La Mila Catering & Events — Local services in Lebanon

This review is a tad long so bear with me.

I worked with La Mila Catering for my sister’s wedding which was held on 27 July 2024.

While planning my wedding a few years ago I knew what to expect and what questions to ask. What I didn’t expect was working with such a lovely and genuine team.

I worked with Sandy specifically for catering services only. She’s spunky, lively, knowledgeable, and accommodating. Working with her has been a pleasure and I felt as if I were talking to one of my best friends.

Sandy is a great salesperson. She not only explains what La Mila offers but she does it in a way that is transparent and has no unexpected costs and “fine print”. She communicates well and is direct, which I appreciate. She’s a talker and I don’t mean that negatively. She makes you feel like family most sincerely.

In terms of planning and coordination, Sandy was excellent and they’re lucky to have her.

Menu: When creating the menu my sister wanted Mediterranean food. Now, I believe that their specialty is Mediterranean cuisine, but they do not shy away from other cuisines. Their menu is extensive and will cater to anyone’s taste. Skies the limit! We had quite a bit of offerings for Cocktail hour, Dinner, and Dessert.

We were able to have a tasting which helped us narrow down if what was selected previously was what they wanted for the day of the wedding. There we met Elie (E-Lee NOT El-lee) and Heidi, the owners, and Sandy in person. Elie is the head chef and knows what he’s doing in the kitchen. Everything was cooked to perfection; delicious tasting and the portions were filling. Aside from the food it was obvious that Elie and Heidi work hard for their business and are truly dedicated.

Day of the wedding: Elie, Heidi and their team worked based on the wedding timeline that I created. They were on time to serve all their food. I can’t tell you how many times I saw Elie walking back and forth to check on food and to bring food. That guy was moving! Heidi did all of the cocktail and dessert table placement and more. They are a hardworking team and I highly recommend them. From start to finish it was easy and perfectly executed.

Point blank the food was delicious and I wish they had a restaurant so I could eat there all the time. LOL

One last thing that I will add is I feel previous customers assume "Gratuity/Tip" is included on their quote/bill because of the wording of the breakdown. The term they use is "Service Fee".

I feel customers glide through the terms/contracts and do not read the last page fully which covers how they define certain terms used in their contract. Don't skip reading the last page.

With that said, please make sure that you provide tips for their service as the "Service Fee" does not cover tips/gratuity which is explained/outlined in their contract.

So please tip them and their team as they are truly deserving.

Thank you again for your friendship, delicious food and professionalism.

*I wish I...

As a classically trained chef, I hope my review of La Mila inspires anyone doing their “homework” to earn an A — for themselves, especially their guests. I’ve been to many weddings, and the food served is often an edible afterthought. How many times, when leaving a wedding, were you asked, “What did you think about the food?” — and you replied with shrugged shoulders, “Eh, it was okay.” That is not the case with La Mila.

A huge shoutout and thank you to Sandy, who was able to pull together a phenomenal menu all in a very timely timeline. Sandy was honest, upfront, and available around our busy work schedule. The day before and the day of, Sandy was there to help with setup — from the big asks, like helping move furniture, to the small tasks—like lighting lanterns and ensuring no glass of champagne for our toast was served empty! Given our wedding took place at our home, we thoroughly appreciated Sandy staying late to clean the kitchen, empty overflowing garbage, and make sure our home was not a war zone when we woke up the next morning! Elie’s execution of our menu was stellar. As a classically trained chef, I was thoroughly impressed by the well-run machine Elie could create within our garage, the makeshift kitchen for the event. It rained on our wedding day, and we were blessed with a beautiful, vivid rainbow—right before dinner service. This blessing brought all our guests outside for 30 minutes—right before dinner. A major wrench in the moment-by-moment timeline. I know how this, for many chefs, can be a disruptive, unexpected delay—but Elie did not miss a beat. All of our guests raved about the food—notably friends who I graduated with from the Culinary Institute of America. One thing I learned in culinary school is that you “eat with your eyes first.” Simply put, Heidi’s presentation skills are on point! Her attention to detail in creating beautiful food displays, notably for our cocktail hour, showed the care, thought and love we wanted our guests to feel. Sandy, Elie, and Heidi may be the stars of La Mila’s show—but the success of our wedding would not have been possible without their hard-working and friendly staff. One of the elements that sold us on choosing La Mila, was their well-stocked arsenal of kitchen equipment they brought on site. (Most caterers require you rent equipment separately, which is not only more expensive, but introduces a whole new dimension of moving parts.) La Mila was also able to include chinaware, silverware, and the majority of our glassware! They even included soft drinks, water, condiments, cocktail napkins, etc. — all of this, and they still came in under what we were quoted by other caterers. Thank you, Sandy, Elie, Heidi, and the entire La Mila Catering & Events team, for making our wedding day what it was. Your talent, professionalism, and experience were felt by everyone who took part in our...

I don’t even know where to start.

If you’re on a wild goose chase for a wedding or event caterer, stop what you’re doing after you read this review and pick up the phone to call Elie. Finding a caterer for your wedding can be super stressful - it’s so easy to get caught up on the little details - but when it comes down to the big day, you want someone that’s going to make you feel taken care of, and that’s exactly what you get with La Mila. Elie doesn’t have this rigid corporate catering vibe we found with other caterers - he’s a family man with family values and that’s exactly what our family was looking for. Right from the start, Elie and his wife Heidi came to our house for a tasting and we knew we were done searching. They were attentive, took lots of notes, and worked as a team to address every concern and request.

And the food, my goodness… the 180 guests from our wedding still have not stopped raving about it. From the fillet crostinis and the lollipop lamb chops to the stuffed salmon and short rib over pappardelle (which he made per our request), everything was absolutely perfect. Not to mention the most incredible dessert display I’ve ever seen. We were all so impressed and wouldn’t have changed a single thing.

We cannot thank Elie and Heidi enough for being a huge part of the reason our wedding was so special. I’d write 10 more paragraphs about all the details if I could, but I don’t want to keep you here any longer… just give Elie a call and you’ll see...