Maggie C.

I cannot express how highly I would recommend Rowan Catering for your special event. My wedding guests are still raving about their experience with the staff and the phenomenal food. Makema is amazing to work with. Her communication is quick and thorough, she is very thoughtful with the menu, and she makes everything so easy to plan and execute. I knew she was a vendor that I could rely on for anything I needed. All of her food was elegant and beautiful. The steak was cooked absolutely perfectly. I received many comments that the meat was the best they have ever had. Between the appetizers (the grape & goat cheese lollipops are to die for!) and every single item on the dinner menu, my mouth is still watering thinking back on it. Makema went above and beyond helping with other details at our wedding as well such as collecting our decor at the end of the night and looking underneath all tables to make sure guests were not leaving items behind. I will most definitely be using Rowan Catering in the future with any event. I still cannot get over how perfect Makema made everything. I feel so honored to have worked with her. She made our wedding so memorable! Maggie C. 5/2021

Stan S.

This is the second time we have used Rowan catering. First for a baby shower and this time for a birthday party. Makema and her team were amazing. The food was fantastic, and the bartender did a great job. The setup and takedown was fast and efficient, and they made sure they wore PPE for the guests due to covid. Awesome job! Stan S. 10/2020

Jessica B.

Words can not describe how amazing Makema & her team are. They are simply amazing. Planning a wedding during COVID was literally the worst thing ever! The uncertainty was terrible but losing the hope of having my dream wedding was the worst. My fiance & I went from a November 2020 wedding to a March 2021 to a May 1st. During all this Makema was a god send! She wasn't your typical vendor who just wanted your money & that was it. She truly cared about my fiance & I. With my constant emails changing things & moving the date she rolled with everything. Emailing Makema really calmed me down because she always knew what to say. She reminded me that my wedding was about me & my fiance coming together & declaring our love & that everything else took the backseat. She worked with my budget & rolled with all the changes without a complaint. Some vendors I had wanted fees because of the changes but not Makema.
Now let's talk about the food! OH MY GOD! It's absolutely AMAZING! We originally wanted a buffet style dinner. So when we had our tasting of the food we wanted put it was insane! The Mac & cheese tasted like someone gram made it. The mashed potatoes were buttery & rich. The salmon was to die for. My Fiance & I walked out with our pants unbuttoned lol. Of course covid was still around & we changed our date & decided a cocktail style dinner with heavily passed appetizers were best. So we picked what we wanted & that was it. We already knew the food was good so we didn't need a second tasting. Then of course because it covid we had to change our reception location & Makema was fine with it! We made it work & it was amazing! Her & her team busted their butts. My guest couldn't believe how good the food was & raved about it all night. They loved the service & the servers. Makema & her team made my wedding beautiful & I couldn't be happier. They truly earned a customer for life. Seriously vest catering company around! You won't be disappointed! Jessica B. 5/2021

Corrine G.

Great catering company!  We had a client dinner at our house that came up last minute and they worked with us to develop an impressive (and tasty!) menu for our dinner party.   They came to our house, delivered the food and helped us plate the items for our party (they also do full service but we did not need that this time as our event was small in size).  Everything was delicious (the flourless chocolate cake is to die for!) and beautifully presented.  Makema was so professional and responsive to work with and we will definitely be using Rowan's catering again! Corrine G. 2/2020

Ken B.

We had a group of 20 for a work-related party at our house. I just didn't have time to prepare for it and I needed it to be done well. I found Rowan Catering on Yelp and asked Makema to put together a menu that would be appreciated. Outstanding food, so easy, so well done. Everyone enjoyed it and I was able to put my focus where it was needed. Very fair pricing for such a great service. I will definitely do this again. Ken B. 2/2020

Scout B.

We used Rowan Catering for our wedding, and I cannot recommend them enough. Makema is a fantastic person to work with. She truly wants to make your event as beautiful as possible while staying within your budget. One of the primary reasons why I chose to work with Rowan Catering was their mission to "bridge the gap between sustainable, great tasting food and limited budgets" as explained on their website. They were exactly what I was looking for. I was a little nervous because they are a fairly new company and didn't have many reviews. I can now say, with confidence, please do not let this dissuade you! You will not regret hiring them. From the first email exchange, I was pleasantly surprised. Makema is incredibly considerate and the company itself is environmentally friendly (I had a venue with quite a few eco-friendly requirements and they were able to comply) We did a dessert buffet for 175 people and Rowan Catering went above and beyond! Not only did they help me design the menu, they also provided servers, bartenders, and plenty of much-needed advice. They were prompt and communicated well with the venue coordinators. I did not have to field any confused phone calls or help coordinate anything after our initial meeting. I have found that many vendors in the wedding industry will try to upsell you or set requirements for you to work with them, but this is not something I experienced with Rowan Catering. They are true to their mission and I could not have hoped for a better company to work with. Scout B. 2/2020

Judy M.

“You won't find a better caterer than Rowan Catering!  I hired them for a dear friend's baby shower. Rowan's was prompt, professional and took great care to provide delectable high quality organic fare.  They did not disappoint when it came to variety and creativity in their dishes.  The mommy-to-be loves mango, so  the chef created amazing recipes which incorporated mango.  Each dish was a visual as well as a gastronomic delight. Everyone raved about the food as well as the service. Trust me, you will be absolutely thrilled with Rowan catering.” - Judy M. 8/2018

Maria

“We used Rowan Catering for our daughter's wedding at DANK Haus in Chicago. We wanted a buffet with lots of options for 80 people. Makema could not have been more helpful or delightful to work with. The value for money was unbelievable and the menu was do diverse and personalized. We were able to provide our guests elegant, delicious, and abundant food that was far from the usual wedding fare. For appetizers we had crabcakes, chicken sliders, and pulled port and many guests commented that they would have been satisfied with just that! Imagine their surprise when the entrees (jerk chicken, ribs, vegan jumbaya) and delicious specialty sides and salads came out! For our family, our ultimate goal for the reception was to be surrounded by happy faces partaking in a celebration of our our daughter and new husband's future. The bride and groom wanted a vibe that was friendly, eclectic, and yet with a certain elegance. Rowan Catering understood that perfectly and exceeded our expectations. On a practical level, they are a breeze to work with. We told Makema our budget and she worked with us to create a customized menu that, quite frankly, could have cost twice as much as it did--it was that good!” Maria S. - 5/2019

Brett - Yelp

Rowan Catering was great for our holiday party.  We have 50 people at our home and their execution was flawless. “From planning, menu selection, party rentals, ideas, and more - they were very on top of things and very customer focused.  What is fantastic is that you get all of this at a very reasonable cost.  We did the full service option which was set up, staff and food.  Both the staff and the food were great - our guests kept asking who the caterer was and there was very little food left which is always a sign people like it:)  I will definitely be using them again for all our needs.” Brett L. 12/2018

Becca R - Yelp

I recently used Rowan Catering for a corporate event at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.  My department was hosting academic panels for three days and we needed morning and afternoon catering for each. I worked with Makema and she was incredibly helpful, responsive, and flexible from the very beginning.  When I told her our desired price, she got back to me in 2 days with a menu that was perfect.

The food was delicious - I particularly recommend the meat/cheese plate and the rosemary chicken skewers. “Makema was in touch all three days to let me know exactly when they would be arriving. When we realized our audience had different needs on the second two days, Makema quickly and easily made adjustments to our menu in order to better serve our needs.

We will definitely be working with Rowan again and highly recommend them.” Becca 12/2018