Essence of the Thymes

Essence was amazing. We worked a lot with Hope, and she was so great to work with. They were very patient as we changed our minds about a few things a few times and they really helped us coordinate what things we needed to rent from CORT Party Place. I honestly felt like Hope was a little bit of our banquet coordinator, not only a caterer. We couldn’t be happier with them! The food was delicious. Everything went just right and we couldn’t have done it without them. The only thing I wish had been a little different is that I printed little table menus and signage and I wish I had thought to talk to them about coordinating my signage with theirs. Between Essence and our day-of coordinator Chloe Hix (who has lots of experience working with Essence), we felt so well taken care of. Everyone who we talked to was impressed by how smoothly our wedding flowed, which is in large part due to their suggestions about how to manage the flow of the event so people didn't go inside and outside too much as they moved between first dance / toast / cake cutting / dinner. Essence also took care of cocktail hour, including appetizers and a cheese tray for when guests first arrived, and had several bartenders there for pouring wine and beer too. Hire them, you won't be disappointed!

I was telling a friend about the incredible caterer we had for our wedding in Summer '22 and realized I'd never left a review. Better late than never. Essence of Thymes deserves this review and more. We'd originally had another caterer lined up and they ghosted us a few months out - never heard back. Worried we'd run out of "thyme" - sorry couldn't help myself! We called Essence and they were lovely, professional and straightforward right from the get go. We had a few family members from California sceptical about the BBQ spread, but that was what our budget allowed, in addition to appetizers. I literally still have friends and family tell us it wasn't just the best wedding food they'd ever had, but it was some of the best BBQ. Folks came up to me at the wedding numerous times to tell me: the food is good?! Simple, delicious, and yet elegant? There were thoughtful touches like garnish, and arrangements were beautiful. Didn't think I'd ever say that about buffet style BBQ. Also the appetizers. Bacon wrapped dates - pretty standard, but these were so good. Everyone loved them. We didn't realize how much it would mean to have our guests really loving the food, and feeling full - not hangry - it just made the vibe merry and fun. Don't underestimate having good food, and a lot of it!! They even saved me a plate seeing I was talking to guests and unable to try any - just so thoughtful. Such great service!!! We didn't expect they'd have such a robust crew, and serve the appetizers?! We'd thought they would place them out for guests to graze. Seriously just an incredible crew. So professional, kind, and efficient, they just did their thing and flowed. They packed up leftovers for us and stored them. If you're like us looking for really good delicious food, and lovely service look no further. Thank you so much Essence of the Thymes. Thank you 🙏

We just had Essence cater our wedding about two weeks ago and they ARE INCREDIBLE. Hope, Chase, and the rest of the team are just fantastic. We worked with Hope to set up our contract, menu, and to finalize details and she was so professional and on top of everything from start to finish. They even solved an issue with Cort regarding linens and took the worry off my plate. And the food was absolutely incredible.! We did the shrimp crostini, the feta cherry tomatoes, and the cheese stuffed mushrooms for appetizers. All of them were AMAZING- the tomatoes and shrimp were my personal favorite and my husband hasn’t stopped raving about the mushrooms since he first had them. We also had the pasta, salad, and veggie buffet and we had at least five guests rave about how good the food was, especially since wedding food can sometimes be lackluster. Essence truly is extremely professional, their food is tasty, and they know what they are doing. Highly recommend Essence for your large event needs!!

We recently had the pleasure of working with Essence of the Thymes for our rehearsal dinner and wedding reception, and I was absolutely blown away by their service and food. From the moment we first contacted them, Hope, Chase and team were incredibly responsive and helpful. They took the time to understand our vision for the event and create a menu that was perfect for us.
On the day of the wedding, their staff was absolutely amazing. They were friendly, efficient, and attentive. The food was plated beautifully and tasted fantastic! Our guests raved about the food, and I couldn't have been happier with the way everything turned out.
I would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a caterer for their special event. They are truly a cut above the rest.

Here are some specific things that I appreciated about Essence,
- Their communication was excellent. Hope is truly a joy to communicate with! I could probably talk to her for hours. I really appreciated the care and time she took to help me organize the food for both our rehearsal and wedding reception.
- They were very flexible and accommodating. They were willing to work with me to create a special menu for my rehearsal that related to how my fiancé proposed
- Their food was delicious. It was fresh, flavorful, and beautifully presented. I highly recommend the peanut butter and jelly pork belly and chocolate chip cookies!!!
- Also - Their bartending service was impeccable. All of my guests loved their cocktails - especially me! 🙂

I would not hesitate to use Essence again for any future events. They are truly a top-notch caterer.

We used Essence of the Thymes for our wedding 3 years ago. To this day, I get compliments on how great the food was! My husband was thrilled to sit down and actually eat the meal we paid for. They were incredibly easy to work with throughout the entire process. They matched our “theme” and colors with perfection. And the appetizers we had, amazing (chef kiss). I highly recommend for any catering event! Thanks to them for the great memories.

