5.0
Verified reviews from real couples
Custom Celebration Catering
From our very first conversation with Kelli through our tasting and all the way to our wedding day, everything was absolutely perfect. Wedding planning can be stressful, but Kelli and her team made catering one of the easiest parts of the entire process. They were organized, responsive, and truly had everything under control.
On the wedding day, their team was seamless. Everything was served exactly when it was supposed to be, and we heard compliments about the food all night long\. Guest after guest told us how incredible everything tasted. One of the things that stood out the most was how attentive they were to us as the bride and groom. The moment the buffet opened, our plates were already waiting at our sweetheart table. After such a busy day, we were absolutely starving, and it meant so much that we could sit down and enjoy our meal right away without having to think about it.
One of my favorite memories from the entire night happened after the reception\. We had mentioned ahead of time that we’d love to have leftovers packed up since we knew we probably wouldn’t get to eat much during dinner.When we got back to our hotel, we were surprised with the sweetest cooler bag filled with leftovers, silverware, two bottles of champagne to celebrate, and the kindest handwritten card thanking us for allowing them to be part of our special day\. Sitting in our hotel room together, eating our wedding dinner after the excitement had settled, became one of my favorite memories from our wedding day.
Kelli and her team went above and beyond in every possible way. Their food was outstanding, their service was flawless, and the care they showed us made us feel so special. We truly cannot thank them enough for everything they did. If you’re looking for a caterer who delivers incredible food and exceptional service while making you feel completely taken care of, look no further. They exceeded every expectation, and I would recommend them to anyone in a heartbeat.
Kristin H.
5.0
We hired Catering by Design for our wedding reception in May 2025 and they did an exceptional job! We chose a southern menu of BBQ chicken and beef brisket, along with sides and bartending service (we provided the alcohol). The food was delicious, we had plenty of leftovers, and the service was great! Would definitely use them again for future events!
Meghan C.
5.0
AWARD WINNER
Thanks to recommendations from couples on The Knot
Catering by Design is a wedding catering company located in Cary, North Carolina that serves couples in the Raleigh metropolitan area, including Durham, Chapel Hill, Wake Forest and Pittsboro. They hold fast to the mission of providing couples with fresh, high-quality cuisine that’s meticulously tailored to all they've hoped for at their wedding.
Services Offered
Catering by Design takes care of couples from the moment they walk through their doors and through to the end of their most magical evening. Food and beverage items like china, glassware and flatware can be provided, as well as delivery, setup and cleanup.
Cuisine
Choose from a wide variety of service styles when you cater your wedding with Catering by Design, including buffet, servers, hors d'oeuvres, plated and stations dining options. Their expert chefs can create nearly any cuisine style imaginable, from exotic fare like Russian or Vietnamese to local favorites like American. They're also more than happy to accommodate a wide range of dietary needs.
Asian-owned and Woman-owned Business
Details
Cuisine
Italian
Food & Catering
Buffet
Awards and Affiliations
2023 'Best of Weddings'
Best of Weddings
The Knot independently assesses vendors for this award—it’s never self-reported. We base it on firsthand experiences from real couples and guests, and they must have a 4.5-star average across 7+ reviews in the qualifying year.
Join couples who chose award-winning vendors for their wedding
Reviews
5.0
out of 5.031 reviews
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Review Summary
This AI-generated summary is a snapshot of this vendor's ratings and feedback.
Catering by Design provided outstanding food and flawless, organized service that made catering one of the easiest parts of wedding planning. The team handled setup, bartending, and dietary needs seamlessly and guests raved about the food. Thoughtful touches like packed leftovers with mini champagne bottles were much appreciated; highly recommended.Kristin H
5.0
From our very first conversation with Kelli through our tasting and all the way to our wedding day, everything was absolutely perfect. Wedding planning can be stressful, but Kelli ...
and her team made catering one of the easiest parts of the entire process. They were organized, responsive, and truly had everything under control.
On the wedding day, their team was seamless. Everything was served exactly when it was supposed to be, and we heard compliments about the food all night long\. Guest after guest told us how incredible everything tasted. One of the things that stood out the most was how attentive they were to us as the bride and groom. The moment the buffet opened, our plates were already waiting at our sweetheart table. After such a busy day, we were absolutely starving, and it meant so much that we could sit down and enjoy our meal right away without having to think about it.
