Has anyone successfully negotiated lower catering minimums for a Friday or Sunday evening reception in a major metro area?

Has anyone successfully negotiated lower catering minimums for a Friday or Sunday evening reception in a major metro area? Yes — we did it in Chicago for a Sunday wedding and cut the minimum from $15,000 to $9,500.

What worked for us:

• We asked in the off-season (February). Venues with empty Sunday calendars have real leverage to give you.
• We offered a shorter bar package and a brunch-style dinner menu, which lowered their food cost enough to justify the smaller minimum.
• We got two venues into a soft bidding situation and told both, politely, that the other was flexible on minimums.
• One venue would not budge on the food minimum but let us apply the gap toward upgrades — late-night snacks, a coffee station — so the money still went to our guests.

Friday and Sunday are genuinely negotiable. Saturdays in October are not. Pick your battle.