Reviews of Toque Catering (Event Planner)

Michele Davis

Once again - outstanding!!. Just had 9 friends over for a 5 course meal. What a treat to be able to host a dinner without all the work. I only had to plan the decor - which is fun. Always a chef and server and they bring all the equipment including plates, cutlery and napkins and at the end of the evening - no clean up for me!! Chef Nicolas Waters Christmas menu was over the top - WOW! Chef Joey was great and Vinny who served us with class and personality made this event one to remember. Thank you Toque Catering - ready to book again!!

Smart Dolphins (Finley)

We were all very delighted with our corporate lunch. The food was delicious and healthy and left us all feeling rejuvenated. Fast and thorough pick-up and customer service.

Sarah Halfkenny

We hired Toque Catering for our original wedding plans due to their incredible care and attention to detail in quoting our event. Unfortunately we were unable to hold our original planned event, and the team was very understanding, working with us to alter, postpone and then finally cancel. We had a fantastic tasting experience with Chef Nicholas and the team, and we hope to work with them again in the future. Thanks again!

Helene Scime

UPDATE - RESPONSE to TOQUE’s REPLY: 1. Yes, your pricing was clearly stated at the time of purchased BUT if I had an idea of the portion sizing I’d be receiving I wouldn’t have proceeded with the order. 2. Most businesses ask for 10% to cover COVID safety practices and no restaurant asks for ‘admin fees’ for meal prep of takeout meals - unless it’s being delivered. 3. Why would a guest/invitee to a wedding or event be asked to pay for tables, flower arrangements, linens or service?!?! What I got was a meal for two and nothing else. 4. Yes, in my opinion, $45/meal is high for the small portion sizes I received. $90 can easily buy enough takeaway food to feed 4 from a 4-5 star reviewed restaurant in the GVA. 5. Thank you for recognizing my concern about the smoker. I have increased my rating from 1 to 2 stars. Lastly, as a consumer, I rely on Google reviews and I was providing my honest experience. Based on your other positive reviews, I doubt mine will effect your business. ORIGINAL REVIEW - DEC 24, 2020: As much as I can appreciate the times everyone faces right now (businesses trying to make ends meet during COVID), I find Toque Catering’s price point drastic - price gouging comes to mind. I purchased their Christmas dinner for two and with taxes and their ‘Service Fee’ (which I can only equate to forced tipping) came to $90 CAD (that’s $45/person). Now, if I were at a wedding, seated at a beautiful table with ambiance, I’d expect it to be about $50 per plate. But what you get for $45/person is plastic takeaway trays that contain inexcusable portion sizes. I’m flabbergasted at the portion sizes for the price - absolute robbery! Photos attached with a typical house key for perspective. I was going to give them 2 stars: 1 for the food tasting good - not great, good; 1 because I only had to deal with cooking one Christmas dinner this year instead of 2. I dropped it to 1 star because when I went in person to get my order, one of their employees was smoking 8 feet away from the pickup table. Who smokes right next to an entryway, let alone when food is exchanging hands?! Overall: Simply ridiculous.

Aaron Theilade

Toque catering is amazing! They did our brunch wedding, and exceeded expectations. The pics below don’t do the meal nearly enough justice! The food was incredible and beautifully presented; they also provided a Caesar and Mimosa bar that were big hits with our guests! Everyone we spoke with from our wedding commented how great the food was! Amazing work and incredible company.

Norman Cardinal

Was at a wedding they catered all the way at French Beach. Everything was amazing.

Scarlett

Soooo yummy and such fair prices

Willow Miller

Toque did our wedding at Bird's Eye Cove Farm in Duncan last month and they were great! We had changed our menu several times with them and they were super accommodating throughout the whole process! Nicholas was great, he was always helpful and willing to suggest different foods that would make everyone at the wedding happy. The food was absolutely amazing and all of the guests couldn't stop talking about it! I would definitely recommend Toque for anyone getting married on the island!

Sherryl Barlow

Excellent catering. We had a last minute cancelation of our venue and had to move to my parents backyard. With very little notice they handle our wedding beautifully (in these pandemic times) and the food was fabulous, they did door drop off. Everyone raved about the food. ♡

Thomas

Toque were great to deal with and the food was just amazing. I've never had catering on the same kind of level as this. Recommend to anyone!

