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Blue Plate Catering Blue Plate Catering was founded in 1992 by Jodi Fowler. Starting in the basement of the Blue Plate Diner on Atwood Avenue in the heart of Madison, Jodi purchased the catering division from the Diner and incorporated it independently in 1995. In the beginning, Jodi filled nearly every role and set Blue Plate Catering on a path to success. The business eventually grew into a thriving full-service catering operation, adding dedicated staff along the way, now employing more than 25 full-time staff.

Blue Plate Catering soon rose to prominence in the greater Madison area and became one of Madison's most recognized names in the catering business, including being voted a Best of Madison business for 14 straight years.
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Just like when you go back home to Grandma's house, there's just something better about homemade food. We agree! With our team of highly-trained chefs, we ensure our food is fresh, delicious and has that feeling of farm-to-table home cooking. Feeding 250 guests a meal is certainly a greater task than feeding your own family around the dinner table, but that doesn't mean we will cut corners. The look on our clients' faces after a delicious meal is reason enough to go the extra mile to prepare our food at the highest quality.
From event design and rental services to wedding planning and day-of coordination, Blue Plate Catering has it all to help you plan the perfect event!. Blue Plate Catering is Madison's premiere, award-winning caterer, but we do so much more than just serve delicious food! Begin your planning process with us and we will help see it through from design to execution!
Here's to you! When planning an intimate wedding, company holiday party, black-tie gala, or Badger tailgate, let Blue Plate Catering bring your vision to life. With paramount experience in corporate, private, and non-profit events, our culinary team's zest for cuisine is paralleled only by our personal service. We will execute the details, allowing you to create enduring memories with your guests.
When you choose Blue Plate Catering as your wedding caterer, you get much more than just a meal - you get an event coordinator!. We couldn't be happier that you're considering us to cater your wedding - we love working with couples to make sure their wedding reception is unique and stress-free! From quaint backyard barbeques to extravagant black tie affairs, we love them all! We can help plan your entire event, from table, chair, and tent rental to the setup of decor and audio visual equipment. And of course the food!
Reviews (23)
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Tina Rennells
Nov 22, 2021
Blue plate catering is 100% the best catering out there for events and occasions. They provided catering for our wedding in October! We did not have to worry about anything. They provided service so well. The staff were friendly and helpful. Set up and tear down was fast and efficient. Hands down awesome service! They also did all of our bartending and provided drink specials! Thank you so much for being a huge part of our day! Our guests did not go hungry.
Stirling Mitchell
Oct 31, 2021
The Blue Plate Catering staff went above and beyond expectations. Due to my spouse having a health scare earlier in the year, David from Blue Plate was able to provide us with nutritional facts for the food we ordered. At the event, the staff went around to each table and made sure all of our guests were satisfied and asked if they need anything (more food, beverages from our bar service, napkins, etc.).

They also took charge and broke down tables and chairs to create space for the dance portion of the reception. Not to mention the food was amazing and exactly what we wanted!
Aura W.
Sep 22, 2021
David and the whole Blue Plate team are truly the best! They were so wonderful and easy to work with. We used them two separate times for our re-re-planned weddings, and they stuck with us through it all. I am so grateful to them for being so generous and accommodating over the past year. I HIGHLY recommend Blue Plate catering for any event. The food is to die for, and the service is just exceptional.
Lyndsey R.
Nov 02, 2020
Ashley and the team at Blue Plate Catering were wonderful to work with. We had a last minute change of wedding plans due to the pandemic and it was so nice not having to worry about anything related to the food! Everything was delicious and the whole team went above and beyond to make our day special and safe.
Charles Anaman
Apr 14, 2020
Nice cafeteria and the staff is polite. Good selection of foods yet bit steep on the prices.
Eric B.
Dec 20, 2018
I was quite satisfied with Blue Plate Catering, using them for a small reception in my apartment clubhouse. Sent the initial request using their online form, and within a day David wrote back and was very optimistic and positive the entire time. We emailed back and forth for over two weeks as I sorted out my reception needs, and he was patient, made some suggestions about quantities and number of hors d'oeuvres options, and always positive.

