Joel Catering and Special Events

Joel’s did my wedding and OH MY GOD. I’m new to Unilocal so this review is 1.5yrs later but my guests still talk about my wedding food. Seriously just yesterday someone mentioned my wedding food. My husband and I own a restaurant in town and we’re very much foodies. Our top top top wedding criteria was phenomenal food and somehow they exceeded our expectations. We had lamb chops and each and every one was a perfect medium rare. We had a raw oyster bar with big, mouth watering oysters and a shucker right there the whole time! The risotto?! Wow. Mini Gruyère grilled cheese hors d’oeuvres and tomato soup shooters. And the desserts??? I don’t know what was in the adorable glasses of iced coffee being passed around but I sure hope it was legal, because it was sinful. Not to mention my out of town guests flipped for the mini beignets and the sucre macaroons (at no additional charge because Joel Dondis owns sucre!) Oh! And they make you feel so special and cared for throughout the whole process. First class all the way!
Couldn’t have chosen a better caterer. Not in a million tries.

If I could give them a million stars, I would. Joel’s may be the absolutely best catering company on the planet.
The very first time I used them was for my own wedding in 2004. Fast forward over a decade and people still talk about the amazing food that night, so when my brother was getting married and I was hosting an important Bridal party luncheon, I knew there was only one place I could trust planning from out of town… And it was definitely Joel’s.
They didn’t disappoint and were again the most memorable part of our weekend. They aren’t the cheapest player, but by leagues they are the best– especially for true foodies and people who know terrific service. The BBQ shrimp on jambalaya cakes had my head swimming in seafood deliciousness. Crawfish cakes never passed by the groom without him grabbing one and waxing poetically about the taste.
Tey was our coordinator with the best approach I’ve ever seen. Wow! Every single person made the experience amazing.
Thank you– parties for 20 to 200, you never disappoint or miss a beat!

Joel’s catered our rehearsal dinner (175 people) and our wedding (200), and flat out, killed it. They were beyond. Just hire them already.
Katie, the coordinator is awesome. She’s young, hip, and totally gets good food. She is beyond accommodating, always calm and stress-​free, and just plain downright cool.
When we were first planning our wedding, we were really picky about the food– it was really important to us and we wanted to choose every item. Joel’s accommodated every request– even hunting down recipes from our favorite restaurant in Los Angeles to make a taco we loved from our first date– they are THAT dedicated. And the taco they made was pretty damn good.
One of the best parts of using Joel’s were the servers. They are so much freaking fun. They were personable, friendly, attentive, and even danced while they were serving food. They just made the whole night feel light and fun, and completely kept the tone we were setting of an upscale night picnic. One of the coolest things about the servers was that they all remembered our guests from the rehearsal dinner the night before. Our guests felt special when their drink was remembered or they were greeted by name, and that made us happy. As the bride and groom, we had heard horror stories from friends who never ate at their own weddings bc the day went too fast. Not us– Katie put staff members on us and, wonderfully, also our parents, to make sure we were always looked after– it was like the food Secret Service. If I turned around, my favorite drink was already there waiting. They remembered what my mom liked to drink and always had it for her too. They stalked us with delicious treats in hand, and it was awesome. They just made everything special.
The food deserves its own review because its just downright delicious. I don’t know what they put in their grits, but I could have just eaten those all night. We did a family-​style meal with fried chicken, pork shoulder, grits, seasonal salads, biscuits, a full dessert bar and late night sliders passed around… it was amazing. We had multiple guests tell us that it was the best food they ever had, and the best compliment that we can give is that nothing tasted like wedding food.
The entire experience was perfect. Rock on Joel’s.

Last night I had the honor of attending a wedding catered by Joel’s Catering at the Pavillion of the Two Sisters in City Park, New Orleans. The couple obviously wanted a taste of new orleans for the majority of who were out of town guests. From light salads made of shrimp, crab and crawfish, to grits and grillades, Joel’s provided a little taste of everything finishing the evening off with exquisite chocolates, pecan pies and ice coffee to cool you off after dancing endlessly to Trombone Shorty and his band.