What to Serve at a Nikah or Walima

Halal menu ideas for a nikah or walima — biryani, kottu and more.

For a nikah or walima, the food should feel special, generous, and unmistakably halal. A spread that consistently pleases mixed crowds: a biryani (chicken and mutton), a couple of curries, kottu roti for something memorable, a vegetarian option, and watalappan to finish.

A simple menu formula

Per guest, aim for one rice/biryani, two mains, one vegetarian dish, a side or salad, and a dessert. That covers every guest and looks abundant on the table. Everything Blessed Kitchen serves is 100% halal, so there's nothing to worry about for any guest.

Let us build it

Tell us your headcount and we'll design a nikah or walima menu to fit. See nikah catering or request a quote.

Nikah vs walima menus

The nikah meal is usually smaller and can be richer: Mutton Biryani Combo or String Hopper Biryani Combo (roughly $20 to $30 per person (quoted on menu and headcount)). The walima is often bigger, so many families choose Chicken Biryani Combo 2 (roughly $20 to $30 per person (quoted on menu and headcount)) for the main room and add vegetable combos for vegetarian guests. Finish both with kithul watalappan.

Allergy notes

Some of our dishes contain egg (kottu, egg masala, watalappan), dairy (yogurt sambal), fish (maasi sambal is made with dried Maldives fish) and nuts (green pea cashew curry). If anyone has an allergy, tell us when you order and we will tell you what to avoid.

Why the walima matters

The walima is the wedding meal hosted after the marriage, traditionally by the groom's side, and it is a sunnah that is meant to share the happiness with family, neighbours and the community. The tradition is clear that it does not have to be lavish, only generous with what the family can afford. That is a useful guide when you are choosing a menu: feeding everyone well matters more than the number of dishes.

Menus and budgets by guest count

All figures are food cost before tax and delivery, using our listed per-person prices.

• 40 guest nikah at home: String Hopper Biryani Combo, final pricing depends on your menu and headcount. A dish most guests have never had at a wedding.
• 150 guest walima: 130 x Chicken Biryani Combo 2 (quoted for your event) = $3,250, plus 20 x Vegetable Biryani Combo (quoted for your event) = $300. Total $3,550.
• 400 guest walima: Ghee Rice Combo 4 with whole chicken korma and Bengal masala beef, final pricing depends on your menu and headcount. Or Chicken Biryani Combo 1 at final pricing depends on your menu and headcount for a tighter budget.

Common mistakes

• Too much heat. Elders and children are at every walima. Choose combos where the hottest items, like maasi sambal, are on the side.
• Not asking about vegetarian guests. Add a dietary question to the RSVP so you know how many vegetable combos to order.
• Forgetting who serves. We deliver packed and ready, with no servers. Ask the venue or line up family helpers, and give each one a station.
• Late food. Tell us when the khutbah or speeches end, not just the start time, so the food arrives when people are ready to eat.
• No space for trays. Plan enough table length for every tray and chafing dish, with room to walk around both sides for a big hall.

Mosque halls and community centres

Many nikahs happen in a masjid hall. Ask the hall about outside food, kitchen access and cleanup before you book catering, and ask whether men's and women's sides need separate serving tables.

Call or text (647) 449-2924. See walima catering and nikah catering in Scarborough.