Junie Wu

I had heard glowing reviews of Toque Catering prior to reaching out. And in true fashion, they were wonderful to work with! Replies were in a timely fashion, happy to accommodate requests, and helpful beyond their "catering" services. Toque Catering truly had our best interests at heart and I could not recommend reaching out to them for your catering needs. Toque also carries a variety of place settings to help complete the look you are going for. This makes it so much easier to just deal with one company versus two or more to organize everything required. Anything to make the planning process easier, is a win in my books!

Lilly Ann Photography

Toque is the BEST OF THE BEST. As a wedding photographer I see a ton of caterers, but no one has continually left the impression the toque team does. Nick , Crystal and their entire team nail it out of the park every single time. Not only does their food taste absolutely unreal, but every dish they create looks just as amazing as it tastes. They take the time to sit with their clients and create custom menus that reflect them. They don't just cookie cutter the same things over and over again. They create dishes inspired by what their clients love. Every time I shoot a wedding they cater I can always here the guests go on and on about how incredible the food is, or how amazing the canapés are. How unique their dishes are and how blown away they are by their service. They are SO professional, organized and dedicated to giving you the best service there is. They work incredibly hard and put their hearts and souls into everything they do for their couples. There's a reason they have SO many awards under their belts. Ask any vendor around and they will all tell you Toque is the best there is. From incredible mac and these bars with all the most decadent toppings and top notch interaction with guests, to plated 5 course meals, they can do it all. Plus they have your rentals covered too! From dishes and cutlery, to table runners and chairs, convenient one stop shop of the most beautiful pieces! As if I haven't gone off enough, you need to know the heart this team has behind it. I contacted Nick & Crystal about a heart breaking story I found out about. A couple, the fiancé was diagnosed with 3 months left to live. His final wish, to marry the love of his life. Determined to give them their wish a group of vendors banded together to make it happen for them all by donation in the matter of 12 days. Nick & Crystal, no questions asked - got their team together, and Nick personally with his team traveled to the mainland, and out of his own pocket - donated an entire meal for 120 people to give this couple the wedding of their dreams. They not only work hard for their success but they give back to the community in the most incredible ways. They are truly a role model to all the vendors in the wedding community. If you want a professional team dedicated to giving you the best service around. A company who is humble, thankful and kind. Who cares about their clients and gives back to their community. A team who creates the most incredible dishes that taste as amazing as they look and puts the time into coming up with the most unreal menus that reflect their couples tastes. It's Toque. I could write a novel about the things i've heard my clients say about them, it's never ending. They are just incredible.

TsimshianHoroscope

I deliver to Toque. They obviously follow the food safety rules, cause there's like a bunch of stations where each has their station to make their catering. And they keep their stations clean. I've even seen them on their hands and knees cleaning the floor.

Lenya & Andrew Scott

We were deciding on who we should hire to cater our wedding, and attended a tasting event at Sea Cider. They had three different caterers providing canapes and delicious tasters. After sampling everything we made the easy decision to call Toque. From the first phone call with Chef Nick we felt like they understood our plans and were helpful in selecting and adjusting the menu so that everyone could enjoy. We had guests with allergies, vegetarians and vegans, a few kids and other picky eaters but the food was the most talked about part of the wedding! Everyone loved the dinner and we were lucky enough to have a little bit leftover which we packed up and took home. Toque was able to handle the sudden cake cutting and serving that we forgot to tell them about, making it seem to everyone that it was all part of the plan anyways and no need to worry. The service from the staff on site was great, and the communication with the boss was easy. I feel very satisfied with the company and felt like the price was very fair considering the quality of product and service. Thanks to you! Andrew and Lenya

Eric & KC Schenfeld

Nick at Toque Catering was wonderful to work with. For two people who really didn't have a clue what they were doing in planning a wedding, Nick guided us through all the details we needed to think about, in a way that was easygoing and supportive. We loved how he jumped on our mention of kouign ammans when he asked what kinds of sweets we liked, even though he wasn't familiar with them. He immediately pulled out his phone, searched the name and burst out laughing at the NYT description of them as "the fattiest pastry in all of Europe.'' With that, he declared that his team would happily learn how to make them. That anecdote shows that Toque Catering really does take each couple as individuals and creates menus unique to each -- Nick clearly leads his team with a spirit of innovation. We were so thankful to have seasoned professionals help guide us through planning the food for our wedding and make it so easy on us day-of.

Linnea Gwiazda

Toque was a highlight of our wedding. Our family and friends continue to tell us that we had the "Best Wedding Food" they have ever had. The service, the attention to detail and the care for my husband and I on our special day was over and above our expectations. We were able to personalize our menu and easily cater to the dietary needs of our guests. The ingredients were fresh, organic and local making our wedding as sustainable as possible which is really important to us. We would recommend Toque to anyone planning a special event, wedding, shower, birthday, family reunion etc. Exceptional from start to finish.

