La Finestra

Highly recommend Steve and his crew. They are very professional and really care about making your special event everything you want. They catered my wedding and I was nervous about everything from setup to food to service. I wanted to day to be «perfect». I’m so thankful that they made the day everything I dreamed of. The food was great, cake was beautiful, service was top notch and I love that Steve is super relaxed and just has a way of taking stress off the bride. I am very grateful. The prices they have are unbeatable. You will save money without sacrificing on quality. Happy bride:)

For us an important element to any party is FOOD. So we wanted great food but without hurting our wallet. We had the pleasure of having La Finestra Cater our wedding on May 31, 2014 at The Alumni House at CSUF.
To begin with, I had emailed many caterers to get pricing and availability and Steve replied within 24hrs, as too many other caterers they took over a week, over a month and some to this date never replied to us. Steve was amazing! He communicated with us clearly throughout the entire process. He was always available to answer and or clarify any questions we had. He gave us a sense of confidence of their services. We did not have to worry or stress about another thing, which is great.
At first, the price, such a big number scared me but once I started looking into pricing elsewhere it was way less, but the great thing is you still had a delicious meal. Their prices are super reasonable, especially because all of their packages included dinnerware, glassware, linens, etc. I made the calculations on how much it would be if I rented them on my own and it would of be twice the price. They had a promotion going on, which allowed us to get 2 types of appetizers. No one could beat their prices. I mean I could of payed a lot less but I would of not gotten the best quality of food and That is what I loved about them.
On the day of the wedding I loved that I did not have to worry about anything. I felt extremely confident that they had it under control. My wedding planner loved working with their team. They were really flexible, there was a point where we were behind with the dinner but they accommodated easily, which was awesome.
I received many compliments on the food. Those Garlic mashed potatoes were amazing. I would highly recommend them if anyone is looking to hire a caterer!

Steve the owner was great! Used them for my wedding Nov. 6 2011. It was very simple and straight forward on choosing everything from napkins to your wedding cake. it was a once stop place and made my wedding planning easy. The food was probably the best wedding food ever! All of my friends loved the food too. My wedding cake was so good I had another one made for our first anniversary. I did have one issue with the staff having an attitude with my mother about food and plates, but other than that service was great too. I would compare the food to like Cheesecake Factory

I had the pleasure to have La Finestra cater a wedding reception I was the coordinator for. I was impressed by the efficiency of the staff in setting up and the quality of the food. At the reception, Steve & his crew had everything set up for the guests by the time the reception started, even though we had to move the appetizers from the patio to an alternate location due to rain. His staff never missed a beat. I recommend La Finestra for their service and value. Birgit @ Dreams Come True Wedding & Event Planning

I had the good fortune of having La Finestra cater my wedding at the SmogShoppe in Culver City on June 22, 2013. Thinking back to the day of the wedding, Rodney and his team from La Finestra never had me worried for a second and considering I had no wedding planner or day-​of coordinator, that says a lot about their efficiency and reliability!
My best friend had her wedding catered by La Finestra last year and my husband and I were very impressed by the food. Naturally, it was a no brainer to snatch them up to cater our wedding at the SmogShoppe this year. On the wedding day, everything went off without a hitch. Rodney and the team arrived on time, set up the rental chairs and tables quickly and were started on food preparation right away. Cocktail hour went smoothy, the bartender was professional and friendly. Come reception time, the food was hot and delicious, even my husband’s hard to please uncles were raving about the dishes — especially the miso marinated salmon! Rodney made sure to bring my husband and I each a plate of food and reminded us to eat, how sweet! The staff always made sure our glasses were full and checked on all of the tables to make sure champagne was flowing during our lengthy toasts. I had requested that La Finestra set up an ice cream bar to surprise my husband and the team timed it perfectly, he was happy to find his favorite ice cream amongst a fantastic spread of toppings which Rodney had thoughtfully added to complete the spread! Our cake was beautiful and exactly what we had asked for from Rodney. At the end of the night, any leftovers from our served buffet style dinner were packed up neatly and the cake topper was saved in a pink box for my husband and I to take home.
I can’t say enough about how wonderful La Finestra was on our wedding day. Now if only there’s a way to get my hands on more of that heavenly garlic mashed potatoes …