One of my favorite memories from the entire night happened after the reception\. We had mentioned ahead of time that we’d love to have leftovers packed up since we knew we probably wouldn’t get to eat much during dinner.When we got back to our hotel, we were surprised with the sweetest cooler bag filled with leftovers, silverware, two bottles of champagne to celebrate, and the kindest handwritten card thanking us for allowing them to be part of our special day\. Sitting in our hotel room together, eating our wedding dinner after the excitement had settled, became one of my favorite memories from our wedding day.
Kelli and her team went above and beyond in every possible way. Their food was outstanding, their service was flawless, and the care they showed us made us feel so special. We truly cannot thank them enough for everything they did. If you’re looking for a caterer who delivers incredible food and exceptional service while making you feel completely taken care of, look no further. They exceeded every expectation, and I would recommend them to anyone in a heartbeat.
Meghan C
5.0
We hired Catering by Design for our wedding reception in May 2025 and they did an exceptional job! We chose a southern menu of BBQ chicken and beef brisket, along with sides and ba...
rtending service (we provided the alcohol). The food was delicious, we had plenty of leftovers, and the service was great! Would definitely use them again for future events!
Any questions?
Griselda
4.0
I hired this company to cater a breakfast buffet the morning after my daughter’s wedding. I did provide an honest number of expected guests and not even all guests attended, howeve...
r, the buffet ran out of multiple items of food in the middle of the event. One of the staff members actually went to a supermarket to refill one item! Their error was in incorrectly estimating how much of each item to provide. The food was good, I must say, and the two staff members were extremely nice and professional.
Larissa D
5.0
We couldn’t be happier with our experience with Catering by Design! They created an incredible Italian buffet that was absolutely delicious—our guests couldn’t stop raving about th...
e food. The team was professional, kind, and handled everything seamlessly, including the smooth transition from our ceremony to the reception setup. As a special touch, they even packed up food for us to take home with champagne, which was the perfect end to our night. Thank you, Catering by Design, for making our wedding unforgettable and delicious!
Kara L
5.0
Catering by Design was absolutely amazing. From the planning, the tasting, helping us pull together our vision to the day of the wedding. The food was delicious, the presentation...
was amazing and their staff absolutely stellar. I can't recommend them highly enough. Our contact Kelli was so great about all our last minute changes and updates and keeping me in the loop with the next steps. I loved working with this team and would do it again if I ever needed catering services again.
Thank you for your dedicated work to making my daughters wedding perfect!
Caitlin H
5.0
Catering By Design executed a wonderful southern BBQ menu for our wedding! Kelli and team were super helpful throughout the whole process. We got to do a taste testing to help pick...
our menu, and were sent home with a bunch of leftovers, so we got a true taste of what to expect. They were able to accommodate a variety of dietary needs. The team the day of the wedding was amazing and efficient and all of the food came out amazing. We got a ton of compliments from our guests. They prepared an awesome spread for us of the passed appetizers to ensure we ate before we were announced at the ceremony. At the end, we got sent home with individual meals (with mini champagne bottles in a cooler!) for us and a bunch of leftovers. Amazing service - highly recommend!
Carly H
5.0
No complaints! Food was great, management and service was great, bartending was great. Everything from the tasting to our take-home meal at the end of our wedding day was wonderful...
. Good communication, good ideas to make the day easier on us, and most importantly (as mentioned already) good food!
Emily W
5.0
Nothing but great praise from all my guest about how wonderful the food was! The staff was wonderful the night of as well.
The nice gift at the end of the night was a wonderful su...
rprise as well.
Taylor M
5.0
We used Catering by Design for our October 2023 wedding and were so impressed with everyone we interacted with through the planning process and on the wedding day. The catering man...
ager and bartender made sure we were taken care of all night and we had multiple people tell us they loved the food and thought the staff was amazing.
Breanna E
5.0
Catering by Design was absolutely amazing! They were so accommodating and helpful whenever we had questions or wanted to change anything! The food was out of this world! We did Bre...
akfast for Dinner and all of our guests loved it! I’ve already recommended Catering By Design to multiple friends of mine!
Elaina C
5.0
Catering by design was amazing for my 110 person wedding. To hit some of the highlights:
1. The food was delicious. The tasting was phenomenal but I was worried doing a buffet that...
items may sit out and not be hot exc but I was definitely wrong! We had the Southern buffet and everyone commented during/after dinner how tasty the barbecue, chicken, AND Mac n cheese was. Mac and cheese had great flavor and consistency. Chicken was perfectly juicy and not dry. Overall very good. All of my guests finished their food because of how much they liked it!
