The Clay Pit Reviews

Every step of the process was amazing. Unlike most wedding caterers, Balto didn't make us take time out of days for long phone calls or try to upsell us -- he was quick, efficient, and transparent via email. He worked with our budget and was very patient throughout the whole process. Our wedding was small potatos compared to the large weddings they are used to working. Balto made sure we had everything we needed and truly went above and beyond. Hagen ran the show the day of our ceremony and he was kind, attentive and on top of everything. Their crew also staffed our bar and did a phenomenal job working with our custom cocktails and tweaking them to get them just right. The entire crew was a dream team of professionals. We love the Clay Pit in general, but they knocked it out of the park on our wedding. Our friends and family loved it -- even those with less than adventurous tastes. In a sea of mediocre and overpriced wedding food, Clay Pit's siren song was a welcome reprieve. The hardest part of my wedding day was trying to sneak off to eat more samosas.

Bali, one of the owners of Clay Pit, helped us plan a wonderful rehearsal dinner in their upstairs private room. He met with us multiple times to make sure our event was perfect. He actually made us Mexican food because we were having Indian food for the reception, and this Texan girl wanted fajitas but couldn't find a space to fit my husband's huge family! It worked out perfectly.

We held our reception at the Clay Pit in Austin on Guadalupe Street, in the heart of Austin. I could never begin to express at just how perfect this location was for our reception. First of all, the food is absolutely delicious. Not many of our guests had even had Indian food before, but left boasting of how great their meal was and applauding our unique choice. Secondly, the server we had was phenomenal. He performed his job perfectly, and never once were we left wondering where he was, or even waiting. He took our orders quickly, spaced out the timing of the meal perfectly, and was just plain efficient-- clearing plates, refilling drinks, handing out appetizers, suggesting menu items each guest might enjoy; there was never a time when our guests were simply sitting wondering what was going on, as is quite normal with large parties. Most importantly, the atmosphere was incredible. While the reception was held at a restaurant, it didn't feel like it. We were placed in a separate room from the other diners in a romantic wine room. We were running late for our reservation so the staff called to ask if we wanted them to set up our flowers and decor for us, and had it ready to go before the volunteer decorators from the wedding party even got there, and they did a fantastic job! I would definitely suggest this restaurant to anyone looking for a unique place to hold their reception. We were trying to stay within a budget, as most people are during this economic time, and that is why we looked at restaurants for the reception as most venues require such a large amount to be spent. The Clay Pit only charged me $50 reservation fee, which was applied to the bill, and 15% gratuity, which we added to greatly after the meal due to how wonderful the entire staff performed. The final, and most surprising detail, was that at the end of the meal when we received the final bill, it was more than half of what we had originally planned to spend! We came out under $600, including a generous tip, for food & alcoholic drinks for 22 people. We were astonished. Most other venues we contacted quoted us at around $1200 for the food alone, not including drinks, tips, staffing, and any other fees they would slip into the final contract. I feel truly blessed for finding this place, they made my wedding a very special night at a fraction of the cost. When you don't have much money, planning a wedding is disheartening because you feel like you are missing out on certain things you can't afford, but I did not regret a thing thanks to Chapel Dulcinea & Clay Pit. They helped to make one of the most important days of my life feel just as special as if I had spent thousands of dollars.

The Clay Pit provided catering and full staff for my wedding. The food was delicious as always and they went out of their way to accommodate a request from my in-laws for falafel (they're part Greek) in addition to the Indian menu. There is an impressive variety of complex vegetarian dishes (though their entire menu is strong) and it was a high-quality spread. Definitely well-suited to the mixed audience. The service was also impeccable. There was a minor hitch in terms of the stuff I was supposed to provide not making it to the venue, but they quickly solved that. They also managed the setup for the reception, which went very smoothly.

The room was very dim and there were remnants of events till hanging from the wall and ceiling.