La Finestra is amazing. AMAZING! Their phones should be ringing off the hook given how truly delicious the food is and reasonable the prices.
Rodney catered my wedding last September and it was so definitively awesome that people TO THIS DAY still talk about the garlic mashed potatoes. They did my cake as well and I went with a simple yellow cake with butter cream frosting along with a true chocolate cake with homestyle fudge frosting. No ganaches, fancy mousses or hybrid fruit fusions, just honest to goodness, keep it simple cake. It was beautiful, my Parisian cousins accustomed to delectable French pastries oohed and ahhed at the photos and it was such a hit at the wedding, the guests killed the entire thing… including my keepsake top tier!
My best friend hired Rodney as well for her wedding last week and everyone was raving about the food. A friend that’s the assistant director of events at USC was eager for a referral, as was the bride’s recently engaged sister. His crew is so fast, professional and super nice even my sister who snobbily prefers international Michelin starred chefs had kind words to say about the service and food. Can’t wait to attend the next La Finestra event in September!

We selected La Finestra for our wedding. Steve was very easy to work with. He stayed in contact with my regarding all the details leading up to our big day. The day of our wedding & reception, Steve & his crew had everything set up for our guests by the time the reception started. The setup of the tables with cloth, dishes, glasses ect. was all was so beautiful! They made everything look PERFECT! The food was FANTASTIC as it was during our taste testing. People are still talking about the food! All in all, Steve was great to work with as were his servers. The set up was picture perfect & I would recommend his services to anyone with a big event needed services. Please feel free to contact me with more information about our day with La Finestra.

Steve catered my wedding and I am so happy we went with his services. We got married at Union Station which had so many restriction for the catering company, nevertheless Steve did an awesome job. The set up of all rentals was perfect and food/​cake was great! My guests all complimented how great the food was. Steve is awesome. Definitely recommending his services.

I would definitely recommend La Finestra Catering! Our wedding was on 6÷12÷11, and my husband and I did much of the planning and funding ourselves, so finding a caterer within our budget was very important. Not only was the food (appetizers and champagne for the cocktail hour and buffet dinner) provided, but also the linens, place settings, napkins, bartender, service, and cake were also included in our wedding package which was very reasonably priced. I did my good amount of research and no one could beat what Steve and his staff had to offer.
Our wedding date was changed a few times, and Steve was very accommodating. He was very easy to get in touch with. Emails were the easiest and he would get back to me within the hour with answers to any questions that I had. Meeting with him was very easy as he was a very kind, down-​to-​earth, honest man who really cared about our big day.
On the day of our wedding, I had full faith that Steve and his staff would take care of business and yes they did! I did not have to worry about a thing when it came to the catering. Keep in mind I did not have a wedding planner and my mom and some relatives took most of the day-​of responsibilities. Our 175-​guest, outdoor garden wedding reception was set up beautifully just as we planned. My husband and I actually got the chance to enjoy our food that was graciously set up on our head table ready for us to chow down on, and it was DELICIOUS! The garlic mashed potatoes and garlic parsley chicken were to die for.
Outstanding service, excellent food, and affordable pricing. Steve and his staff highly exceeded our expectations and they are part of the reason why our wedding day was no doubt the best day of our lives. Thank you Steve and La Finestra Catering! You guys are awesome and did a wonderful job on our wedding day.

I had La Finestra cater my wedding on March 26, 2011. Our guests raved about the food from the appetizers to the main course (you’ve got to try the beef barbacoa!), to the tasty cake. The place settings were beautiful as well. It was so nice to be able to have your linens, cake, place settings, bar and food all rolled into one (fairly affordable) service. Steve is great about having flexible hours for meetings as I didn’t work normal hours while I was planning the wedding!

I have coordinated many events in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. After going through numerous caterers, I finally found someone that I can rely on. For the last year I’ve only used La Finestra. They are always punctual, the food is great, and I never received any complaints.
They are VERY PROFESSIONAL and will make things easy for you.
When I hire them, I don’t have to worry about a thing. They take care of their business. Food is always on time. Hot food is always hot, cold food is cold.
Need I say more? From someone who has dealt with MANY MANY Caterers… You get the most bang for your buck with La Finestra.