Emilie G

Toque catered our wedding of 40 people in July 2021 at Sea Cider. We were so pleased with the service and the food! Some of our guests said that it was the best food they have ever had at a wedding and some of our guests said it was the best food they have ever tasted. We had a family style menu and it included salmon that was cooked perfectly and the best fish I have ever tasted. Everything was delicious. We had rescheduled our wedding due to COVID and they were so accommodating and they also managed our vast list of dietary requirements effortlessly. Working with Toque was wonderful and stress free. 10/10 would recommend!

Nathan Mcdonald

Outstanding!!! Just ordered from SkipThe Dishes, I got Korean Street Tacos and Pork Tinga Enchiladas. Hands down best food I've ever ordered from Skip.

Bully Henders

Good food friendly staff

Nik Southwell

Incredibly delicious! Work ordered in lunch and what an awesome surprise! Made my course that much better! Thank you! :)

Kelly Ward

This is a long overdue review, but we hired Toque to cater our Galiano wedding the summer of 2019, and to this day, I still take pride when recommending Toque to anyone who asks. The team was so easy going to work with, took initiative in helping with menu planning and communication throughout was top notch. Our guests still rave about it being the best food they have had at a wedding, and although I may be slightly bias, I 100% agree. Our guests with dietary restrictions couldn't stop talking about how well taken care of they felt and there was no shortage of food for them or any of the guests! Not to mention the food quality, presentation and professionalism of the team, the overall cost for everything (which included an early morning start + 2 ferry rides in 1 day), we came in under budget and compared to what others have spent on food, we were thrilled that we were able to get 5 star food at an affordable price. I could not recommend this team enough!

Kris Gaskell

The Toque Catering team were an absolute delight to work with. They did an amazing job catering our small, intimate wedding (21 mouths fed altogether!). Nicholas, the owner and head chef, was very prompt with his responses when communicating with us to finalize the menu and various details. It made planning that much easier! There was more than enough food by the end of the evening, so the team packed some up for us so that we could enjoy it again for breakfast the next morning! Our guests were SO blown away with, not only the delicious and delectable food, but the charming, courteous, and entertaining staff that served us, led by Joshua. Highly recommend for any event!

annette beards

So impressed with the philanthropic donation of lunches for all the volunteers of the 2019 UrbaCity fundraiser for prostate cancer! Words cannot express what this meant to everyone who volunteered their time today. Thank you!!

JB Sheet Metal Ltd.

Toque Catering catered the retirement party for our company's founding members and everyone is still raving about it! We hosted a cocktail style reception and the food was not only delicious, but fun and innovative. Thank you chefs for your professionalism and hard work!

Shirley Marsh

Had the most wonderful Christmas dinner courtesy of Toque. From ordering through pick up, a helpful, cheerful staff. A highlight in this year of Covid. And it goes without saying the food was superb! Thank you again for you delicious “Christmas to go” menus. Shirley Marsh, Victoria, BC

Heidi Hoffman

I had Toque cater a last minute small celebration and was so impressed at the ease of ordering, deliciousness of food and reasonable prices. I recommend 100%.

Mark F

Best of the best by far!

Pugtato S

Being in the event industry for 11 years now, I have grown to simply adore and love the entire Toque catering team. Not only does their food shine through in all of the delish ways it should, Chef Nick is as absolute delight, humble and kind. Love love love and highly recommend

Shawn & Robyn

Long time coming, been meaning to write this review for a couple years now ???????? But oh man, if we could give 10 stars we would! We hired Toque to put together a gourmet burger station at our wedding (Sep 2018). Nick was amazing to work with, and was more than happy to let us take care of the salads and sides ourselves to help our budget. We expected someone to show up and serve burgers. What we got blew us away: Chef and full kitchen crew, serving staff... they rolled in and turned the few folding tables and collapsible tents we had for them into a top-flight, super efficient, and fully-stocked outdoor kitchen... brought all the fixins & toppings (gourmet level, not just your standard burg stuff), took complete control of all the resources and family-prepared food we had on hand, and owned every part of presentation, delivery, and clean-up for the entire night. SO professional. Everything looked absolutely amazing and nobody could believe that the sides were actually homemade. We got all that service and flair, and all we asked for was some burgers. Should come as no surprise that they were easily the best burgers that we’d ever tasted! So many of our guests said the same. This team of people had such an unexpected and amazing impact on our day, and we’re so thankful. Thanks to all.

