Feast Imbibe - Evanston

Do not book your event with Hard Imbibe. Due to high turnover at the company, my fiancée and I had to handle all aspects of the planning ourselves. We were contacted just a month before our wedding, on a Friday night, to inform us that the catering costs would increase. At that point, our contract had already been signed, but Fest Imbibe refused to honor it. We were unable to find a new caterer in such a short time, and as a result, we ended up paying significantly more than what was outlined in our contract. We managed to negotiate a 10% reduction in fees, which we hadn't budgeted for since we had a signed agreement. Moreover, the event coordinator we communicated with was absent on our big day, despite her repeated assurances that she would be there. Planning a wedding is stressful enough without the added complications from Hard Imbibe's last-minute price hikes, refusal to honor contracts, and unreliable staff.

The most frustrating aspect of our experience was the price increases, which rose by about 20% within a month of our event (October 2021). They hiked prices for one of our vendors as well as for all staff costs. We received an email at 5:30 PM on a Friday detailing these changes, effectively giving us little time to respond. Although we negotiated the increase down to about 10%, we were essentially forced to accept it or find a new caterer. Given the timing, searching for a new provider would have been nearly impossible within a month of the event. Communication during this price change process was lacking, and based on other reviews, it seems we wouldn’t have had much luck speaking with them even if we had tried. Lastly, the event coordinator assured us multiple times that they would be present on the day of the event, but this turned out to be untrue—though I can’t say I was surprised by that.

Two weeks before our high season, we received an email on a Friday night notifying us of a price increase of several thousand dollars. I will include the email below. Just a week before that, we attended our tasting, which was one of the main reasons we chose them as our caterer. However, they served me an appetizer with gluten, despite our clear discussions and email exchanges noting that I am celiac. I even confirmed this before the tasting. I was understanding about the mistake, even after it made me extremely ill and caused me to take time off work. So when I received the email a week later, I felt trapped with less than two weeks to respond. I wanted to share my experience so other couples are aware of what they are agreeing to, especially those with serious allergies who need to be cautious. I did add a star to my review because our service on the day of our event was exceptional, and I genuinely hope that the extra funds we paid are being used to support their employees. Here is the email we received: --- "We hope this message finds you and your family happy and healthy. We look forward to the exciting celebrations coming up next year! We regret to inform you that, due to the steady rise in food and personal costs, we can no longer honor the pricing from 2019, 2020, and even early/mid 2021. It's extremely important to us to maintain the level of service and quality we promised when we started working together, and we believe this additional investment will ensure your event's success. We understand this has been an incredibly difficult time for everyone as they adapt their celebrations. We have made every effort to remain flexible in changing dates and accommodating requests, absorbing additional costs to ensure your event is not affected. Unfortunately, it has now become unsustainable for our company to continue absorbing these costs. Since the beginning of 2021, our service pricing has increased nearly 60%. To be fair, we must now implement a 25% increase in food and personal costs and a 20% increase in rental fees. These additional funds are directly allocated to cover the expenses related to your event. We are very grateful for your trust in us to execute your celebration and appreciate your understanding as we navigate these evolving changes in the industry. Please feel free to reach out with any questions regarding this updated pricing. We would be happy to discuss what these changes mean for your event in detail or help you get closer to your original budget. We will be back in the office on Monday and are ready to work with you to find the best solution for everyone. We look forward to hearing from you and thank you once again for your understanding. Best, The Feast Imbibe/Soul Smoke Team" --- I hope this helps other couples make an informed decision.

Of 17 september 2021 we have set feast imbibe for the high time of my daughter. they were recommended by the venue. sarah informed us by e-mail on 3 september 2021, at 5:30 a.m. on a weekend (just 14 days before the high season) that they increase our food and personal costs by 25% and the rental by 20%. we have a sophisticated contract for this event daten 12/19/2020, i.e., no provision for a PREIS-INCREASE. they had us at duress last hour and they knew it. after several talks with my lawyer, we decided to negotiate the increase due to the timing. we have negotiated the increase somewhat, but they insisted on reducing some of the services they have agreed to the contract. sarah wanted to turn it into an eating, hors d’oeuvre high time to reduce their cost. we negotiated with a buffet service, instead of a manned station service, again cost to reduce at the end. that was the worst BUSINESS practice I've always had. sarah handed the debt to the owner, but I couldn't run a discussion with the owner as he was protected by sarah. they do not make themselves into a contractual relationship with this thing, as they are a breach of the contract in order to leave them! I apologise for the cook and wait the staff for the reduced bliss. they can talk to their employer about sharing some of the increased gains from this event.

We hired Feast Imbibe for my daughter's wedding on September 17, 2021. They were recommended by the venue. Sarah informed us via email on September 3, 2021, at 5:30 on a holiday weekend (exactly 14 days before the wedding), that they were increasing our food and staffing charges by 25% and rentals by 20%. WE HAD A SIGNED CONTRACT FOR THIS EVENT DATED 12/19/2020, THAT HAD NO PROVISION FOR A PRICE INCREASE. They had us in duress in the final hour and they knew it. After several discussions with my attorney, we chose to try to negotiate the increase, due to timing. We did negotiate the increase down a bit, but they insisted on cutting some of the services they agreed to on the contract. Sarah wanted to turn it into a passed food, hors d'oeuvre wedding, to cut her costs. We negotiated to a buffet service, instead of a manned station service, again to cut costs on their end. THIS WAS THE WORST BUSINESS PRACTICE I HAVE EVER SEEN. Sarah kept passing the blame to the owner but I was unable to have a discussion with the owner, as he/she was protected by Sarah. DO NOT EVER GET INTO A CONTRACT WITH THIS COMPANY, AS THERE WILL BE A BREACH OF CONTRACT TWO WEEKS PRIOR TO YOUR EVENT! My apologies to the cook and wait staff for the decreased gratuities...you may want to talk to your employer about sharing some of the increased profits from this event.