We have many friends in the Wedding trade , a few i have already mentioned in my previous blogs, below are a few more. 

Make-up Artist:  www.louaimeshill.com

Accomplished freelance makeup artist, able to offer fantastic experience for Weddings & Events. Previous clients have included…The English National Opera & Sky T.V to name but a few. Give Louise a call on her mobile:07779 302244

Chair Covers & Balloons:  www.cloudnineballoons.co.uk     Are a family run business and  offer an extensive range of balloon decor, favours, stationary & chair covers. Call Cath or her daughter on 01384 637909.

Wedding Rings, and that special gift: Kenneth Cooke Jewellers, of the Jewellery Quarter , Birmingham. www.kennethcooke.co.uk

Wedding cakes: For that special wedding cake or Celebration cake contact Cassie at Passion 4 Cakes. www.passion4cakes.com

Men’s Suit Hire:  Slaters Menswear of Birmingham have every kind of suit you can imagine to make sure your Groom is looking his best. www.slaters.co.uk

Toast Master: Do you want to keep your proceedings running smoothly?   give Richard Jackson a call. www.birminghamtoastmaster.co.uk

Wedding Stationery: For beautiful, bespoke stationery. www.lovebugdesigns.co.uk.

Bride & Bridesmaids attire: www.weddingworld.co.uk

Wedding Cars: You will be spoilt for choice at Home James wedding Cars. www.homejamescars.com

Pianist: How about a pianist playing in the background of your wedding breakfast & reception, for that touch of class, contact Margaret at M4music. www.m4music.org

Flowers, Chair covers, Makeup:  Contact Clare at Clares flowers, Northfield Birmingham. www.claresflowers.com      

Bridal Wear:   For Beautiful bridal gowns & accessories, contact Gate House Brides of Worcester. www.gatehousebrides.co.uk

Party Accessories & balloon decor:  www.perfectparties.biz   Carrie from Perfect Parties offers a  small range of fancy dress outfits, party accessories & balloon decor for that perfect party.

Confetti with a twist:   www.printfetti.co.uk      How about this for originality …  this is the perfect way to jazz up any table at a Wedding, Party or special occasion, you choose the picture, they put it onto confetti, all you need to do then is just sprinkle it on your tables .

Wedding & Portrait Photographer:   www.helenhowardphotography.co.uk    Helen will capture the moments of the day for you to remember forever whatever your budget and location , Helen will deliver the most stunning of photographs.

What about a wedding blog that your close family & guests can log into and see how your plans are coming together,(or not as the case may be!) you could add photos, wedding gift  lists. let people know who will be attending, maybe ask them for ideas…. give Mick Davies at www.madcomputersolutions.co.uk    he could design you a website  / blog just for you. ahhhh!

I hope you will find these numbers useful and save you  time and a few sore fingers from all that computer searching , etc. Please don’t forget to tell them where you got the info from, and …mines a rum & coke thanks!!!

Room dressed with chair covers & colour coordinated sashes.

Here's one we made earlier!

Well, the day is set and now you face a very long list of requirements for your wedding, one of them will definately be the wedding cake, who do you call? What shall we do? well lets hope i can save a few sore fingers from the endless calls & emails being sent with the following suggestion.

A wedding wouldn’t be complete without a wedding cake, and now there are endless possibilities as to what kind of cake to have. Some companies will offer different flavour sponges for a three tiered cake,(Madeira / carrot cake / fruit etc.) Cakes shaped as suitcases if you are getting married abroad, and having a party for friends & relatives when you get home. Individual cupcakes decorated to match your colour theme, or with photos of the bride & groom on.  Or why not have a go yourself, most supermarkets now sell ready iced fruit & sponge cakes ready for you to decorate in your own individual style, or ask your florist to supply you with some extra flowers to decorate the cake, and finish it off with a colour coordinating ribbon, the possibilities are endless, let your imagination run wild, and get creative.

If all that is too much, give Cassie a call at Passion 4 Cakes , she will give you plenty of advice, and her cakes are stunning too.

And of course, dont forget the chocolate fountain, no need to have further desserts with the cake & all the  yummy dips on offer, you will please the old & young alike, if some of your guests dont want the chocolate, thats fine they can enjoy the fruit & pastries on offer on their own, and leave the chocolate for the chocoholics out there…Mmmmm!    (c)chocorococo

is that all for me.

