How many wedding have you been to where the meal was chicken with mashed potatoes and a side of asparagus? Too many is the answer. Or if you can't remember what you ate a wedding, then it was probably that. Haha

One of our priorities for our wedding day was the menu. We wanted the meal to be unique, memorable and locally-sourced! We wanted guests to look back and remember exactly what they enjoyed because it was so delicious. LeBraun wanted it to be “one of the best meals they’ve ever eaten,” and our dreams became a reality when we went to a tasting by Maui’s Cutting Edge Catering.

Cutting Edge’s owner and chef Brian Etheredge was the owner of renowned Maui favorite Capische before deciding to focus more on family and enjoy the world of catering and private cheffing.

He is a strong advocate for sustainability in the kitchen and also a commercial fisherman. Note: The fish we ate on our wedding day was caught by Brian the morning of. It doesn’t get much fresher than that!

Each dish was vibrant, colorful and pulled in the Hawaiian-flair we were hoping to spoil our guests with! It was a tasting dream and honestly we dreamed about the meal everyday till we got to enjoy it again on out wedding day.

Typically wedding menus are all encompassing, making sure the meal will satisfy a wide range of taste preferences and people. Fortunately with an intimate ceremony you can tailor the dishes to a much smaller group. Since our guests were our closest friends and family we knew what everyone would be interested in and therefore knew this menu would be a hit!

One caveat of our menu was that everything should be gluten-free and cow dairy-free, and the team at Cutting Edge Catering was more than happy to oblige.

Oh and our site also had a wood fire pizza oven so we wanted to take advantage of that during cocktail hour. Who doesn’t love pizza?

Otherwise we were just looking for a memorable meal utilizing fresh, local ingredients and perhaps incorporating some Hawaiian/Polynesian flair. Cutting Edge Catering delivered ten-fold!

Our fish was caught the morning of our wedding from the surrounding waters, our vegetables were pulled from Chef Brian’s own garden, and even the goat cheese was from a farm less than a mile from our venue. That’s locally-sourced if I’ve even seen it.

Even writing about this now I wish I was eating all of this again. Our menu definitely ending up being a highlight of the day if that’s even possible—the whole day was highlight! But no one left hungry and everyone got to enjoy an unforgettable meal in a beautiful setting.

For Our Passed Appetizers
Fun Fact: In Hawaii bite-size appetizers are called “pupus.” :) The appetizers are important as they welcome guests to cocktail hour and are the first edible impression of the event. We decided on a selection of twists on Polynesian classics—instead of the traditional kalua (“to bake in the ground oven” known in Hawaii as an imu) pig, we opted for chicken as I don’t eat red meat; traditional musubi is made with spam which we switch for hamachi; lastly a poke bowl served in a puffed rice crisp instead of on top of a bed of rice. I’m drooling just remembering all of these!

Kalua Chicken with Guava Rose Emulsion and Molokai Sweet Potato Chip
Fennel Flatbread with Big Island Mushrooms, Surfing Goat Cheese and Caramelized Onions
Hamachi Misoyaki Musubi with Seaweed Salad
Ahi Poke "Bowls" with Sesame Sambal and Puffed Rice Crisp

For Our Dinner
After cocktail hour which included our first dance, drinks, and a beautiful sunset, guests were welcomed to the backyard at one long table to enjoy dinner al fresco.

First Course (plated salad)

Watercress Salad with Carrot Ginger Vinaigrette, Shaved Kula Cucumbers, Radish, Cherry Tomato

Second Course (entree)
During our tasting we were enamored with both entree options. Our initial plan was to have items served family style where guests could pick and choose what and how much of everything they would enjoy. However Brian’s plating blew us away so we decided on a duo-plating option which meant that our guests got two entrees (just smaller portions) so they didn’t have to choose.

Hawaiian Catch with Edamame Puree, Angry Pears, Sake Butter
Five Spice Duck Breast with Molokai Sweet Potatoes, Star Anise Citrus Emulsion, Ume Plums and Vegetable Stir Fry

Photography by Teale Photography