Even though that day I wasn't there to meet them (I was at my ceremony elsewhere), they worked with my proxies for set up and retrieval the next day. The food was very tasty: people couldn't stop raving about the risotto puffs, in particular. And with the note cards describing the hors d'oeuvres, they included one congratulating me. Nice touch - thank you!
Eric T.
Oct 29, 2017
Blue Plate catered our wedding reception at Wisconsin Brewing Company, and we couldn't have asked for better food and service. They were easy to work with and very accommodating as we were planning the event. At the reception, they were true professionals.they took care of everything and made it very easy on us. Plus the food was excellent! I would highly recommend Blue Plate if you are thinking about using them for an event.
Danny G.
Dec 15, 2016
My trade group hired this outfit to cater our annual holiday party. It was to last from 5-8 p.m. Beer wine and liquor was served along with appetizers and sandwiches. At 6:20 p.m. I went back to the bar and was informed that they were out of liquor and now serving just beer and wine. Inexcusable. Very poor planning especially since our attendance was down from previous years. AVOID!
Orinda C.
Nov 11, 2016
Blue Plate has a "cafeteria" set up in the Wisconsin Trade Center and could use some attention! The cafeteria employees don't wear hair nets (and I've found hair in my food a couple times), they've been seen leaving the restroom without washing their hands, eat chips directly from the bowl sitting on the counter that are meant for customers when there's a lunch special that includes chips (extremely unsanitary!), they are rude, refuse to sell lunch items a la cart, eggs are not fresh (use egg beaters or something to that degree), refuse to make you a fried egg or any other special request, no healthy options on the menu, food is bland, service is extremely slow and prices are high for what you get.
Thomas T.
Nov 10, 2016
I had some off-site training for work. Our invite said "breakfast and lunch provided". Great - I love free food. Breakfast was a nice little "breakfast buffet" of scrambled eggs, sausage links and some fried potatoes. It included a great fruit tray (I love me some fruit - no guilt!) as well as a plate of various pastries. The eggs were very good and the sausage had a good, though different, flavor.

Not the *best* breakfast I've ever had, but it was quite satisfying and enjoyable. I was worried about lunch - I've had some bad experiences where you're stuck with some tuna salad sandwich and end up going hungry. Or you get sub sandwiches with all the fixin's on them already and have to pick it all off. I saw they rolled in a few trays of wraps - turkey club and veggie. Harrumph. I'm not a big wrap fan as they always seem to have everything in them, and they did - notably diced tomato and mayo (thankfully no onion - we were working in teams).

I was a good little trooper and quietly selected a turkey club wrap and dealt with the toppings as-is. HOLY COW it was good! The mayo wasn't nasty (hardly noticeable), thankfully. It was really, really delicious! I wanted to grab another one, but - while halves - they were pretty big. I didn't bother with the pasta salad, but folks seemed to like it.

When the training was over for the day, there was plenty of food left, so anyone who wanted to grab some wraps could have some dinner, too. I did just that, and man! They were just as good for dinner, too! Well done, Blue Plate! That was a nice surprise. I don't often get to order catering items, but if it ever comes down to it, I'll remember you.
Kori A.
Oct 24, 2016
Blue Plate Catering was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding. The guests loved our food and signature drink, and I cannot say enough about David, Patrick and their team. They both went out of their way to ensure we had nothing to worry about on the day of. I appreciate them being open and creative with their menu, finding a way to mold in my husband's Ghanaian culture into the menu. Beyond thrilled with their professionalism and service.
Natalie R.
Sep 04, 2016
Can I give a zero star? At a wedding now and the buffet ran out of food. I literally just ordered pizza for my family table. Blue plate ordered jimmy johns for those who didn't get food. SERIOUSLY? Jimmy johns at a wedding? I'm glad I'm already married and don't have to get a caterer for my wedding!
Vicky H.
Aug 02, 2016
Blue Plate catered my daughter's wedding this past weekend in Stoughton. They were punctual and efficient and the food was hot. This is important to note given the distance and the time required to set up. I received nothing but compliments on the food. I had the onion crusted beef pot roast and it was delicious. The potatoes were very tasty and needed no additional seasoning. I loved it all and would highly recommend them.
I. R.
Jul 19, 2016
Good food, easy to work with and consistent good service. Had the pleasure to work with Blue Plate for 9 months - they catered a weekly lunch event for Seniors I was managing. Tim, David and Gary are super easy to work with and we received excellent service from Andy on event days. The food was always good and we got rated as the best Senior lunch site in town!

