Indian wedding catering can make or break your celebration. Guests forget the order of the speeches, but they remember the butter chicken, the sizzling tandoori platters and the gulab jamun that arrived warm at ten at night.
If you are planning a wedding in Melbourne’s west, you want a menu that honours your family’s traditions and keeps every guest happy, from the spice lovers to the toddlers. This guide shares the dishes couples order most, explains how to balance them, and spells out real package prices. We cook for weddings, birthdays and corporate events at Jai Ho in Hoppers Crossing, so we know which dishes carry buffet and which ones vanish from the table first.
Indian wedding catering feeds a bigger, more varied crowd across several courses, and the food stays on offer for hours. Your guests range from grandparents to teenagers. Vegetarians and meat eaters share the same tables. Ceremonies run long, so people eat in waves.
A typical menu moves through welcome drinks, chaat or street food, starters, mains with rice and breads, desserts and sometimes a late-night bite. You can see how we shape that flow on our Indian wedding catering page, where you can also send an enquiry with your guest count and preferred number of entrees and mains.
Crispy, spicy and easy-to-hold starters win every time, because guests eat them while they mingle and wait for the couple. Start with a mix of vegetarian and tandoori options so nobody feels left out.
As a rule of thumb, plan on about six to eight starter pieces per guest in total when a full buffet follows. Our team will size the quantities for your headcount, so you never run short.
Creamy, familiar curries anchor the buffet, with one or two bolder dishes for adventurous eaters. North Indian wedding menus, in particular, often feature butter chicken, dal makhani, rogan josh and biryani, and Melbourne guests expect the same favourites.
Choose one mild creamy dish, one tomato-based dish, one lentil dish and one vegetable or paneer dish. That simple formula covers most tastes. Browse our full food menu to match dishes to your wedding style.
Rice and breads carry the curries, so guests judge a buffet by them. Cold naan or dry rice can sink an otherwise excellent menu.
Lamb biryani works as a showpiece. Its aroma fills the room and gives the buffet a centrepiece. Pair it with plain or jeera rice so guests can choose between a fragrant one-pot dish and a simple base for their curries. Our catering packages already include rice, naan, salad and raita, and a live tandoor lets you serve naan straight from the oven.
Warm gulab jamun, jalebi with rabri and cold kulfi cover the classics, and a small mithai counter gives guests a moment for photos. Sweet food closes the evening, and people linger around it.
Couples also lean into dessert presentation. Wedding caterers are designing desserts to look as good on camera as they taste, and a late-night counter is becoming a favourite way to keep the party going. Our function room packages include one or two desserts. For delivered catering, we add desserts to your package at an extra cost.
Yes, if you want guests to eat hot food all evening and enjoy something to watch while they wait. A chef at a live counter turns dinner into entertainment, and the food arrives at its best.
Our live catering option brings a tandoor and a fryer with a chef to cook entrees and breads on the spot. It costs $1,000 for a four-hour service. Pair it with a chaat counter and you have the street-food feel many couples dream about. Pick one or two counters rather than five, because a focused setup keeps lines short and quality high.
Split your mains roughly evenly between vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes, keep spice at a medium level and label every dish clearly. Most menu complaints come from confusion, not flavour.
At Jai Ho, catering packages start at $35 per person for a minimum of 25 guests. Prices below come from our website at the time of writing, so confirm them when you enquire.
If you prefer to host at our venue, our function rooms suit weddings, engagements and sangeet nights. Function packages run at $40, $45 or $50 per person depending on how many entrees, mains and desserts you choose. They include soft drinks, rice, naan, salad, raita, plus chair and table covers. The room needs a minimum food spend of $1,500, and our in-house DJ costs $500. Corkage applies if you bring your own drinks.
Couples choose us because we pair heritage-rich recipes with flexible, budget-friendly packages and a team that stays calm on the big day. Our chefs cook smoky tandoori dishes, aromatic curries and signature biryanis every night at the restaurant, and we bring that same standard to your wedding. You can read more about our story and see our food in the gallery.
Guests notice the service as much as the flavour. One diner who brought a party of 20 praised our team for going above and beyond, and that attitude shapes how we run every event. We cater across Melbourne and the western suburbs, including Werribee, Hoppers Crossing, Laverton, Truganina, Tarneit, Point Cook, Seabrook and Williams Landing.
Want to taste before you book? Visit us at 8/428 Old Geelong Road, Hoppers Crossing. We open Monday to Friday from 5pm to 11:30pm, and on weekends from 12pm to 11:30pm.
Butter chicken, dal makhani, paneer dishes, lamb curries and biryani top most menus. Guests also love tandoori starters, chaat, hot naan and desserts like gulab jamun and kulfi.
Three to five of each works well for most weddings. Our wedding enquiry form lets you choose three entrees and three mains, four of each, or five of each, depending on your guest count and budget.
Our catering packages start at $35 per person for 25 guests or more, with a four-entree, four-main package at $40 per person. Set-up, live counters and desserts cost extra, so tell us what you need and we will quote clearly.
Yes. Our menu includes a curated vegetarian selection, and our enquiry form has a dietary requirements field. Tell us about halal, vegan, gluten-free or allergy needs, and we will confirm what we can prepare.
Yes. We offer a live tandoor and fryer with a chef for entrees and breads. It runs for four hours and costs $1,000. Desserts can be added at an extra cost.
Disposable plates and cutlery are not included in our standard packages. We can organise fine-quality disposable options at an extra cost, so mention it when you enquire.
Book as soon as you lock your date and venue. Popular weekend dates fill first, and early booking gives you time to refine the menu.
The best Indian wedding catering feels generous, balanced and personal. Start with crowd-pleasing starters, anchor the buffet with creamy curries and fresh breads, add a live counter if your budget allows, and end on something sweet.
Send your details through our wedding enquiry form or contact the team and we will build a menu around your guests, your traditions and your budget. You can also read more food and event ideas on the Jai Ho blog.