Make no mistake ask any guest what they remember most about a wedding, and it will always be the food.

It is well worth the time , effort & budget on getting it right.A good caterer will tell you that it is not a good idea having your guests hanging around for hours before your wedding breakfast or after. All caterers are different in how they handle & arrange things, but tell them your budget and they are usually only to happy to oblige.

Likewise you evening reception, it is advisable not to leave a big gap between your wedding breakfast & evening buffet, remember hungry guests are unhappy guests. Plan with your caterer’s when you want the buffet to arrive, this is usually around 8pm to 8.30pm.

By hiring a Chocolate Fountain as part of your buffet eliminates any hungry guests, as your fountain can run an hour before the buffet arrives, making your guests happy & the children even happier, no need for desserts from your caterer as the fountain IS the dessert, with plenty of dips to choose from , the fountain carries on running for a further hour welcoming any late arrival guests, and keeping the chocoholics amongst you happy.

FACT: Hiring  a  Chocorococo Chocolate Fountain as your dessert option is more cost effective than more traditional desserts & guaranteed more FUN….(c)chocorococo

Here you are excitedly planning you special day,and no doubt wandering where to start? One thing that does need booking early is your Wedding Venue. Traditionally of course it was always the brides home town where you got married, but as we know things are much different now. You may wish to marry abroad, or the grooms home town, or maybe you have some dream destination or venue in mind.

Other places to consider are perhaps venues that you can hire for the whole weekend just for you and your wedding party to make your special day last that little bit longer, and when you have chosen your venue enquire as to the possibility of hiring a Chocolate Fountain for your evening reception, and send your guests home happy.  (c)chocorococo

When organising and planning your wedding, your thoughts turn to your guests…who will you invite?…do they have children?…how will we keep them amused? Well girls here are a few ideas!!!

By hiring a  Chocorococo Chocolate Fountain is a sure way to amuse ALL your guests, and you will certainly know where the children are, they will be congregated around the fountain, and don’t worry we will be there to supervise them at all times. Why not make your own puzzle book, (with the aid of your computer) &  create your own word search with the bride & grooms name in & other members of the family, you could even give each table a letter, the children would have to go to each table to find out each letter , then rearrange the letters to make a word relating to the special day, (it could be your honeymoon destination, where you both met,the possibilities are endless).

Make goodie bags, one for each child with a name tag on, by knowing the name & age of each child attending  will make buying little gifts easy,(ie; sweets, cars for boys, little bracelets for girls, crayons,  pencils, etc, along with the puzzle book you design.) will keep them amused for hours. My very talented Daughter & son in law did this for their wedding, and the children were kept busy all through the speeches which was wonderful, and of course you can still tie your colour theme in with the gift bags & tags so they do not look out of place at the table. see picture below.  (c)chocorococo

childrens goodie bags on table ready for use!

 

Regretfully we have turned away a few Schools & Colleges in the local area this week, who have wanted to hire our Chocolate Fountain for their  Prom, only to find the dates they require are already taken. May we advise anyone wanting to hire Chocorococo Chocolate Fountains for their celebrations or events to book early to avoid disappointment.

lesley with her 4* hygiene award

We are pleased  to announce …..

Chocorococo Chocolate Fountains have been awarded 4**** by the Environmental Health Department  for very good standards of food safety & Hygiene.

*Food Hygiene = Very High Standard

* Cleanliness & standard of facility = Very High Standard

* Confidence in management = Very Good

The scores are all based on an inspection of premises / equipment etc by a senior environmental health officer in April 2009. The scores on the doors as they are known by the health dept, can be viewed by members of the public at www.dudley.gov.uk/scoresonthedoors  .

We want all our customers present  & future to know we provide the very best service, and by booking with us you  can do so with the utmost confidence.

Over the last few years we have visited many fine establishments to provide a Chocorococo Chocolate Fountain for Weddings , Birthdays, Corporate functions , etc.  Some many times over , as we  frequently get asked  as to where we have provided a fountain , Here are a list of just a few we have attended….

