Putting On the Ritz Catering

You get what you pay for. Be warned, if you plan for a wedding and they give you a list of approved caterers, there’s a reason why this company is on the cheapest.
Where do I begin on how horrible the experience working with puttin on the ritz has been. From the first time we met with the coordinator for our venue at an open house at university of Maryland it was a nightmare. Rachael should not be in the business for customer service. Some folks should only work back of house if you are not approachable and care about the customer service. For instance «is the cake cutting included», the response was a snarky roll of eyes like we are stupid because «all caterers in the wedding business include cake cutting.» Well Puttin on the Ritz, let it be known, majority of soon to be Wed couples are getting married for the first time. How do we know what the policy is if this is our first point of contact?
The one thing that did impress me at the open house was the food. They did make a mean steak and mashed potatoes.
The meetings with Rachael were very uncomfortable and unwelcoming. It was like a used car sales pitch where they really didn’t care what you liked, just make the sale and move on. If it wasn’t for the time crunch, I would have parted ways with the company and found another.
The two weeks leading up to the wedding were very hectic and Rachael with Puttin on the ritz made it very stressful. We had trouble with the final headcount and Rachael requested 11 per table via email. Once we moved everything around to accommodate her request, she came back and said they couldn’t do tables of 11. Well why suggest t to begin with.
Then there was an issue with our reception timeline being in Military time. Sorry but that’s unacceptable, as what appears to be an established company, your company isn’t competent enough to figure out military time. There is a reason why people use military time, to be more thorough, and obviously, they were not…
The day of the wedding was horrible. They were approximately 30 minutes late which threw off the timeline for setup or center pieces. Then there was a dispute of the soda.
This is what tipped the iceberg. Puttin on the ritz stated sodas will be included in the package in writing. On the day of the wedding, they said only lemonade and water will be provided. ARE YOU KIDDING ME. I’m arguing with the caterers on the day of the wedding if drinks are included. Rachael was no where to be found. We had to go through the contract line by line and physically show the manager where the sodas were included in the price. This is unacceptable on the day of the wedding.
The wedding is over and everything is paid for at this point, so nothing can be done now except to warn future newly weds to spend a little more on catering and look elsewhere. And if you do go with Puttin on the ritz, avoid
Rachael as a point of contact.

I’ve been to two weddings (okay, one was mine!) where POTR catered a brunch buffet. Pretty solid!!!
Their pancake station is pretty sweet with all the fixins and a variety of flavors — buttermilk, blueberry, and chocolate chip. More bacon and sausage than one can shake a stick at, and a respectable fruit, veggie, and cheese platter make this just wonderful. My friend had an omelette station at hers, which resulted in some tasty personalized omelettes, but it really backs up with a long line. Considering that will add to traffic and the price, I’d only recommend that for a serious omelette lover.
My wife and I also had a lot of their lunch fare: sandwiches, salad, and wraps (salmon pinwheels — yum!) and it’s a great option in conjunction with the cheese and crudité if you want to have a light lunch.
Their bar prices are hard to beat if you consider purchasing your own alcohol.
Other (non-​wedding) events they’ve catered have been really tasty! Good sandwiches and dipping foods like mini spring rolls, popcorn chicken, and always great salad.
Tasty fare for all levels of budget. Would recommend.

We recently attended a fundraising event and couldn’t believe how wonderful the food was… the hor’s douvres were original, perfectly presented, delicious, as was the dinner. One of us had the vegetarian plate and that was worth raving about. Desserts terrific. We had to make sure we knew who was catering as it was beyond 5 stars.

My fiancée and I have been looking into several area catering companies for our wedding next year and were so impressed with the prices and proposed menu from putting on the ritz that we scheduled a tasting. At our tasting we were extremely disappointed!!! The food was so awful that I was actually embarrassed for the company. I don’t know if they have a new chef or if we caught them on a bad day, but we were shocked because of all the positive reviews we had previously read. The chicken dishes were so dry and the pasta tasted like cafeteria food. The vegetable medley was undercooked and poorly seasoned. As soon as we tasted our hors d’oeuvres, I was ready to walk out the door. The only reason we stayed was we had already paid a $ 50 tasting fee and the sales representative was very kind. There are many other catering companies in the area that are worth checking out!

Great staff, great food. We wanted a casual BBQ reception for our wedding and they delivered. We didn’t know until we went in that the owner specializes in BBQ!
Perfect all around. I would highly recommend them for any occasion, big or small, fancy or casual.

I could go on and on and on about how amazing these people are. Everything from the service to the food from the first moment to the last was impeccable. Our wedding reception was a huge success thanks to Putting on the Ritz and the even coordinator, Angie. So, this might get a little long, but here it goes.
First, the food. Schedule a tasting and be prepared to be amazed. The market display is gorgeous and the Parmesan dip is out of this world! My husband could eat it with a spoon. The appetizers are elegant and they offer a huge variety. We went with the shrimp cocktail, quesadilla, spanikopita, and bruchetta. The shrimp are huge and everything is just delicious. We opted for the spinach and strawberry salad. The spinach and strawberries were fresh, the dressing was just right and the pecans on top were a perfect touch. Our main course was a station event. This included a sirloin, chicken and pasta station. The sirloin is heavenly. Its served over mashed potatoes (we like the asiago best, but they usually do garlic mashed potatoes). There are some onions on top and its accompanied by a gravy. The chicken was my favorite. Chicken breast in a tangy sauce served with grilled vegetable. I could eat this every day for the rest of my life! You can’t go wrong with the pasta. Pick your pasta, pick your veggies and pick your sauce. The primavera sauce was our favorite! Finally dessert. Fresh fruit with chocolate to dip it in! If you have any room left! There were so many options to fit your budget.
Not a single person complained about the food. I get compliments every day on how beautiful everything was presented. I just wish they had a restaurant because I would be there every day.
The staff was beyond friendly and not intrusive at all. They do progress payments, which was great for budgeting. Someone was always available to answer my questions and their hours are very flexible.
Putting on the Ritz is the easy choice for any budget wedding. They cater at plenty of locations. You can choose anything from BBQ to Fillet and all of it will be done with attention to detail no matter the price. I’ve already had people asking me for details and suggestions because of how great everything was at our wedding!