TOAST Catering

I can't recommend Sam and Kim highly enough. They really deserve six stars! They recently catered my wedding and the food was spectacular! We requested that everything be vegetarian and from the cocktail hour to the main course, everything was delicious and beautifully presented. We received compliments on the food all night and even almost a month later someone commented on how delicious it was. What I especially appreciated is how responsive and dependable Toast was. We had a special situation because our venue had an approved vendor list and Toast was not on it - we had to push a little to get approval and were required to at least in theory "work with" another caterer that was on the approved list. Sam did such an amazing job of reaching out to the other caterer and the venue to coordinate and really went above and beyond to make things come together smoothly. In the end we had different vendors for the cake, food and linens but I wish we could have used Toast for everything. The tasting at Sam and Kim's kitchen was so much fun and the night came together perfectly. Toast offers a phenomenal value as well. I thought the prices were very reasonable and well worth it. I would recommend Toast to anyone!

After interviewing several leading French restaurants and caterers in San Diego, we selected Sam and Kim Behnam of Toast Catering to cater our wedding. Following a lovely tasting in their kitchen, our expectations were that the food would be excellent, but we were a little apprehensive about committing to a small company. Those reservations were quickly put to rest by their very high level of personal service. Kim and her team went above and beyond what I’ve come to expect from most caterers. They were very responsive in their communications, proactive in their decisions, and they took great initiative as Kim demonstrated that her role was closer to event coordinator than caterer. The personal touches and outstanding service provided by Toast far exceeded our expectations, and were certainly above our experiences with other caterers and restaurant based catering.We and many of the other guests consider ourselves “foodies” with a passion for cooking and food. Our guests also included a significant number of high maintenance French nationals where the term passion doesn’t begin to describe their love of cuisine. The consensus among the guests was that the meal prepared by Sam was the among the best meals that they’ve had in memory. The appetizers were perfectly prepared and seamlessly circulated, while the courses were brilliant and beautifully plated. Do not miss the opportunity to try Sam’s Argentinean Beef Skewers or Beef Bourguignon.After re-reading the above recommendation, it looks like perhaps Sam or Kim’s mom must have written it. Please be assured that it represents my and Chantal’s experience. If you ask us for a recommendation for a French caterer, it’s Toast. If you don’t ask us, we’ll still tell you to use Toast.Thank you Sam and Kim for helping to make our wedding special!Sincerely, Dave Breyfogle and Chantal Turenne des Pres (now Breyfogle!)

Toast Catering was the perfect choice for our wedding. We couldn't have been happier with the service they provided. Sam the head chef, and his wife Kim, as well as their whole team, executed flawlessly at our wedding. Sam and Kim were extremely patient with us throughout the whole planning process. Sam was able to offer a very customized menu selection for us, which included a flavor of Vietnamese and Russian dishes (my wife is Vietnamese and I am Russian), at a very affordable price. We also chose to serve appetizers family-style, which Sam and Kim were glad to accommodate and put in extra time and effort to optimize table sizes, serving platters, etc. In addition, Sam and Kim easily adapted to our many changes throughout the planning process, including last minute table reconfigurations. They both also spent many hours helping us arrange the tables the best way in the space available, which was of tremendous help. Their choice of rental company vendors was also excellent, and they too spent many hours working with us throughout the planning process.On the day of the wedding, Kim acted as a coordinator, among many other roles, which again put us much at ease and removed a lot of stress from us. Her execution was again flawless, as we had absolutely nothing to complain about. Everything went perfectly, and exactly as we planned!Sam's cooking was amazing. It has been almost a month since our wedding, and we're still getting compliments about how fresh and tasty the food was. The service was amazing, the presentation was picture-perfect, the food was plentiful, and everything ran smoothly and on-time.Our day-of-coordinators could not stop talking about Sam and Kim, and how easy it was to work with Toast Catering. We honestly could not have been any happier with the service they provided, and we would strongly recommend them to anyone that's looking for a great caterer that flexible and easy to work with at an affordable price!

