Too Caterers

As a follow up to Michelle L’s post below … Wendy — THANK YOU for an incredible wedding reception at The Holly Farm in August 2015. From menu creation to the first tasting to the final event, we were thrilled with the entire meal and so were the guests! Posting a few photos :)

I worked with Wendy on a kosher wedding in Carmel. She was extremely knowledgeable during the planning process, and created a lovely menu for my wedding bride and groom. On the wedding day, she personally came down to run the beginning part of the event, despite the fact it was her 48^th wedding anniversary (and a big congrats to her!!!), got the kitchen started, and left after ensuring everything was perfect and in place. Hristo, who has worked with Wendy for many years (maybe 20?), ran the kitchen perfectly. All the guests who mentioned the food to me loved it, saying that they mostly thought of kosher food as being poor tasting, but not this one! I got to try some of it and it was amazing. Appreciate her wonderful catering mind, and now I know exactly where to go when I need kosher food (or even regular food). Yum!

We use Wendy for our Galas at Kehillah Jewish High School. She is as good as it gets! Very professional and a joy to work with, not to mention the food is always fabulous. Thanks Wendy!

The Pros:
1) The food was DELICIOUS. Everybody raved about it to us. They brought our brunch vision to life and even were able to accommodate my mother-in-law’s allergies to gluten, dairy, egg, nuts, whitefish, nuts, and some vegetables.
2) They showed up on time, they set it up beautifully, and their staff was a delight to work with.
3) No pressure. We asked them to remove the appetizers/​finger foods from the mock menu and they happily did so with no additional sales pitch. Awesome!
4) Clearly told us when Wendy would be out of the country, and even answered some emails when she was out of town.
The Bad Taste In My Mouth:
1) They only host one tasting a month. When we booked her in the spring, we asked her when to attend. She said it wouldn’t be necessary to go before late summer given our November wedding. We wanted to do August so we could work with them on any dishes we didn’t like, but she asked us to hold off until she could return from a personal vacation. Okay. September’s tasting landed on ROSH HASHANNAH and they weren’t willing to hold another that month for the kosher subdivsion of the company. So that left us with October, hoping that we loved the food so we wouldn’t have to attend a second tasting one week before our wedding. And Wendy ended up not being able to attend that October tasting with us either! (She let us know though, and we were well taken care of by the rest of the staff there.)
2) We received the rabbinic invoice for kosher supervision TWO WEEKS before our wedding. We were not expecting supervision to cost $ 1175 — FORTY SEVEN HOURS of work — and quickly called the rabbi to find out what was up.
He felt so bad for us and kept apologizing profusely. He said that he’s worked with them for years and that they usually send out invoices at least a month in advance; he was so upset on our behalf that he called their offices to find out why it was sent to us so much later than normal. He called us back to say that someone there told him that their software was having issues, so they weren’t able to do it earlier. Um, okay, I guess, but can’t you at least communicate with a client who is paying you THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS? A simple email saying you’re having difficulties and will be in touch shortly?
He further went on to say that he was REALLY surprised that Wendy was not able to provide us a rough estimate of the number of hours his work would require for our Sunday morning wedding. He made it sound like they’d been working together for years and so Wendy should have been able to provide us a rough ballpark number of hours so that this shock wouldn’t have been so strong. He went through a 15 minute explanation of why it would take him 47 hours to do the work — with Shabbat approaching rapidly.
I wish I could give five stars for my wedding, but I just can’t. I’m pretty sure that if I were to hire them again, that this wouldn’t occur — in some ways I think my experience was a weird comedy of errors — but considering how professional and communicative the rest of my wedding vendors were, I do feel like this is an accurate rating for this event.

They are truly no words to describe the unbelievable Too Caterers. Phenomenal Kosher food, incredible to work with, and even made wedding planning fun. You can not go wrong!!!

