Boucherie-Traiteur Quiquerez

Boucherie-Traiteur Quiquerez is a butcher and caterer in the Jura, with its catering kitchen in Grandfontaine and butcher shops in Chevenez and Porrentruy. It cooks party menus built on local Ajoie specialties for events of 10 to 3,000 people, and its site says plainly that it is in high demand, above all for weddings.

A butcher that caters

The catering page describes the business as a trusted partner for all kinds of events, and lists the occasions it cooks for: associations and clubs, birthdays, weddings, baptisms and banquets. Its kitchen is described as "une cuisine du terroir, avec des spécialités d'Ajoie" (local cooking, with specialties of the Ajoie). The menus are called "menus de fête entre tradition et service de qualité", party menus between tradition and quality service.

Being a butcher first shapes the offer. The Chevenez shop is a Boucherie-Laiterie (butcher and dairy), the Porrentruy shop is a Boucherie, and the catering side works out of Grandfontaine. The menus themselves sit in a set of cards (cartes) on the site covering aperitifs, starters, main courses and desserts, and the page says most of the desserts are made by Quiquerez Jacky, a baker and pastry chef based in Grandfontaine. That means sweets come from within the business rather than from an outside bakery.

The main courses come with a range of sides the page names: noodles, gratin dauphinois, rice or spätzli. The important line for a couple is this one: "Tout est modulable", everything can be adjusted, and the menu is drawn up together to suit your wishes and your budget.

Service, staff and rentals

The business offers two service styles: a buffet or "assiettes chaudes", hot plated food served at the table. Either comes with staff and with equipment for hire, including tents and tableware, which the page describes as priced competitively.

Unusually, the page publishes some of its prices:

• Staff. Qualified service staff cost Fr. 22.- per hour, so the couple can spend the meal with their guests rather than serving.
• Tableware. Crockery is hired out at Fr. 2.- per person.
• Returned equipment. Loaned material must be returned clean and dry.
• VAT. The page notes that food delivered or taken away is billed with 2.6% VAT on top, while services carry 8.1%.

The VAT note is worth reading twice. It means the quote you receive may be split into food and service lines taxed at different rates, and that VAT is added on top of the stated prices rather than included.

What the page does not publish is a price per head for any wedding menu. The food itself is quoted to order.

Booking a year ahead

The site is direct about timing. It asks clients to book ahead because the business is in high demand, "notamment pour les mariages pour lesquels une réservation d'au moins un an à l'avance est conseillée" (especially for weddings, for which booking at least a year ahead is advised). The contact page adds that "l'agenda de certains week-ends se remplit très rapidement" (the calendar for some weekends fills up very quickly) and suggests getting in touch early.

For a couple planning from abroad, that year of lead time is the single most useful fact on the site. If your date is already fixed and less than a year away, ask straight away whether it is still free.

Delivery and practical details

The business delivers from Monday to Saturday. On Sundays it asks customers to collect their orders themselves. For a Sunday wedding, or a Sunday brunch after a Saturday wedding, that needs to be discussed, since the page does not say whether staffed event service on a Sunday works differently from a simple order.

The contact page gives the addresses and opening hours:

• Traiteur Grandfontaine, Chemin des Eperviers 9, phone 032 476 66 52 or 079 726 04 74, email traiteurquiquerez@bluewin.ch. Open Monday to Friday 8:00 to 12:00 and 13:30 to 18:30, Saturday 8:00 to 12:00 and 13:30 to 17:00, and Sunday 8:00 to 12:00.
• Boucherie-Laiterie Chevenez, Les Colonges 73B, phone 032 476 71 31. Open Monday to Friday 7:00 to 12:00 and 15:00 to 18:30, Saturday 7:00 to 12:00 and 15:00 to 17:00, closed Sundays.
• Boucherie Porrentruy, Route de Coeuve 1, phone 032 466 12 47. Open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 7:30 to 12:00 and 13:30 to 18:00, Wednesday mornings, and Saturday 8:00 to 12:00 and 13:30 to 15:00, closed Mondays and Sundays.

The butcher shops are accessible to people with reduced mobility and have parking. There is also a contact form on the site. With the Grandfontaine counter open every day of the week, a couple spending a few days in the area before the wedding can easily drop in to discuss the menu in person.

What the site leaves open

The site is written in French only and says nothing about English. A couple who do not speak French should expect to plan in French, or bring in someone who does. The pages also leave several questions for the first conversation:

• whether there is a minimum spend for a wedding, beyond the 10-person lower limit
• how far from the Ajoie the team will travel for an event
• whether drinks and wine can be supplied, which the page does not mention
• whether tables and chairs can be hired alongside tents and tableware
• how vegetarian guests and allergies are handled, since the page does not address diets

The catering page links to the full menu cards; ask for them early, since they are the only place the dishes themselves are set out.

Who it suits

Quiquerez suits couples marrying in the Jura, and especially in the Ajoie, who want hearty local cooking from a local butcher-caterer rather than a city events company. The range of 10 to 3,000 guests means neither a small family lunch nor a very large village wedding is out of scale, and the ability to add staff, tents and tableware from the same supplier helps at a farm, a hall or a private garden.

The published staff rate and tableware price make early budgeting easier than with most caterers. The caveats are the French-only communication, the long lead time for weddings, and a menu culture built around meat and regional classics, which is exactly the point for many couples but worth checking if your guest list has many vegetarians. Book early, ask for the cards, and settle Sunday logistics before signing.