Olivia Redden

Toque is amazing. Period. We can't believe the food at our wedding this past September was even real life. From the first call with Nick we knew that he actually cared about creating a unique and personalized wedding menu for us and it completely exceeded our expectations. He listened to all of our random favourite foods, and then somehow created this cohesive menu that was everything we never knew we needed. He was so quick to respond to my questions and was such an easy wedding vendor to work with. On the day of the wedding, the chef and staff were so incredible. They were right on time with everything but also so flexible and accommodating when my timelines didn't stick or something came up. We served our dinner family style, and all my guests could not stop raving about the food and service. They were so thoughtful to hold back some canapes from cocktail hour for me and my husband while we were taking photos, which we really appreciated. They were incredibly accommodating for all my guests with dietary restrictions, allergies and providing vendor meals. I cannot recommend them enough. They made my wedding day so so perfect!

Brianne Yardley

Toque. Is. Incredible. I cannot say enough about the service, presentation, creativity, and overall deliciousness that this catering company will bring to your wedding and/or event. Toque blew past our foodie expectations and provided our guests (and us!) with a unique culinary experience that in no terms was ‘safe’ ... And it was beyond perfection! I can’t tell you how many of our friends and loved ones came up to us during cocktail/canapés hour and during the reception dinner to tell us it was THE BEST food they had ever experienced at an event (and, believe me, we are a judgemental crowd!). We also hired Toque for their bar services and we are SO thrilled that we did. The signature cocktails were absolutely divine and our guests were LOVING them. The creativity behind this team is second to none! Even more, Nick (the owner/operator of Toque) is absolutely fantastic to work with and will listen to your ideas... Bringing them to fruition beyond what you thought imaginable. Clearly the man also knows how to hire, as Toque’s service team are true professionals, that never missed a beat! No hands went without a drink and no mouths without food at any point throughout the day/evening. To say they were on it 100 percent would be an understatement! Toque really went above and beyond to make our special weekend (rehearsal dinner, wedding, post-wedding brunch) more insanely incredible than we even thought possible. Huge thank you’s to Nick and his team. You guys are EPIC!

Lauren F

Holly Smokes, the team at Toque is incredible. Such a skilled and professional group of people. From the servers, to the chef and bartenders—we cannot thank you enough. We had nothing but endless compliments on the food, service and drinks at our wedding this past weekend on Pender Island. Toque was organized, thoughtful, attentive and so so so professional. The food was out of this world. We cannot thank you guys enough!!! Highly Highly recommended.

Kelsie McLeod

We ordered some beautiful individual picnic boxes and they were beyond OUTSTANDING! Would 100% book again and will recommend to anyone who asks for a good catering option. 11/10!

Victor Chin

the best food and service!

Jennifer Grant

Costly, but WOW! We had a cocktail party with canapes, and EVERYONE raved about the caterer! Such delicious, beautiful, and original option and vast options! Loved Toque! They are amazing!

Rachael FitzPatrick

We hired toque to cater our wedding brunch for 45 people in a private home. The food was exceptional, the service was professional and they really went above and beyond our expectations. Our guests were very impressed. I hope there is another occasion in the future we can use Toque Catering for.

Ilona Riley

Toque catered our wedding at Sea Cider last month and did an incredible job! So many of our guests told us it was hands down the best wedding dinner they had ever had. One guest in particular had some very specific dietary requirements, and not only did they prepare her a separate meal (we had opted for family style) but also her own canapé selection, which she was so grateful for. Nick was a pleasure to deal with from the get go and was very accommodating to some last minute changes with our guest count and table arrangements. His staff are true professionals and very friendly and attentive. While we were off doing family photos after the ceremony, they went out of their way to ensure some canapés were kept back for us as well. They also set up and tear down like ninjas. I hope we have the pleasure of dining with Toque at another event in the future!

Stefan Kaban

We hired Toque to cater our wedding at the HCP Gardens. They were professional and easy to work with from the planning to the wedding day itself. We asked for a brunch/lunch menu, and the menu they created was a great fit for our event. The dishes and drinks were all delicious; it was impossible to pick a favorite dish, and we got nothing but positive feedback from our guests afterwards. Their staff were professional, attentive, courteous, and easy to work with, going above and beyond to ensure the day ran smoothly. We would recommend them without hesitation; the food and service was worth every penny!

Laura Kalcsa

Food is amazing and a great community and industry supporter!