I would definitely recommend La Finestra to any bride on a budget!
Our wedding was back in September so some of the details are a little hazy, but I will definitely do my best for all you future brides. I feel that the best way to write a review is definitely to state the positives as well as the negatives…
POSITIVES (in no particular order) :
1. Communication: Steve, the head of La Finestra, is definitely on top of things when it comes to this area. From the moment we first emailed him, he was very thorough and honest with all of the prices and services.
2. Prices: If you are looking for a caterer with prices to get you what you need for a decent price, this is the place for you! Steve worked with our budget and even allowed us to negotiate specific details and a contract specific to our needs.
3. Punctuality: Steve’s staff was there exactly when our coordinator needed them to be there and were very prepared with everything they needed as expected.
4. Taste: We met Steve for a couple of tasting meetings (the first one being free) because we just couldn’t make up out mind on the menu. We were very happy with the food we chose for our buffet. A few of our guests even went back for second helpings! The woman in charge of our event that day made sure to come introduce herself and even hand delivered our meals to us!
5. Professionalism: Even though we never stated what to wear, the staff were all dressed very professionally and greeted every guest with courtesy. We even realized that we forgot to get a cake knife and server (which…for the bride’s who do not know… is something that the bride is supposed to provide) and they made sure to bring one… without charging us.
NEGATIVES (in no particular order):
*note: none of these negatives were really a big deal for us at all… but to an anal bride, these may be helpful
1. Cake: the cake was super yummy, however, it was quite crooked. Since I am not a bridezilla, I really didn’t care that much but it was quite obvious. Also, the cake didn’t quite come out like we thought it was going to. I really didn’t have an idea of what I wanted my cake to look like, so Steve went through a slideshow of images of previous cakes. Maybe they spent more money on their cake, I don’t know, but our cake definitely didn’t look quite as nice as in the pics. Still very yummy though!
2. Person in Charge: Throughout all of the communication with Steve, we were told that he would be the one in charge at our event. It wasn’t until a few days before the wedding that we found out that he actually wouldn’t be in charge – his assistant would be. To be honest, this wasn’t a big deal to us either… but, to some (read below) this is obviously a big deal. Our person in charge was very nice and had every detail just as we told Steve so I didn’t see a problem at all.
Overall, I would definitely recommend La Finestra. To those who have had bad experiences, (as those brides down below seemed to have gone off about) I must agree with the reviewer right below me. It does all seem like a coordinator issue. We had our wedding timed to the minute and that timeline was given to Steve and his staff and I think that’s definitely what made our wedding go quite smoothly. If you are going to have a budget wedding, use La Finestra and spend the extra cash hiring someone professional to coordinate your big day!

La Finestra was definitely worth the money! We had them cater our wedding reception of 250+ guests. They did an amazing job! Steve was very easy to work with and he even came and helped out on the day of! (Not the kind who just hire people to be there and not make an appearance at your event).
One of the biggest pros is that they, not only take care of the food (which tastes pretty good), but tables, chairs, plates, silverware, etc. It’s very convenient and easier for a bride to deal with one vendor, as opposed to more than one can handle.
We provided the champagne (they are very flexible), and Steve even had his helpers pour it to all the tables. That was very nice.
If I had to say any cons, is that Steve is very laid back! Some might see that as a great thing, others might expect more professionalism. However, I kind of enjoyed the vibe because it kept me relaxed and didn’t make me feel overwhelmed at all.:)
Thanks Steve and all of your staff! You guys did a great job at my wedding and I cannot thank you enough!

Last summer when we got married we went on a hunt for a fairly priced yet delicious caterer. After we searched along with our wonderful wedding planner Chelsea, we came upon La Finestra.
We had a tremendous time tasting at the office building, the chef is tremendous. We ended up having a hard time choosing, everything was really good. After we ended up finally choosing what we would be having, we went over all the particulars with La Finestra and went home very full and happy.
The day of the wedding, was wonderful, the reception went without a hitch. The food was fresh and hot, the line moved along briskly. The
refreshments remained topped off on a hot summer day and our plates full of food were perfectly made to order and delivered to us at the sweetheart table.
Highly recommended, Steve is very professional, everything was as promised.
I did see some negative reviews about La Finestra and while I don’t discount things could go wrong, I would careful with what a Bridezilla has to say about anything. Some people can never be made happy.
Hope you have as wonderful an experience as we did.