Too Caterers put on an incredible wedding for my husband and me! Wendy Kleckner and Churisto were amazing to work with. They were attentive to every detail– even details I had never thought about! They were always available, any time of day, to answer any questions. They were curteous and professional and extremely wonderful to work with. The event went so smoothly! The food was delicious! They made sure that each guest were attended to. The event was just about a month ago, and I’m still getting compliments about the food and design. If you’re looking to do a kosher event (or a non-​kosher event) Too Caterers are fabulous! You won’t be disappointed!

My wife and I have utilized Too Caterers for many years and for many different
events. These include a birthday celebration, wedding, and dinner parties.
Our most recent event was dinner last night for twenty-​five guests. As always, the
food was top quality with very generous portions and the service was outstanding.
Our guests thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Too Caterers arrives early enough to
set-​up and takes care of any last minute issues that may arise. They also are
very accommodating in handling the unexpected and they always leave our
home spotless. They provide great value when one considers everything they
provide.

Is «perfection» too strong a word? I don’t think so. Wendy and her staff are masters at what they do. They catered my wedding 14 years ago and my son’s bar mitzvah luncheon for 140 people last weekend. Wendy is a joy to work with. At our first meeting, she understood exactly what it was we wanted immediately and suggested a menu that was perfect. We didn’t need to make even one change to it. She also arranged for the rental and delivery of the tent, the tables, chairs and linens.
She and her staff arrived on time on the day of the event, and transformed my garage into a kosher kitchen. All the staff were exceedingly professional and also very friendly. They seem to enjoy working together. The food was prepared and presented so artistically and beautifully in a buffet – my dining room looked like a high end restaurant. People are still calling me days later and telling me how much they enjoyed the food, the service, the presentation – everything. And it was all so seamless for me. I did not have to worry for one instant about the food or the service. I felt like a guest at my own party. Now, THAT is amazing.
And, when the event was over and the caterers were gone, it was as if they had never been there! There was not one crumb, not one piece of trash, not one ANYTHING out of place. The leftover food was nicely packed in the refrigerator, the tables and chairs were stacked and ready for pickup by the rental company, the trash was gone and the floors were clean. It is a joy to work with Wendy and her staff. I highly recommend them!

Wendy Kleckner made my wedding day unforgettable because I didn’t have to worry about a thing and got to enjoy every moment!
Before the Wedding:
When we met Wendy during the initial consultation, I knew she was the one! She was thorough, asked the right questions, took over an hour to understand who we were, what type of an event we wanted, what food we loved, what would make us happy and what were our big no’s. Everything that we shared with Wendy on that day was reflected in the event. The proposed menu had all the yummy ingredients that we mentioned. She worked with us to customize the menu so that it fit our budget, yet still didn’t compromise what was important to us. Wendy was always responsive, via email, phone, meeting us in person, whatever we asked for, she delivered.
The Tasting:
We lived in Southern California, so planning a wedding was tough. Wendy was super accomodating. She scheduled a tasting on a day that we were in town, even though she had a huge event that night. The food at the tasting was fabulous; when I wasn’t sure about one item on the menu, she brought out alternatives so that we could select exactly what we wanted. Most importantly, the food and service were just as impeccable on the day of as they were at the tasting.
Day of:
Wendy and her team, especially Hristo, the manager, were incredible on my wedding day. The food was so tasty; it was Kosher food and everyone raved about it after the wedding. Most people actually didn’t know that it was Kosher. Everything was presented beautifully, the service was amazing. They even packed the food for us to home. We didn’t have to worry about a thing and it was all because of Wendy running the show.
The main reason why I will never let anyone else cater my life events is because I have had the pleasure of working with Wendy. I appreciate her honesty, but I can understand that some people may be thrown off by it. However, she is spectacular at what she does and if you just listen to her expertise, take it in, don’t take anything personally, and most importantly communicate your needs and concerns, you will be in the best of hands and have an incredible event.
THANK YOU TOO CATERERS AND WENDY!

