Medellín event catering since 2019
Medellin Elite Catering is an event caterer that has cooked for weddings, office teams and family celebrations in Medellín since 2019. We write the menu, prepare every dish in our own production kitchen and bring the cooks, servers and bartenders who run your event from the first canapé to the final cleanup.
Our clients are Medellín families, international companies with local offices, expats and couples flying in for a destination wedding. Each one plans with a bilingual coordinator, in English or Spanish, and receives an itemized quote within 24 hours.
Since 2019 we have cooked for everything from a breakfast for 15 in a co-working space to a corporate year-end party for 900 guests. That range lets us plan fast and accurately, because we already know the quantity of ajiaco 120 people eat and how many servers a plated dinner on a finca needs.
Plan your event
Full-service catering means we take care of the food, the staff and the equipment while you take care of your guests. A staffed quote covers the menu, cooks, servers, chafing dishes, plates, flatware, glassware, setup and full cleanup. Tables, linens, tents and decor come from partner suppliers we coordinate and itemize, so nothing on the quote is a surprise.
We work across the Aburrá Valley, from apartments in Laureles to hillside fincas above Envigado, and our services fall into nine families. Beyond the four below, you can browse our private and luxury event catering for chef dinners and villa parties, the full range of catering menus and cuisines, and special diet catering for vegan, gluten-free and allergy guests.
Couples marrying in Medellín, many flying in from the United States, Canada or Europe, plan the whole weekend through our wedding catering hub: welcome dinner, rehearsal dinner and a finca reception in Llanogrande or Envigado.
Every wedding quote covers food, staff and tableware, with the bar as its own line. Couples taste the menu at our kitchen before they sign.
Companies use our corporate catering services for breakfast meetings, boxed lunches, conferences, product launches and the December year-end party. Offices on the Milla de Oro and in Ciudad del Río order drop-off lunches with 48 hours' notice.
Every invoice is itemized line by line, and payment by bank transfer or card link suits procurement teams with strict paperwork.
Birthdays, quinceañeras, graduations and baby showers are covered by our celebration catering, from kids' menus of mini arepas and fruit skewers to a whole lechona for a 60th birthday.
Our holiday and cultural catering handles the dates that matter here and back home, from novenas de aguinaldos in December to Easter lunch and a Thanksgiving turkey for expat families.
Schools, universities, sports teams and industrial sites sign recurring contracts through our institutional catering line, with menus planned in rotating cycles for each group.
Daily meals travel in insulated Cambro carriers that hold hot food above 60 °C. Each tray is labeled with its allergens before it leaves the kitchen, and deliveries arrive before the break.
The right format depends on your guest count, how formal the event feels and how many staff you want on site. The table compares the four styles we serve most, and our guide to catering service styles explains each one in more depth.
| Buffet | Plated | Food stations | Drop-off | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formality | Relaxed | Formal | Social, guests move around | Casual |
| Staff on site | 1 server per 20 to 25 guests | 1 server per 10 to 12 guests | A cook at each station, plus servers | None, we deliver and you serve |
| Works best for | Family parties, finca weddings, company lunches | Weddings, gala dinners, rehearsal dinners | Cocktail hours, year-end parties | Office meetings, home gatherings |
A cocktail reception with passed canapés is a fifth option, planned at 8 to 12 pieces per guest for a two-hour reception. Many weddings mix formats: canapés during photos, a plated main course and a live arepa station after midnight.
Booking takes four steps, and most clients complete them within one or two weeks. Staffed events need at least 2 weeks of notice, while Saturday weddings between October and December fill 6 to 12 months ahead.
Use the form at the top of this page or email info@medellincatering.com with your date, venue, guest count and preferred style of service. Rough numbers are fine at this stage.
Your coordinator replies with a line-by-line quote covering the menu, staff hours, tableware and any rentals. We revise it until the menu, the service style and the timings all feel right.
Weddings and events over 80 guests can book a tasting for 2 at our kitchen before confirming. You try each dish, adjust seasoning and portions with our head chef, and lock in the final menu.
A deposit holds the date, and the balance is due 7 days before the event, when the final headcount is also due (10 days for weddings). On the day, the team arrives 2 to 3 hours early, serves for a standard 5 hours and leaves the venue clean.
Every menu we send is written and tested by our head chef, who leads the kitchen team and tastes each batch before it is packed. The cooking blends Antioquian home food, such as bandeja paisa, arepas de chócolo and asado al barril from our barrel smoker, with the international dishes visitors and companies ask for.
Your event is run by one of our bilingual English and Spanish event coordinators, who stays your single contact from the first email to the last plate. Every cook and server holds a food-handler certificate renewed each year and works under Resolution 2674 of 2013, Colombia's good manufacturing practice rules for food.
The people, the kitchen and our waste practices are described on our page about our catering company.
We cater across Medellín and the southern Aburrá Valley, with five core areas where our team works every week. Drive times are from our kitchen in normal traffic.
Fincas in Llanogrande, Rionegro, La Ceja, Guatapé and Santa Fe de Antioquia sit 1 to 2.5 hours away and take staffed events only, by quote. Our catering service areas page lists every zone, its drive time and the towns we cover north of the city.
Questions and answers
Book drop-off orders at least 48 hours ahead and staffed events at least 2 weeks ahead. Weddings need 3 to 4 months of notice, or 6 to 12 months for any Saturday and for dates from October to December. December is peak season, when year-end parties and novenas fill most of the calendar.
Yes, every staffed quote includes the cooks, servers, chafing dishes, plates, flatware, glassware, setup and full cleanup. Tables, chairs, linens, tents and decor are rentals we arrange through partner suppliers and list separately, so you only rent what your venue does not already have.
Yes. Hillside fincas in Envigado and Sabaneta are part of our standard area for drop-off and staffed events. Fincas in Llanogrande, Rionegro, La Ceja, Guatapé or Santa Fe de Antioquia sit 1 to 2.5 hours away and take staffed events only, quoted individually, and we do not cater outside Antioquia.
Yes, one menu can feed everyone at the table. Vegan, gluten-free and allergy dishes are cooked in separate batches, every tray carries an allergen label and serving utensils never cross between dishes. Our special diet catering page explains how we handle celiac disease and nut allergies.
Yes, a deposit reserves your date and the balance is due 7 days before the event. You can pay by bank transfer or through a card payment link, which suits clients living abroad.
Confirm the final headcount 7 days before the event, or 10 days before a wedding, and we plan food and staff for that confirmed number. Guests added after the deadline are served if the food allows. If the whole date moves more than 60 days out, the deposit transfers to a new date within 12 months.
Reserve your date
Send your date, guest count and venue through the quote form and receive an itemized quote within 24 hours. Prefer email? Write to info@medellincatering.com.