I used La Finestra for a reception post-​wedding (we got married in Hawaii with a local reception once we got back). I have big pro’s and minor con’s with Steve and La Finestra.
Pro’s: Good food! Plus, for me, I was ecstatic that I could use ONE vendor for all of the food, linens, tables, chairs, flatware, table decorations, ect. Since it wasn’t my actual wedding, I wanted as little vendors that I would have to coordinate. La Finestra was willing to take care of any or all parts of the evening that I needed. It was nice not to have to worry about all of the details.
Con’s: They forgot my champagne toast!!! AND didn’t take a percentage off the bill or offer anything for it. I was pretty upset! Another con was that communication is a little unprofessional. Major typo’s and grammatical errors in emails that almost made it not understandable. It kind of even made me a little skeptical that they wouldn’t even show up! But compared to the pro’s, it’s minor once the event was over.
Overall, I would say that La Finestra is great if you are doing an event that you don’t want to be overly involved in. They are willing to take care of as much as you need.

This review is based on my personal experience, and as the bride, I was really impressed with Steve and his team from the first time we met, up to the very end of our reception.
We had originally planned on hiring a different caterer, but had a falling out with her, had no choice but to look for other options. I was just searching through Google for caterers in orange county and la finestra came up. i looked at their website and it seemed too good to be true. But since I was pressed for time, I figured I’ll give it a try and contact a couple of caterers. Out of the several caterers that I emailed, Steve responded the same night with a quote and clear answers. We were able to set up a meeting and food tasting that same weekend, and we then decided to hire them. Steve was very helpful, and he was very quick in responding.
My husband and I loved the set up of our reception, we loved the food, and the cake was awesome. Our guests complimented the food and the service. Steve even served us our food :) Overall, We were very satisfied with his outstanding service. I would highly recommend him to anyone in a heart beat :)

My husband and I could not have asked for better service. La Finestra was a Godsend. They took care of everything, from linens to cake from set up to clean up for our wedding. Steve was easy to work with and professional and communicated clearly with us throughout the entire planning period.
La Finestra is clearly a better deal. With other caterers we looked at we would have paid almost a thousand dollars more for less food that we were able to get with La Finestra.
In closing, the food’s delicious, the service is great and my husband and I couldn’t be happier!

I was a guest at one of the venues that was catered by them.
I thought that it was strange that despite the wedding ceremony having been completed, we were asked to stay outside for a while. I found it strange that there was considerable activity from the round about service way to the side entrance. It coincides with the explanation that they were late to setup.
I am not sure whether this was part of the venue, but normally there would be catering personnel walking around to serve refreshments to guests. Initially, I didn’t see anyone do this until right before we were about to be seated.
After we were seated, it did seem like we continued to wait a very long time prior to the festivities to begin due to the food not being ready. I remember making two trips to the bartender even after we were seated and the banquet hall doors were still not closed. The service from the bartender seemed alright, I didn’t note anything peculiar at the time.
I found the food to be mediocre, slightly dry.
I remember notably that I had to walk across the banquet room to ask for refills on refreshments for my entire table several times. I didn’t know what was going on at the time, but if the caters were drinking the alcohol for the venue and goofing off then that would coincide with why the service was lack luster.

Great food, drinks, rentals, and service for our wedding. And the price is right! I absolutely recommend La Finestra Catering for any big event.

Steve’s the man!
In planning a wedding reception, one of the most important elements is food! Its one of the first things that guests remember when they go to a reception.
So when it came time to finding a wedding caterer for our wedding, I did my research… a lot of research! I probably contacted over 20 caterers, and had more than a handful of tastings.
When it came to Steve and La Finestra Catering, no one could beat their prices… they are hands down the best. So of course there’s a catch right… Nope, the food was delicious and Steve gave us every confidence in their services.
So now to the wedding… our guests raved about the food! I did not hear one complaint! We went with fresh fruit, strawberries and fondue chocolate, meatball hourderves, and tomato bruschetta as our appetizers… YUM! For the main entrée, we went with the TriTip w/​burgundy sauce and Chicken Marsala accomanied with a vast array of sides… GREAT!
Steve was so helpful to work with and even threw in a few (maybe more than a few…) things to make the deal that much more attractive.
If you need a caterer, and wanna find the best deal w/​o sacrificing any on the quality of food and service, Steve and La Finestra is the way to go!