Love Too Caterers! Love Wendy Kleckner! Wow! Wendy is amazing and the food is so incredibly delicious! The room was set up beautifully. Wendy has this amazing ability to make everything just look so classy. The food is beyond delicious and kosher to boot! We had an ice cream bar at our event and who knew that the toppings could look so fantastic! Wendy just thinks of every little detail and makes planning an event so easy. Wendy stays in constant contact and makes you feel like you are the only client she is working with! I want to throw parties all of the time just so I can have Wendy cater them and eat her scrumptious food all of the time! I love you Wendy!
THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH WENDY! YOU AND YOUR TEAM ARE THE BEST!

If you are looking for kosher food for your next big event, look no further than Too Caterers!
In business for 35 years, Wendy Kleckner, manager of Too Caterers, is amazing. I have worked with her on several other events and I just hired her for my wedding. Not only was the food great, I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about a thing. Wendy is great also because she helped me in so many ways preparing for my wedding, even beyond the cuisine. She took care of all linens and extras, and when we found out it was going to rain on our wedding day, she was instrumental in making sure that a fabulous gorgeous tent was ordered and put up.
I will no doubt hire Too Caterers again for other important events in my life. The food, service and quality are all top-​notch!

Wendy catered our Wedding on 8 – 22 at the Bently Reserve and I just have to say it was all sooooo fantastic! Beyond my wildest expectations!
There is one answer when you have a kosher event that requires catering in the SF/​Bay Area — Wendy Kleckner/​Too Caterers
She, for one, is quite possibly working with special powers we can not comprehend, she makes things happen! The food is truly amazing and unlike any kosher food I have ever had at a catered event. Her entire approach to food and the menu is ideal and you just have the sense from early on in the process that you have nothing to worry about while in her hands.
THANKS A MILLION WENDY

Much of the success of my recent wedding can be attributed to Too Caterers, managed by the incomparable Wendy Kleckner. The food was absolutely delicious, plus she can accomodate all types of diets, from people with weird and unfortunate allergies to people who observe the strictest rules of kashrut (e.g. requiring their dairy products come from Israel). Beyond the taste, the presentation of the food was exquisite, and her staff was amazing, kind, and helpful.
Beyond providing food service, Wendy helped us along in planning the wedding, including figuring out what sort of tables we’d need where (e.g. gift tables, sign-​in tables, chairs and tables for the ketubah signing). She fielded questions from me and my parents with grace and patience, putting us much at ease as we tried to figure out the details of the event as it drew near.
Honestly, I don’t know how Wendy’s costs compare to other caterers, but given the level and quality of service she and her staff provided, I’d say without hesitation that it was worth every penny.

I can’t say enough about Too Caterers.
Without question, they are the very best kosher caterer in the San Francisco Bay Area. No doubt, much of that is due to its management by superhuman dynamo Wendy Kleckner.
My husband and I have very high food standards and enjoy an eclectic ethnic blend of foods. And there just aren’t many kosher caterers to begin with in this area of the country. Someone suggested «Too Caterers» as they had recently prepared some fabulous sushi for a big event nearby.
That’s when we met Wendy. Super, hyper-​organized, direct, experienced. She picked up every nuance of detail concerning our event. The menu she suggested sounded out of this world. And in fact it was. Every appetizer, salad, entrée was AMAZING. I’m still dreaming of the spicy pakora with chutney appetizers, the stuffed eggplant rolls, the fresh crisp winter salad with jicama…
As if the food were not enough, the service was super professional and sweet. And their superorganization and attention to detail resulted in one of the smoothest buffet systems I’ve ever seen. They made the most out of every corner of the small space we were able to give them in our kitchen. And they didn’t complain when we had to make some last minute changes in the floorplan. It can be very stressful dealing with so many vendors before the wedding day, not knowing if they will do what they say they will do etc. With Too Caterers I never had to worry. They were on top of every detail.
Too Caterers is probably more expensive than most other kosher caterers in the area. However, I came in with a budget and found Wendy to be very helpful in assisting me with making choices that would keep our costs down. There were no hidden costs as everything is itemized in extreme detail in the contract.
It’s sometimes hard keeping kosher in the bay area if you have high standards. Too Caterers made it easy on my wedding day.