Yum! They catered a large charity event I attended in Poulsbo with over 150 people, and even though they served the food buffet-style, it was one of the best meals I’ve ever had at a banquet. The menu included chicken satay kebabs, an amazing salmon quiche that was to die for, fresh fruit that was at its peak of flavor and ripeness, blueberry scones and a an orzo, pasta salad with zucchini and onions. The flavor combinations were perfect and well-balances and the food was cooked perfectly. I don’t know how they do it serving food for such a large crowd in a buffet line. The servers had perfect timing, they were attentive when needed, and out of the way, when the speakers were at the mic, they were very professional and also friendly.

We selected Essence of the Thyme for our Port Gamble wedding because they were listed as a preferred
vendor by Port Gamble, had excellent reviews and we liked the vibe we felt when corresponding with
Gina. The wonderful food and service they provided went beyond our expectations. Every item in the
buffet dinner was perfectly cooked and seasoned with an expert hand. After the wedding a friend listed
off each item and described how delicious it was, and when she mentioned the green beans said, “and
how often do you even remember the green beans!” In addition to the great meal, we also want to
commend the serving staff and bartenders whose competent and professional service from set-up to
take down created a wonderful atmosphere for our guests. Thanks to Gina, Hope and all your crew for
bringing your talents and expertise to our special day!

My family and i have been using this company for almost 20 years. They catered my brother's wedding, a ton of friends, family members and my own wedding. My wife and I did not want a traditional sit-down meal at our wedding. We wanted to keep everybody talking, dancing and just keep the vibe fluid. Gina and the Essence team were excited to help us come up with an amazing menu of small bites and appetizers that made us happy! We actually really enjoyed the whole process of working with their team to help make our day super special. I still have people come up to me 10 years later telling me they loved the food at my wedding. Everything they put out was a homerun. Every time we are at an event where Essence of the Thymes is catering, we are always blown away with the quality of meats and produce they use. The flavor they put on the food is incredible. The spices and herbs are always quality. We love them so much that we decided to give the holiday menu a try this last Thanksgiving. The Turkey was brined overnight and seasoned like a goddess. All the sides were as good or better than we could have done ourselves especially the gorgonzola mashed potatoes. The food was so good that we decided to get all of our Christmas food from them. They just always hit it out of the park. When I think of quality food I think of Gina and her amazing team. Growing up in this town i know it's not easy to find great food. But we always get it with Essence of the Thymes. We appreciate you guys so much and look forward to more events!

WOW! We loved everything about Essence’s service, food, the presentation, communication, everything! We got TONS of compliments on the food at our wedding. I especially couldn’t get enough of the bacon wrapped dates, Gorgonzola mashed potatoes and grilled salmon. The team even brought in a charcoal grill to cook it right there on site. Gina, Hope, Chase and the whole team were so kind and worked so hard, and were flexible when we had a last minute change. They even prepped a vegan meal for my cousin without even being asked. They truly went above and beyond! So happy with the choice for our wedding day.

We recently had a private party at Blue Heron Jewelry catered by Essence of Thymes. The finger foods were so tasty and easy for our guests to eat. The service was professional. This is a great company I will use again for my next event!

This catering team of hosts, chefs, and managers is amazing. Oh – and their food is top-notch, too. We had wedding guests who were allergic to a number of items on the classic menu, so the chefs worked with us to deliver a safe and healthy menu everyone could enjoy. Being in the Pacific Northwest, we also did not wish to go for the age-old salmon dinner for our entrée, so the chefs explored other meaty-fish options for us that were within our budget (how does citrus-grilled swordfish with sweet corn salsa sound, huh?). It was a unique and fun, professional experience working with Essence of the Thymes, from the start of our vendor hunt (at the beginning of 2020) through our (postponed) event in summer 2022. What a perfect experience! Thanks, EotT!

I love them!! They are very Professional, caring, they go above and beyond, the Food and service quality is 10 stars, the amount of care that goes into things that they do is out of this world!! And I mean that!. I know who I’ll be calling for any event that I’m doing and I asked for some of their cards and I pass them out whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Thank you Essence of the Thymes for everything you do and your wonderful work family.

I just worked with Essence of the Thymes on a wedding this past weekend and they are hands down one of the greatest experiences I've had working with a caterer. We had a pretty tight turnaround on the wedding planning as this was a last minute decision by the couple, and Hope was more than accommodating, tremendously patient, and helpful with suggestions, adjustments, and everything in between. The staff was so fun to work with, and the food was to DIE for.

10/10 recommend on every front.

We used Essence of the Thymes for our wedding and I can not recommend the entire team enough. Even from the beginning of our planning stage the team was helpful and even gave me suggestions that I absolutely used. They worked with us and with our venue to create a beautiful evening and they even made sure that my husband and I got to actually eat during our wedding. Can’t recommend them enough. Would give 10 stars if I could. Thank you to the entire Essence of the Thymes team!