Our wedding planner referred us to TOAST and a few other caterers. From the start of our menu selection to the day of the wedding, our decision to work with TOAST was very well made. Sam was extremely flexible to work with and open to our ideas on what we wanted on for our buffet dinner. We even traded recipes in order to come up with what we liked best. He had great suggestions on alternatives to the standard fare and created a menu that everyone raved about ... mahi mahi fish tacos, mac n cheese, ny strip, and more. Sam and his entire staff are very professional and helpful, our guests were certainly treated to excellent service from the first passed appetizers to dessert. And, not only did the food taste great, the presentation was beautiful. And all the other stuff, like contracts and communications on menu were handled an the most prompt manner. We would highly recommend TOAST !

Our wedding was on Sat, June 18th 2011. My then fiance and I went to several tastings and were very concerned about the food at our wedding. We didn't want the "traditional" wedding fair-we were hoping for something a bit more "special". When we did our tasting with Sam from Toast Catering, I knew we found what we were looking for. Sam was always quick to respond to our questions, and very accommodating. His food is amazing. The actual wedding was better than we could ever imagine. The service was perfect and the courses were Sublime. Sam had more than enough staff on hand and it went off magically. Our guests are still commenting on how good the food was.Sam and Kim-thank you so much for taking such great care of us. I will recommend you every chance I get.-Mike and Sarah

I do not think that I could write a review that would truly express my excitement about choosing TOAST catering for my wedding! My husband and I were sold the moment we met Sam and Kim. They greeted us with such warmth and enthusiasm when we met at the tasting. Not to mention, their food is unbelievable!The food service at the wedding was flawless! Everything was delicious and the guests raved about all of the food the entire night! I managed to grab food throughout the night and it tasted just like it did at the tasting...no small feat to cook food for 130 that tastes the same as when cooked for 2! I could go on and on reviewing TOAST! They will be my caterers for any event I host in the future!!

We couldn't be happier with choosing Toast catering to cater our wedding! Sam, Kim and their staff were very professional and accomodating with all our our needs. The food of course was the highlight! We got rave reviews from our guests and everything tasted just as great as our initial tasting. The staff was very attentive and did a seamless job. They even brought our bridal party appetizers when we were taking pictures without being asked. I would recommend Toast to all of my friends and family for any event. Thanks for everything!! Kristi & Nate Benedetto 4/9/2011

TOAST made my wedding day perfect. I was born and grew up in France, where i went to culinary school and worked as a pastry chef for a couple of years, so i am VERY picky about food. My now husband was introduced to gourmet food when we started dating, so when we decided to have our small (12 guests plus us two) wedding catered, we knew we wanted the best. I am glad we found them!I contacted Sam (he is the chef, while his wife Kim coordinates) a couple of months ago and luckily they were available for my wedding day. We met a couple of days later at the reception site to discuss the menu, rentals and details.We wanted a mix of american and french influences in the food and he did a great job at creating a menu that would reflect that for us.Sam took care of rentals as well (one less thing for us to worry about) including table, chairs, linens, bar table, etc.We communicated via email a few times and he was always very prompt at answering any of my questions.The day of the wedding, Sam and Kim arrived on time (love that!) and set up the dining room just as i had imagined it, if not better. It was just perfect!The food was delicious, the guests all commented on it saying it was the best food they'd ever had. I think i'm going to hear about our wedding food for a long time, which is exactly what i wanted!We had the prosciutto-wrapped tiger shrimps as hors d'oeuvres, as well as kobe beef mini sliders, caprese skewers and Sam's famous quesadillas (highly recommended!). The main course was boeuf bourguignon (the best i've ever tasted!) with truffle mashed potatoes, and we had mini vanilla crème brûlées as well as a mini chocolate assortment to go along with the wedding cake.Long story short, a disaster happened to our wedding cake the morning of, and we ended up getting a 15$ tiramisu cake from Ralphs. Sam and Kim made it look like it was a nice expensive cake with decorations, and everyone raved about it.They were both extremely friendly, professional, and a pleasure to have around. Worth every penny! If you want the best for your wedding or other special event, call TOAST. Now i must go try to re-create Sam's boeuf bourguignon because my husband liked it better than my recipe - they set the bar very high.