Birmingham Council House Banqueting Suite,  Pear Tree Hotel Smite Worcs, Dormy House Hotel Broadway Worcs, Telford Golf & Country Club, Fieldings Auctioneers, Stourbridge, Windmill Village Hotel Coventry, Whittlebury Golf & Country Club Northampton, Abbey Hotel Golf & Country Club Redditch, Oxford Conference Centre, The Firs Codsall, Blakelands Country House Bobbington, Rose Garden Charitable Trust Hereford, Pendrall Hall Wolverhampton, Sketchley Grange Leics, Stone Manor Worcs, Burton Albion FC, Strawberry Bank Hotel  Meriden, Walsall FC, Charlcote Phesant Hotel Stratford, Tally Ho ! West Midlands Police Sports & Social Club Birmingham, Copthorne Hotel Dudley, Village Hotel Dudley, Stourbridge Tennis Club, The Mill Hotel , Alveley.

We cover within a 50 mile radius of Stourbridge,  occasionally we do cover further afield  but this would incurr mileage costs.

Wedding Location

Many bridal couples, event organisers etc, are disappointed when their expectations  are not met by the Chocolate Fountain Company they hire, every company have similarities, but are generally not the same, here are some of the questions we get asked, and some questions you may wish to ask other providers to help you book with confidence.

* How long have you been operating?

Chocorococo have been operating since 2007.

* Do you have a website & testimonials we can see?

Chocorococo’s testamonials can be viewed on our testamonial page at www.chocorococo.co.uk

* Are you a preferred supplier to any hotel, venue or corporate,if so which?

Chocorococo are the preferred suppliers of Birmingham City Council

*Do you have Public Liability Insurance,Health & Hygiene Certificates etc.

 Chocorococo do have Liability Insurance,  level 2 Health & Hygiene qualification, all our equipment has been pat tested(portable appliance test), and we are registered with the Local Health Department and have been awarded 4* hygiene rating.

* Do you charge Mileage or VAT?

We do charge mileage over a 25 / 30 mile radius, but we do not charge VAT

* How much deposit would you require and is it refundable?

A  non refundable deposit of 25% is required upon booking , the balance is payable 4 weeks prior to the event.

* Do you wear a uniform/catering gloves/apron?

chocorococo wear a black monogramed uniform with a white apron so as your guests can easily spot the Chocorococo team ,  our Chocolatier Danny wears his white Chefs jacket on some occasions and Latex catering gloves are always worn when handling food.

* What chocolate do you use, do you get a choice and what do you do with the left over chocolate do you re use it, & do you add oil?

Chocorococo use the finest Belgian Chocolate supplied by Giles & Posner, this does NOT require any oil, the most popular chocolate by far is Milk as it caters for everyone, although white & dark can be obtained too.We never reuse chocolate, all the chocolate that is left over from any function is left in suitable containers for the customer to reuse again after we have gone, as it will keep in a cool room / cupboard for 6 to 12 months.

* Do You provide Chocolate Samples?

Chocorococo can provide samples of chocolate for you to taste if requested.

* What dips do you provide , do you have a list to view & what happens if you run out?

We at chocorococo provide many dips,  these can be viewed on our dips page on our website www.chocorococo.co.uk . We have never run out of dips as we know how many to cater for before we arrive.

*How long will you be at the fountain & how long does it take you to set up & take down?

The fountain takes one and a half hours to set up, and approximately one hour to take down, we do ask to use the kitchen at the venue to wash down our fountain before transporting it home where it is thoroughly cleaned again. The Chocolate Fountain  runs for 3 hours

* Is your fountain staffed at all times?

Chocorococo staff stay with the fountain at all times, we know how excited children get when they see the fountain in operation, so we are at hand at all times to make sure there are no nasty accidents, and of course to assist any other guests who may need any assistance . We also make sure all areas are kept clean and looking presentable throughout.

* Are the photograph’s in your gallery your own?

The photo’s in the Chocorococo gallery are all of our fountain in operation and some of our lovely bridal couples we have had the pleasure of meeting.

We hope some of the above questions and answers have been helpful, and we urge you not  to be afraid to ask any of the above questions, or any more for that matter, as any reputable company will be more than happy to answer any questions and provide you with any relevant proof or recommendations etc. Ask if they have photographic proof and are the pictures on the website their own or are they library pictures. If you are unhappy with any of the answers received, then my advice is leave well alone.   (c)chocorococo

Many Congratulations to Michelle & Jim Marsh on your wedding at the Village Hotel Dudley 24th April 2009.
A great time was had by all.