They were also a reliable and consistent partner. If any issues came up, usually on our end, they were extremely gracious and accommodating. How a business handles issues says a lot about them and these guys are top notch!
Lauren H.
Apr 11, 2016
My review is based only on the quality of the food with Blue Plate Catering. (I can't speak on the customer service, ordering process, prices, etc.) My workplace orders lunch from Blue Plate Catering for meetings a few times a month. I will intentionally skip my mid-morning snack on a day when I know I'll have Blue Plate for lunch! I've enjoyed Blue Plate's food for years at these work lunches. I've never experienced bad food, bad flavor, or bad preparation of food on any occasion.

The food from Blue Plate is always 100% cooked perfectly, flavored very well, and freshly prepared. Blue Plate's cookies and dessert items are always fresh and never stale, and they're very tasty. The soups, which I understand are a "soup of the day" from my coworker who places the orders, are always incredibly delicious and different. Instead of a simple run-of-the-mill soup like tomato soup or chicken noodle soup, Blue Plate makes orzo soup or a garlic/cauliflower bisque, for example.

As I said, I can't comment on the experience of being a customer with this company, but I can comment on the food. Blue Plate always delivers on quality, and its food is always delicious.
Debra K.
Feb 24, 2016
I hired Blue Plate Catering to cater my small wedding in January 2016. (I had actually hired them also for my first wedding in 2001, and they were so good and memorable that I brought them back for the second time around!) David, the manager, was excellent to work with during the planning process. Blue Plate was able to easily recommend menu items to accommodate my daughter's dairy allergy and my sister-in-law's celiac disease.

Only one item, the spanakopita which was passed by a waiter prior to the wedding, contained dairy and gluten. All other items were dairy and gluten free, and instead of being miserable, it was a decadent meal. I most appreciated being able to "upgrade" the prime rib to local beef raised nearby outside of Hollandale. It was delicious, and even better, we were able to literally put our money where our mouths were by paying for ethically raised beef. Thanks Blue Plate!
G. V.
Jun 04, 2015
We had a wonderful wedding at Olbrich Gardens in May and Blue Plate was our caterer. David, the guy we worked with, was amazing. We booked them about a year before our wedding was to happen. David was extremely prompt with correspondence. He was very happy in every email exchanged which made me, as the anxious bride, feel very at ease whenever there were updates made.

My husband and I initially chose a vegetarian-friendly buffet, but after chatting with my mom, we decided to add a meat entree.she actually wanted me to add three. BPC, the people we gave our money to, told us that while they'd be happy to do that, that three meat entrees, our vegetarian meet entrees, and our three (or maybe it was two.) side dishes was way too much for our less than 100 people and that one vegetarian and one meat entree was plenty.

Fast forward to our day of and my husband and I were blown away by David and BPC. There was a 40-60% chance of rain that day. The day started off nice but humid. As the day progressed and 15 minutes before our ceremony was to start, David (and our day-of coordinator) come in a tell me that they're setting up the indoor venue AND outdoor venue with about 50 chairs each.

They continue to tell me that if it does rain harder, they will move all the chair indoors and vice versa. 10 minutes before the start of the ceremony, David comes back in telling me that he's been in touch with his wife, who told him that there was now a 17% chance of rain and the ceremony is going to happen outdoors. On to the food. Amazing.

It was delicious and I'm so glad my husband and I got a moment to ourselves to eat. We chose the fruit/cheese/cracker spread with a coffee bar and an alcohol bar along with our buffet dinner. In addition to an alcohol bar, we had BPC supply us with root beer floats as our Specialty drinks. Our wedding was kid-friendly and some of the adults don't drink so we wanted to be able to accommodate them and BPC was only too happy to accommodate us.

