Maximahl Catering AG

Maximahl Catering AG is a catering company at Edikerstrasse 18c in 8635 Dürnten, in the Zürcher Oberland, that caters weddings, company events, apéros, funerals and Christmas parties across the Oberland and the Zurich region. Its homepage gives the headline figures: more than 750,000 happy guests, 35 years of experience, more than 8,000 events, and "90% Frauenpower". The company is owned and managed by Elvira Holcomb, and its stated aim is that the host can sit back and be a guest at their own event: "Wir lassen Sie selbst Gast sein."

The wedding offer

The wedding page is headed "Hochzeitscatering, das Ihren Tag prägt" and promises catering "vom ersten Apéro bis zur Bar nach Mitternacht" (from the first apéro to the bar after midnight), personally planned and regionally cooked. It lists what can be booked:

• apéro and apéro riche, seated or standing, with or without service staff
• a gala dinner of several courses, classic or modern, or a flying dinner
• buffet concepts with themed stations, live cooking and grills
• food stands, with the house "Cheebab" as the highlight, giant pans and street food
• a bar with cocktails, wine, draft beer and soft drinks
• service staff, bar staff and cooks
• decoration, tableware, textiles and furniture as needed

The page says Maximahl plans weddings "vom intimen Familienkreis mit 30 Gästen bis zur Feier mit 200 Personen" (from an intimate family circle of 30 guests to a celebration of 200). It comes to the couple's chosen venue, "egal ob in einer eleganten Villa oder mitten in der Natur" (whether an elegant villa or out in nature), and supplies everything from one source: advice, menu, service, decoration and drinks. The offer page adds help with finding, booking and decorating a venue, and the company also has its own venue, the Event Loft in Dürnten.

What it costs

The wedding page publishes price guides per person:

• Apéro Riche: from CHF 40
• Erlebnispfanne (live-cooking giant pan) including a cook: from CHF 50
• buffet catering including staff: from CHF 80
• complete catering with apéro, dinner and bar: from CHF 150
• gala dinner, the all-inclusive package: from CHF 200

The apéro page adds its own guide: an apéro for pickup from CHF 30, with delivery and setup from CHF 50, and an apéro riche with staff from CHF 80. It says every catering is quoted individually, and that the price depends on scope, duration, guest numbers, type of menu and travel distance. The offer page notes that a simple buffet decoration is included in the price.

Sample menus

The wedding page shows three example menus. The classic one starts with a wedding apéro of flatbread crackers with dips, mini bagels, gazpacho in a glass and seasonal skewers, then a mixed summer leaf salad, roast beef with balsamic jus, potato gratin and summer vegetables, and a berry cup with strawberry sorbet. The exclusive menu opens with a mezze trio (falafel with yogurt and mint dip, labneh with flatbread, beetroot tabbouleh), then pumpkin risotto with red wine butter and a sautéed scallop, a peppermint sorbet, sous-vide bison fillet in an olive and herb crust with thyme jus, rosemary potatoes and Mediterranean vegetables, and mini desserts on tiered stands (lavender tiramisu, gianduja mousse with matcha crumble, mini eclairs with blackberries). A food-stand version combines an apéro buffet, an Asian noodle pan with chicken or tofu skewers, pineapple flambé with crêpes and coconut ice cream, and burgers in colored mini buns as a midnight snack.

The offer page describes the range as running from a gala dinner to "Ghackets und Hörnli" (minced meat with macaroni). The recommended food stand is the Cheebab, a kebab with cheese from the Wildberg dairy, cut from the spit.

Fait Maison and sourcing

The homepage says the company holds the "Fait Maison" label and commits to cooking fresh, honestly and from natural raw products. Dishes not made in-house are marked with a star (*) in the quote. The offer page says Maximahl prefers Swiss products from regional producers whenever possible and links to a list of its suppliers and partners. On allergens, it says the team will advise on ingredients that can trigger allergies or intolerances and asks clients to get in touch.

Planning and the team

The wedding page sets out four steps: a first conversation in which the couple describes the day and the team makes a first proposal; a tailored menu and service concept with a transparent quote; fine-tuning; and the day itself, summed up as "Wir kommen, dekorieren, kochen, servieren, räumen ab. Sie geniessen & sind selbst Gast."

On timing, the FAQ recommends 9 to 12 months' lead time for the main season from May to September, and says short-notice requests are also checked because the company can run several events a day. The homepage FAQ says Maximahl caters events from 30 people; smaller groups can pick up apéro bites in Dürnten if production allows.

The team page describes a staff of more than 50 employees and freelancers, 90% of them women, and names Elvira Holcomb as owner and managing director, Stefan Erni as head chef, and a row of cooks, event managers and administrative staff. It says the service staff are trained regularly.

What couples say

Three couples are quoted on the wedding page. Sheryl & Yannick (May 2026) booked a wedding apéro for 140 people and call it a carefree package. Markus & Michael (September 2025) praise the care from the first minute of planning to the day itself. Michelle & Pasquale (August 2022) mention the apéro buffet and the dinner. On the references page, Esther and Christoph write that the staff kept going through a sudden downpour during their wedding. The site shows a Google score of 4.9 out of 5.

What the site leaves open

The site is in German only and does not say whether the team plans in English. Several FAQ questions (which regions are covered, whether a tasting is possible, how vegan and gluten-free requests are handled) appear on the pages without their answers showing, so they are questions to ask. Deposit and cancellation terms sit in the general terms linked in the footer.

Who it suits

Maximahl suits couples marrying in the Zürcher Oberland or around Zurich with 30 to 200 guests who want to budget from real numbers and hand the whole day, food, bar, staff and decoration, to one company. The published price steps from CHF 40 to CHF 200 make it easy to compare. The caveats are the German-only site and the long lead time the company recommends for a date between May and September.