“Do you only cater small events and elopements?", Absolutely not, but…

This was a question we were asked this week, and it sparked a conversation in the office amongst Cooper, Amy and myself (Liam)…

Why is it that we got asked this question?
Is there a gap in our marketing strategy?
Is there a public perception of The Wilderness Chef brand that alludes to small scale events?

With those questions in mind, I thought this would be a great opportunity to shed a little more light on what we do and share some of our history.

The Wilderness Chef brand was born as a solo venture in the elopement space back in 2017 when Cooper decided to pursue his passion. He managed every part of the business on his own, from customer relations and logistics to food ordering, transport and cooking, and he did an incredible job. The business grew, he was able to bring on team members, and take on larger events.

Over the last 8 years, The Wilderness Chef has continued to grow, and our goals have evolved since those early days. Our focus has now expanded into the large scale event space. With a team of three exceptionally talented full time chefs and an administration team supporting the back end of the business, we have been catering large weddings, corporate events and celebrations for a number of years.

We have worked with some incredible brands to bring their events to life. Most recently, we catered a 250 person event for Nature’s Care. Just last week alone, we catered for over 700 guests across multiple weddings and events, with 21 staff members making it all happen.

So, why then is there still a perception that we only do private dining and elopements? And are we looking to challenge that perception?

Not really. In a way, you could look at us as a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde, with two sides that allow us to handle two very different styles of events.

We will always love being in the private dining and smaller event space because, at the end of the day, that is where we started and what sparked our passion. The connection and intimacy of small events have a completely different energy to larger ones. Both have their place, and both are amazing in their own ways.

We will always continue to offer private dining and elopements because they present unique challenges and the opportunity to be more creative and expressive.

The one thing that will never change, no matter the size of your event, is the quality of the food and the passion that goes into every service. Big or small, you will receive the same attention to detail and be met by a team bursting with enthusiasm.

The short version? No matter what you have in mind, we can bring the food.

We cannot wait to cater your next event.