Sit-Down Dinner

Who Should Choose It: Couples celebrating at a catering facility, club, or ballroom as well as oenophiles who want to pair each course with wine.

Who Should Avoid It: Party animals. Dinners take time — spent eating, not dancing or clinking glasses with anyone outside your table.

What to Ask: The real price difference between seated dinners and buffets. You may assume plated dinners are pricier, but often they are not, because the caterer knows exactly how much food to order and prepare, whereas buffets have to accommodate multiple trippers.

Stress-Saving Tip: While mulling over the menu, keep it between you and your fiancé. You know the one about too many cooks spoiling the broth? If you ask friends and relatives to weigh in, you’re inviting conflicting preferences (“Oh no, not lemon chicken again.”). Or consider what the wedding industry calls duos — one plate with two small entrées (think surf and turf).