Were thrilled with Essence of the Thymes for our wedding catering. We were pretty much sold after trying their Gorgonzola mashed potatoes served with a bite a flank steak and a sprig of thyme at the Kitsap wedding show. It worked out perfectly that they were one of the approved and recommended caterers for our chosen venue. Hope was knowledgeable, professional and down to earth. She provided us great menu options and was flexible with accommodating our preferences. Got tons of compliments on how delicious everything was. They also gave us a sweet wedding present; a great surprise!

What a fantastic group of people. We loved working with them! And the food... delicious! They navigated our food restrictions with ease and had options upon options. They made my fiance and I feel special. Honestly, when we started looking with our budget we weren't sure what kind of experience we were gonna get but when we went with Essence of Thyme we were completely rewarded. Hope was amazing. Communicative, professional, fun, flexible, and reassuring. For any soon-to-be-brides in the area I 100% recommend using Essence.

I would give them 10 stars if I could. I called a week and half before my event. I had a caterer lined up for a special reward lunch , they backed out. I am now a week and half away from this lunch, and while I had a back up plan (do it myself), it was not desirable. I knew it would be a challenge, because of the holidays, and short notice. I was having trouble even getting places to call/email me back. My stress level was category 5 because not only did I need a lunch for 60 people during the holiday season, I really wanted to use a business within the Port Orchard community, and I wanted the lunch to be as special as the people who were going to be eating it..
So, I called Essence of the Thymes, and who should answer...Hope. I feel bad, because I am sure they have had their name played on a time or two in their life, but it really did seem like a sign. I could gush on for a while about Hope. I told her my predicament, and I am all but begging from the onset. I just need the food, I don't need staff, I don't even need real chaffing (sp) dishes, just food in foil pans anything. Bless her heart, she says let me check with the team, see what we can do.
Boom, no problem, no brainer, we got you. She was the embodiment of her name. So, I laid what I needed, how many, my budget, she said very kindly..."any wiggle room?" yes, just get it done. She told me here is what i can do, i said great, and gave her my card number.
I have several high stress events/tasks going on the week of the event, I had to let it go, hope they showed, and hope everything tastes good enough.
The day of, I had everything set up and ready, and now I just had to wait. I see them coming in, oh relief, they showed. 2 of the nicest people you will ever meet are toting in stuff, Hannah and Chase. They are beyond professional, they were considerate of how the table was already set, and I said, you do you. They got everything set (and reset because others had ideas), and boogied. (and came back later and picked everything up) Everything looked great, and was presented beautifully and smelled delish. It was not...It was deliciousness to the 10th power. Everybody raved, I was a total hero and it was beyond spectacular. It may seem as if I am gushing, I am. Yes this was a fairly simple lunch for 60 hearty eaters, but WOW, the salad, I mean it's a salad, anybody can make a salad, right?! Even it was getting raving compliments. Their ranch dressing - people who don't like ranch were raving about it. Garlic Bread..huge rustic pieces with dripping butter, and the perfect balance, but the pasta and chicken...should win awards. The veggies, huge raves from everyone. There was enough for hearty eaters to go back for seconds ( a mistake I made, and have regretted for many hours..so stuffed) There were some leftovers, much to everyone's delight.
I sincerely wish we did more catering events like this, because I would hire them every time. Unfortunately, I don't have a huge need, or often, but I promise you, they will be my first call in the future.
So, if you are newbie to event organization, or you are the person that they said, hey, can you handle this, and you have no idea where to start, or you are the professional event organizer, please give them a call. I promise you will not be disappointed. The food is great (totally inadequate word), and staff is even better.
Thank you to the team that is Essence of the Thymes for an amazing lunch.

Essence was absolutely amazing to work with. Everyone at my wedding loved the apps and dinner. We had several hobbyist food critics there who would not stop raving. The food was delicious. There were so many options to choose from and they were flexible as we went through menu iterations. Hope is an absolute dream to coordinate with. Understanding, reasonable, accommodating. Everyone was pleasant to our guests who continually gave us compliments regarding the food and service. We were a little behind when it came to choosing a caterer for our wedding and after doing research and comparing options we decided to go with Essence. So glad we did! From the start they relieved our stress and made the entire experience that much more positive.

We attended tasting events for other fancy caterers in Seattle but Essence of the Thymes had by far the best food (and lowest prices). Our wedding reception dinner was delicious. The petite filet and fresh salmon entrees are unrivaled. I've never seen a steak cooked to perfection like that, and the lemon caper topping on the salmon was just right. Plus, they make the BEST homemade cheesecake you have ever tasted. So many of our family and friends complimented us on the food: generous portions, beautiful plating, and not too heavy on the sauce or dressing. Highly recommended.

Essence of the Thymes recently catered our wedding. They provided us with excellent service and the food was fantastic! Their staff arrived on time and made everything easy for us. I highly recommend them!