All the guests seemed very happy with the food. BPC was wonderful. They went above and beyond with the food and with making sure we got the outdoor wedding we had been dreaming of since we booked with Olbrich Gardens. Thank so much for everything, BPC!
Erin M.
Apr 27, 2015
We hired blue plate to cater our wedding. The food was okay; not remarkable by any means. They were late to arrive and get set up, which threw off the whole day because the ceremony was at the same place as the reception. I can't say I would recommend them to anyone based on my experience.
Stephanie S.
Mar 17, 2015
BEWARE! Blue Plate have VERY little regard for their potential customers. As a customer, we had to reach out and make several follow-up phone calls and emails. Finally, got a "meeting" in place for a Wednesday. Monday, we sent a confirmation email just indicating that we were looking forward to the meeting on Wednesday. David replied back stating that they had a "large event" book for Wednesday and no one would be in the office to meet with us. I have to wonder what would have happened if we had not reached out to them. We would have shown up for our planned meeting and no one would have been there to meet with.
Erica F.
Jan 24, 2015
Blue Plate was excellent to work with for our January 2015 wedding. We had a small, intimate affair, with less than 70 guests, at Olbrich Botanical Gardens and Blue Plate is the sole liquor license holder. We read the reviews and decided to go with BPC for our full food and bar service. And we had a LONG list of special requests that BPC was able to handle easily. "Can we serve the groom's family's organic mushrooms as the vegetarian entree and seasonal vegetable?" Their response: "No problem!" "Can we serve the groom's sister's artisanal goat cheese?" (She is a licensed cheesemaker) Their response: "Absolutely!" "Can we make up our own appetizer recipes to best showcase the goat cheese?" Their response: "Sure thing!

Just provide us the instructions. " "Can we get a sauvignon blanc instead of these other white wine choices?" Their response: "We'll hunt it down for you." "Can our friend who just graduated from The French Pastry School in Chicago make our cake?" Their response: "As long as she is a licensed baker, we're just fine with that." Simply outstanding.

And so very flexible with our many demands. David was ultra-professional and friendly and able to fit us into their admittedly very busy schedule for a tasting, several phone calls and about one million emails. The food itself was awesome. Pork tenderloin at a wedding that is NOT dry? Practically unheard of. The stuffed portabellas were excellent.

The blue-cheese and fig-stuffed chicken breast was out of this world. The coffee served with the cake was hot and delicious, and their accommodating and excellent service was impeccably polite. They set up our tablecloths and candles, and worked with our event planner (my husband's eldest sister) to ensure everything looked beautiful and elegant. Thank you again for making our big day go so smoothly, Blue Plate!
Ted T.
Dec 08, 2014
Austin and Rick from Blue Plate did an outstanding job at our recent Grand Re-opening. Delicious food, excellent presentation, and comfortable hospitality for our guests! Great job Blue Plate
Jim G.
Jul 19, 2014
Just did a tasting for my daughter's wedding. The menu is very unique and expansive. The appetizers and entrees were excellent, comparable to fine dining. The food definitely sold us. David was phenomenal, very friendly, professional and extremely helpful in helping us plan the event. He made everything so easy and was very flexible to accommodate our wishes. David was definitely icing on the cake.

While we are from Milwaukee and the wedding will be at Old World Wisconsin it was well worth the drive to Madison. Skip Milwaukee caterers and go with Blue Plate based on quality, service and price. I'll update after the wedding.
Leslie S.
Aug 03, 2009
If you want to get married at Olbrich Gardens - and you probably do if you live in Madison - Blue Plate is the only caterer allowed to serve liquor there, so you're probably going to at least think about using them (Olbrich has very few catering companies they allow on their premises in the first place, and Blue Plate is one of the nice ones).

I was pretty skeptical of Blue Plate at first. The tasting they did for me for my wedding at first wasn't much to my liking which caused me some worry. But what a breath of fresh air to really be listened to - and for a business to be willing to really try instead of just telling you, "This is what you get." Jodi, who is in charge of events there, really listened to my feedback about the things I wanted to change.

We went through several iterations of how the menu would pan out. She allowed me to use rented china from A to Z because I thought the white plates she used were too plain for a fancy dinner. She really bent over backwards. And on my wedding day the food was UNREAL. It tasted like it came out of a great restaurant, and believe me they don't have a very big kitchen at Olbrich.

They tried very, very hard to live up to my expectations, and they definitely did. Even the liquor bill at the open bar turned out to be reasonable. They did it on a budget, and they did it exactly how I wanted it. I'd recommend Blue Plate to anyone. They did an incredible job. Excellent work for a nice wedding. Remember, just because you're on a budget doesn't mean you have to do a buffet. Blue plate made it happen. Thanks Jodi, you are a consummate professional!