2. The catering staff were incredibly helpful. We had an attendant who brought us our salad and dinner to the head table, constantly kept our glasses filled/offered us drinks if we were running low, and made sure appetizers were in the bridal suite so we could enjoy a private moment. They also served our cookies and cake even though we did not get the dessert through them.
3. No incredibly long line at the bar or the buffet. They were on time and worked efficiently to keep lines running quickly and my guests were ecstatic to not have to wait forever for drinks or food.
4. Great communication from start to finish. Even in wedding season they got back to me quickly and answered my many questions and were extremely helpful.
So thankful they helped make my wedding day so great!
Paige N
5.0
The food choices are incredible! Kelley who I worked with was so great at helping me stay within a budget but I got great options and what I wanted. I was so confident in them I bo...
oked them before even doing a tasting!
We got covid and ended up doing our tasting in January as a date night! They were fantastic.
Day of wedding they had everything rolling and the setup was amazing. The food was to die for and we have got nothing but awesome feedback from our guest!
Holly D
5.0
CBD catered our wedding at the NC Museum of Life and Science this spring. We went with the Simply Elegant buffet and it was amazing. Many guests have told me it was the best weddin...
g food they’d ever had—especially the stuffed chicken! The catering manager was very down to earth and didn’t pressure us to do anything we didn’t want to (unlike several other caterers we talked with). On the day the staff was very friendly and completely on top of everything. Couldn’t have asked for a better experience. The catering manager even caught an oversight on the rental company‘s part a few days before the wedding, which shows their extreme attention to detail. They were also able to accommodate several dietary restrictions for our guests.
Brittney S
5.0
We used them for our rehearsal dinner and reception. My goal was to have something different, so we did a taco bar for rehearsal and breakfast food for the reception. The breakfast...
for dinner menu blew people away! Everyone was so excited about the chicken and waffles! I would highly recommend Catering by Design if you're looking for a flexible, professional, customizable, and unique caterer. They'll let you customize your dream menu and also have bartending services! They set up, cleaned up, cleared plates, cut the cake, and checked on the bride and groom to make sure we were satisfied. I couldn't recommend them enough!
Tara U
5.0
Catering By Design far exceeded our expectations; I just wish I could express how amazing they are. We did our tasting in June of 2019 and by the time we made it down the aisle, it...
was March of 2022. With so many changes we had to make throughout those almost three years, Catering By Design was unbelievably helpful and understanding.
We decided to have stationed appetizers and a buffet because, let’s face it, who doesn’t like to have a bunch of options?! The staff was absolutely amazing and so accommodating, and the food was spectacular.
As we provided the liquor, we decided to have Catering By Design provide the mixers and soft drinks and sweet tea. I asked if they could also provide grenadine and cherries so the six kids we had at the wedding could have Shirley Temples. What I never expected was for them to go over and beyond by making an entire beverage dispenser of Shirley Temple with a huge bowl of maraschino cherries next to it. Of course, I was a bit busy dancing my feet off so I didn’t even notice it, but we received so many compliments on that detail. I wish I had realized it that night because it was so special. Never, in all my years, did I expect them to do that from my simple request of having grenadine and cherries! That is something you can’t teach; their clients come first and they make you feel so special.
The bartender was great and she kept checking on us through the night, ensuring we had everything we needed. The servers were so polite and personable and they were the epitome of professionalism. At the end of the night, they packed our leftovers in to go containers and packed the leftover cake for us also.
Do yourself a favor and choose Catering By Design!
Response from Catering by Design
Tara,
It was a delight to work with you. When we initially did the proposal, we had no i...
dea that we would be a team for 3 years - but so enjoyed being your caterer! Best wishes !
Samantha A
5.0
Delicious food and top notch service! Everyone is still talking about how great our food was!!
Alison A
5.0
Highly recommend. Delicious food, excellent service. 5 stars!
Virginia P
5.0
I *cannot* say enough great things about Catering by Design. (That's coming from a family of foodies.) Everyone we worked with phenomenal, and service ran seamlessly on the day of ...
the event. The food was exceptional - exactly the same from the tasting to the day-of.
My parents exhausted all of the major caterers in the area, and none came close to Catering by Design with regard to food tastings.
My husband and I were out-of-state, so my parents did the initial tasting. Catering by Design happily provided he and I another tasting, so we could sample and tweak the final menu.
