Bespoken Dreams: The Perfect Wedding Breakfast with Amber Outside Catering

This week’s Industry Expert comes to you from Faris John Safar of Amber Outside Catering and Amber Wine Bar and Bistro, Liverpool.

With a wealth of experience from a highly acclaimed 4 Rosette, Michelin Bib Gourmand Restaurant in Yorkshire, to an award winning Bistro in Sheffield and one of New York’s Premier Events Organisers, Loft 11, Manahattan, Faris’s passion for his work is clearly evident in Amber's philosophy.

"If something is at all possible then we will do it. I personally take great satisfaction in seeing how happy our customers are after an event. It doesn’t matter how big or small your event, with Amber, everybody gets the 5 star treatment!”

Bespoken Dreams caught up with Faris to get his top tips on selecting the perfect wedding breakfast...

A famous writer once said “There is no love sincerer than the love of food.”
Can you relate to this to the ‘Amber Outside Catering’ ethos?
The whole of our team shares a love for what we do. Whether its our chefs love of creating fantastic dishes or our front of house teams love of making someone's big day that extra special. It's the love of what we do that reflects in our work. Without this love of food, drink and the whole event and catering industry in general, we wouldn't have achieved our great reputation and the outstanding results that we deliver.

Where and how did your catering career begin?
It began as a glass collector in my dads pub! It was then that I realised that a 9 to 5 office job was never going to be for me. I loved interacting with customers and seeing everybody enjoying themselves!

What inspires or influences your wedding menus?
The Wedding breakfast is a huge part of the day and as well as how lovely the bride looked, it's what people will remember and talk about long after the occasion. We have fantastic Wedding Breakfast menus which our Chefs have designed, they are often influenced seasonally with the quality of the ingredients and how our chefs cook them being paramount. We take time and effort to ensure that whether we are catering for tens or hundreds of guests. Every meal that goes out is nothing short of perfect. It's knowing that everything has to be 100% that inspires us!

Do you have any top tips for brides planning their wedding menu requirements?
Yes, think about your guests and think about what is going to be a 'safe dish'. What is going to please the masses rather than you personally. For example a dish like Venison, whilst a fantastic meat, might not be to everyones taste, then there's how to cook it- I myself and every chef I know would serve it pink, a lot of people wouldn't touch it less than well done! So your much better going with a dish like chicken or Salmon as a main course. A good caterer will know what seasonal ingredients will really lift a dish and bring out the best for the date of your wedding. Then of course, avoid messy dishes which could cause a few accidents!

Do you have a particular popular wedding day dish?
I'd say one of our most popular dishes is Goosnargh Chicken Breast with a sage rosti, baby root vegetables, French beans & onion confit Jus. It's popular because of all the reasons mentioned before.

What is the most extravagant request you’ve received and/or achieved?
We were doing the bar for an Indian Wedding, it was a very extravagant affair with no expense spared and they had a lot of unusual requests, which I'm happy to say we delivered. These included matching our cocktails to the same shade of blue as the brides dress, elephant ice sculptures & a cascading champagne fountain to name just a few!

What did you serve at your own wedding?
Ham Hock Terrine, Beef Sirloin with Fondant Potatoes, Vegetables, Brandy Sauce and
Raspberry & Chocolate Torte.

Other than your own, describe the best wedding you’ve ever been to.
Having friends from different religions I can honestly say that we've catered for and been to some amazing weddings...but If I had to choose other than my own it would be a friends Indian Wedding in Manchester, the venue itself was like something out of the Oscars with every food and drink you could imagine being available to guests.

What do you love about your job? What are the best bits? And the worst bits?
I honestly love seeing people happy, leaving with a big smile on their faces and knowing that its down to us! Word of mouth is everything to us and over 95% of our work comes from recommendations. I also love that everyday is different and enjoy challenges or requests which brides & grooms present us with. Nothing is too much trouble for us. I'm lucky that I genuinely do love what I do so I can't really think of any negatives? I suppose if I'm at an event where everybody is drinking and having a great time I just wish I could join in! Yes, that’s definitley the worst bit!!

Who would be your dream top table wedding guests?
I can't stand stuffy weddings! As well as my close family it would have to be some people who know how to have a laugh, get a party going and have a good few drinks so here goes...George Best, Frankie Boyle, Keith Lemon, The Gallagher Brothers and Girls Aloud...just for my mates to have a good look at, of course!