My new wife and I had our wedding scheduled for 10.2.10 at the MoPA in Balboa Park, and they asked us to use their preferred vendors. I’m often leery of going that route, but as I’d soon find, we hit the jackpot with Toast. We scoured through the 10 or so options, weeding out those we felt wouldn’t hit the mark, but right from the moment we saw Sam’s website, we knew we’d found our man. They cook everything onsite, they don’t use frozen repacked foods and sell them as their own, and they will even give you suggestions of what to look out for in your caterer, in the event you DON’T go with them. He has classic Southern French training, but is savvy in SW cuisine and has a knack for putting his twist on everything he prepares.It was important for me to find a caterer for our wedding who understood my passion for food, and wouldn’t get offended when we wanted things a certain way. It was also a dealbreaker that I had to have food at my wedding that people would love, because let’s face it, wedding food generally sucks, plain and simple. Its large scale and soulless, and I’ve never left a wedding talking about the dinner. That all changed the night we got married. When we did our tasting, at my request, he prepared two variations of each dish so we could choose which version we liked the best. He even quickly learned one of my dishes to be included on the menu, and he nailed it 100%, sight unseen (or untasted)! We had over 140 guests, and our selections were: Caprese skewers, curried-butternut squash bisque shooters, & open face ”Tamales” over fried corn cakes, all passed. Then we served my spinach/strawberry/goat cheese salad; before the entrees which included Hoisin-Beer braised short ribs, or Alaskan halibut with blood orange buerre blanc, both over saffron mashed potatoes and grilled asparagus, or butternut squash ravioli with sage butter and tomato coulis. I’ve never heard so many compliments over the food at a wedding, and I’m still getting rave reviews.Sam will work within your budget to make it work for you, and try to help you be creative even when your budget isn’t as big as you’d like. He charges a very minimal service charge comparatively, and the staff he brought to my big day crushed it. They even helped my father in-law load all of the extra booze after the night was over…and there was a lot of it!In the end, Sam and his team from Toast catering were amazing, and I’d recommend them 100x over.

TOAST was absolutely amazing for us. We had a completely vegetarian wedding reception and we were the only vegetarians, but ALL of our guests LOVED the food. In addition to Fantastic food, we loved working with Sam and Kim of TOAST. They were so genuine and considerate and an honest pleasure to work with. We would (and WILL!) recommend them to everyone.Thanks TOAST!

After looking at countless caterers thatwanted to charge me an arm & a leg for food I wasn't all that excited about my wedding planner suggested Toast. From the second I saw the sample menu I knew it was perfect. Then when I saw how reasonable the price was I was sold. Everything was amazing. They couldn't keep the appitzer trys full, my guests were chasing them down! I even went without a cake so they made all my deserts (creme brule & cheesecake lollie pops) The food is all my guests can talk about. It's been 1 week & I've had people calling for their number ever since. Thank you so much for doing an amazing job.

Sam and Kim were so wonderful throughout the entire process of planning our wedding. First of all, the food was AWESOME, all of my guests raved about it! Our wedding was a little different, we had it in my parents' backyard and there wasn't a ton of seating, so Sam did a bunch of hor d'ouevres and small plates for us, but it still felt like a dinner because we had a first pass of lighter foods and then a second longer pass of heavier, more dinner-like food. Everything worked all really great and was really beautiful. Sam and Kim were always available for questions and tips and were so extremely helpful. The morning of the wedding was a crazy rush for me, and I don't know how it all came together, but I'm assuming the caterer and the florist somehow collaborated, because the tables all looked beautiful! Sam and Kim took just a couple of my ideas and then used their expertise to just make it happen. I loved them! Use them!