Perhaps MOST important - everyone prepared my husband and I that we wouldn't get a chance to eat on our wedding day. Catering by the Design saw to it that we tried everything from the cocktail hour and had a plate waiting for us when we sat down at the reception. I left my wedding full -- no togo box needed (but I know they would have provided one if we asked!)
trish C
5.0
Wow, Catering By Design did such a wonderful job at my daughter's wedding. From the initial meeting with them to the final payment, they were on top of it! Everyone who worked th...
e reception was very friendly and the person in charge was wonderful. We really enjoyed the menu we picked and the food tasted great. We received many compliments from guests.
Danielle M
5.0
Fantastic Service! Would definitely use them for an event again. They catered to our needs, even accommodated our vegetarian and vegan friends at no additional cost. The tasting wa...
s lovely and they packaged all of the left over food for us. They were absolutely amazing.
Sara S
5.0
They did a wonderful job at my wedding! Dealt with my crazy guests professionally and served delicious food.
Kaleigh K
5.0
We used Catering by Design for our Marbles Kids Museum wedding, and loved our food! My husband is Italian so good food at a wedding is a must for him, and he was thrilled with our ...
choice, as am I. We got the Simply Elegant buffet, and we are still talking about the bacon and gouda stuffed chicken with a pesto cream sauce. The staff was very professional, and my contact - Kelli - was so organized. I was even able to order all the linens through them, so one less thing for me to worry about. I felt that compared to other caterers, Catering by Design is affordable, even once you add tip in, which isn't included in the bill. We also loved that the staff packed myself and my husband to-go plates, as well as all the extra food. We had a massive family party the next night, so the leftovers were perfect! I can't say it enough - Catering by Design was wonderful to work with and delicious! I'm getting hungry again just writing this review!
Eileen Y
5.0
The staffs and coordinators at Catering by Design were absolutely a pleasure to work with. From menu planning to the actual wedding day, they were very responsive and professional ...
throughout the whole process. They were also very patient and flexible with any changes and requests and they work around your budget to meet your needs. During the reception they took very good care of me and my husband as well as all of our guests. Their services were at the highest standards. We highly recommend them!
Stephanie R
5.0
We used Catering by Design for our wedding at Barclay Villa in Angier. Kelli is an absolute dream to work with! She is very responsive through email and phone calls. We went by sev...
eral times to nail down the menu as well as pick out linens for all the tables and Kelli was always friendly and super helpful. She even came to the final walk through at the venue, which made a huge impression on me!
The food was absolutely out of this world! We chose the BBQ and chicken when green beans and mac and cheese. It was all so good and we had so many guests come up to us both during the reception and afterwards, talking about how wonderful the food was, especially the mac and cheese!
There is also a huge selection of linens, plates, silverware, napkins, etc... to choose from, so I would recommend using them for rentals as well as food! I've also heard they do a great job with events other than weddings, as well! I will definitely be using them again!
Lauren S
5.0
Kelly was absolutely phenomenal to work with! She was so accommodating about what we wanted to add and take away from the menu and she was SO nice about some last minute changes to...
the total guest count. All of our guests raved about the amazing food!
Stephanie T
5.0
My husband and I used Catering by Design for our wedding and not only were they wonderful to work with, but their food was absolutely amazing! We got so many compliments on how gre...
at the food was! We highly recommend them!
Erika A
5.0
Working with the staff at Catering by Design was amazing! Their team worked flawlessly together, was so kind and considerate to myself and new husband, and were just plain fun. The...
y stuck to the schedule, and delivered exactly what I expected. They were flexible with last minute changes and very communicative with my coordinator. And we had so many guests tell us it was some of the best wedding food they'd ever had! We'll definitely be recommending them to friends in the future!
Caitlin Noelle V
5.0
The southern barbecue was amazing! Everyone at the wedding was asking what restaurant we got our catering from. Super helpful answering all my questions along the way.
Suzanne M
5.0
Catering by Design was professional, friendly, and accommodating of our needs! From start to finish they helped us to plan an exquisite event with excellent food. We really wanted ...
a large variety of foods to satisfy all of our guests and Catering by Design helped to make this happen. Their staff was extremely professional, kind, and welcoming to all of our guests.
Kelly B
5.0
Unbelievable service. They brought to life an amazing Irish feast that I will never forget. Couldn't imagine a better wait staff and food, and the coordinator Kelli March was such ...
a blessing to work with!
Morgan E
5.0
Catering by Design did a fantastic job - from working with us the day of and moving things around to the tasting - they were great from start to end.
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