you really want to save money, order some burgers from a burger joint, cut each burger up into 2’s or maybe 4’s, put toothpick sticks on them, and it makes for a burger charcuterie. Serve them with fries, or some cheese charcuterie.

Hotdogs and grilled meat and veggies - again, if you have a barbeque grill in your backyard, then you can grill anything you want to serve your guests. They can even grill it themselves. You can have hotdogs, steak, burgers veggies, anything you can grill.

Chinese food - if you really don’t want to do anything, you can just order Chinese food to delivered. Just transfer them in really nice containers and have a big family style dinner.

DRINKS
There are so many option for drinks, but before you serve any alcohol, make sure your guests, the whole bridal party, have a designated driver or at least a way of going home without driving under the influence. It is your responsibility to let them know that beforehand.

Wine or sparkling juice - they are both very cheap.

Beers - again, if there is a designated driver for everyone. Beers go well with pizza, and anything grilled, we all know that, right?

Sangrias - you can make your own sangria and control the amount of alcohol on it, depending on what you put. You don’t have to put any alcoholic drink on it, if you don’t want to.

Or maybe, you can let them be the first ones to try your signature drink, if you are having one. I have a blog post about the different types you can do depending on your wedding color. Read HERE.

So there you have it. Just some options for a budget wedding rehearsal dinner. Again, if you have the money to spend, then go ahead and just book a private room at a restaurant or somewhere, so you don’t have to worry about anything. But, if you are on a tight budget, you can try having it in your own backyard or even just inside your house.