From the moment I first spoke with Sam at TOAST, I knew that our wedding catering experience was going to be amazing. What we could not have imagined was the response our wedding guests would have to the food...even now (a month later) our family and friends are still raving about the kobe beef sliders, open faced pork tamales, mac & cheese and perfectly cooked tri-tip!Sam & Kim were so open and friendly and willing to create a menu that reflected our personality while keeping an upscale flair and their signature style. The process of crafting the menu was fun, relaxed and the tasting helped me (the nervous bride) feel totally at ease. The food was fanstastic and Sam was so receptive to our suggestions. Kim provided plenty of options for the linens and rentals and made sure that the space would also reflect the feeling that we wanted for our wedding. TOAST helped us to stay within our budget without sacrificing any elegance! Working with the two of them was more like working with two friends than with a large company where you might be treated like just another client or event. We sincerely appreciated the personal touch.The wedding itself went of without a hitch and the TOAST event staff was so helpful and pleasant. Though my husband and I were scurring around greeting guests (as I'm sure it goes at most weddings) the staff made sure to save us a tray of appetizers and always kept our glasses full! They checked on us constantly throughout the night to make sure we could sneak bites of dinner and our guests continually commented on the beautiful display of food and drinks. We are SO thrilled at the product, value and service we received from Sam & Kim at TOAST. We would give them the highest recommendation for any wedding or event!

Toast was the perfect choice for our wedding catering! My husband worked as a chef, so the quality of food was especially important to him. I wanted fresh, California style cuisine, with a so-cal emphasis. Quality of ingredients was especially important to us as was finding a caterer to match our budget. Sam worked with us to create an AMAZING (seriously people couldn't stop complimenting us) menu that included everything on our wish list, at a price we could afford. Their team coordinated rentals and setup everything so we had nothing to worry about on the big day. The food was beautiful and delicious and I am so happy that we chose toast for our wedding.

TOAST catering (Sam and Kim) were a pleasure to work with. They are a dynamic duo (Sam's cooking and Kim's coordinating)! The tasting was amazing, and free if you decided to use them, which we did. Their staff were courteous and professional and everything was right on time. They had great options for linens, etc. and were willing to work with our needs. Now, for the food. I am originally from Maryland and many of my family members and friends were going to be here for the wedding, so it was crucial that the crab cakes be authentic...and they were!!! One highly critical friend said that she has been to a lot of weddings and Sam's creations were, by far, the best hors d'oeuvres that she'd ever had. TOAST catering is an incredible value on top of it all. My husband and I highly recommend them.

I went into planning my wedding thinking that the food wasn't a priority, after all people don't remember the meal and couples don't even get to eat their plates right? If you go with TOAST, you will find that neither is true! We received lots of comments from our guests about how much they loved the food and we did too!In Fall of 09 we had our wedding reception at the Museum of Photographic Art (MOPA) and TOAST was one of their recommended vendors. After looking at the other vendors we decided on TOAST because of their quick response and tasty looking menu! We had a great experience with Sam and Kim! In addition to being flexible with the food options they tailored their services to our budget. Even though we live in the LA area, working with Sam and Kim was as easy as if we were in San Diego. As a preferred vendor at MOPA they worked seamlessly with the MOPA event staff.We highly recommend TOAST for your next special event! They made sure that our wedding was a meal to remember!

I went into planning my wedding thinking that the food wasn't a priority, after all people don't remember the meal and couples don't even get to eat their plates right? If you go with TOAST, you will find that neither is true! We received lots of comments from our guests about how much they loved the food and we did too!In Fall of 09 we had our wedding reception at the Museum of Photographic Art (MOPA) and TOAST was one of their recommended vendors. After looking at the other vendors we decided on TOAST because of their quick response and tasty looking menu! We had a great experience with Sam and Kim! In addition to being flexible with the food options they tailored their services to our budget. Even though we live in the LA area, working with Sam and Kim was as easy as if we were in San Diego. As a preferred vendor at MOPA they worked seamlessly with the MOPA event staff.We highly recommend TOAST for your next special event! They made sure that our wedding was a meal to remember!