Toutvent AG

A Thun caterer on the Thun-Expo grounds

Toutvent AG is a catering and events company based on the Thun-Expo exhibition grounds at Reitweg 18 in Thun. Its catering page offers food "geliefert oder vor Ort", delivered or on site, and its wedding page opens with "Ihre Hochzeit - so individuell wie Sie", your wedding, as individual as you are. For a couple marrying around Lake Thun, it is a caterer that can also help find and run the venue, from a small boat on the lake to one of the exhibition halls.

The history page explains the roots. In 1990 Peter Toutvent, a Thun master butcher who owned the Toutvent butcher's shop on the Länggasse, founded Rubi & Toutvent AG with a business partner, and the catering grew out of the butcher's party service. The page calls its early restaurant operations at the Oberländische Herbstausstellung OHA and the open-air cinema on the roof of the Grabengut car park legendary. A few years later came Toutvent AG Restaurationsbetriebe, run by Peter Toutvent and his wife Margrit with a core team. When the Thun-Expo halls were built, the company became the exclusive partner of the Genossenschaft Thun-Expo. In May 2016 Martin Dummermuth Eggermann and his family became owners and managers. The page says he worked at various 5- and 4-star hotels in Switzerland before joining. Peter Toutvent remains chairman of the board. Today the company has 3 areas, catering, restaurant operations and equipment rental, and the page describes it as one of the large family-run names in catering and the trade-fair business in the canton of Bern and beyond, now in its second generation.

Three kinds of wedding

The wedding page describes 3 styles, each with a suggested setting:

• A big party ("rauschendes Hochzeitsfest"). For a celebration with cool music, an unusual setting and plenty of surprises, the page suggests one of the large exhibition halls, "insbesondere die neue Halle 6 mit ihren modularen Torsystemen und der Galerie als Rückzugsort", especially the new Hall 6 with its modular gate systems and a gallery as a retreat.
• An elegant wedding ("edles Hochzeitsfest"). For a festive setting "am liebsten am Seeufer, mit Blumengirlanden, edel gedeckten Tischen und Tanzfläche" (ideally on the lakeshore, with flower garlands, elegantly set tables and a dance floor), it offers locations on the lake or in the Waldhaus, a forest house, up to a full service for the couple and guests. A couple who already has a venue can book Toutvent for everything around it, or book its event planning from A to Z.
• A family wedding ("familiäres Hochzeitsfest"). For a smaller circle, the page suggests places such as the charter boat MS Oberhofen on Lake Thun. It names the formats: an apéro after the ceremony, a festive banquet, or a relaxed party with cold and warm finger food and drinks.

The locations

The locations page lists the spaces with capacities. Toutvent is the caterer for all of them; it does not claim to own the halls or the boat.

• Alte Reithalle Thun, up to 450 people, adaptable, with technical equipment.
• Reithalle Ost, up to 40 people, suggested for brunches, birthdays and other small gatherings.
• Various exhibition halls at Thun-Expo, up to 1000 people, with food served at table or as a buffet.
• MS Oberhofen. As catering partner of this recently restored motor ship, nicknamed the Oberhofnerli in Thun, Toutvent offers seating for 32 people, or up to 50 for a standing lunch or apéro.
• Guntelsey, Thun. A shooting range in Thun-Allmendingen whose rooms, the page says, work well as a party venue, including for "ein spezielles Hochzeitsapéro und -fest". It describes the setting as in nature yet close to town and the motorway.
• Other places. Through its network, the page says, Toutvent has many locations "die wir für Sie mieten und betreiben dürfen", which it may rent and run for clients: one of the Lake Thun castles, a meadow directly on the lake, or a well-equipped forest hut.

The catering

For events of up to 200 people, the catering page promises made-to-measure service for private parties, company events, standing lunches or an Apéro riche, "frische, kreative Menüs oder Häppchen" (fresh, creative menus or bites) and a smooth running order. For a couple with a venue already booked, it offers everything "von kleinen Häppchen bis zu festlichen Gala-Menüs", from small bites to festive gala dinners.

For large events of 200 people or more, the page cites national gymnastics festivals, cantonal yodeling and Swiss wrestling festivals and international conferences, and says its menus take account of allergens, intolerances and cultural dietary rules. That statement is made for large events; a couple with specific needs should confirm it for a wedding. The site also offers the "Originale Café de Paris", which can be reserved at Toutvent or for home.

The company-events page adds that there is ample parking on the Thun-Expo grounds and that transport can be organized on request.

Contact

Toutvent AG, Reitweg 18, 3600 Thun, +41 33 225 11 30, with a contact form and a non-binding inquiry option on the catering page.

What the site does not settle

• Language. The site is in German and says nothing about English.
• Prices. No prices for menus, rooms or the boat are published.
• Hall and boat terms. The site gives capacities but not rental conditions; the Thun-Expo halls are booked through thun-expo.ch, which the locations page links to.
• Equipment rental. The company rents out material, but the wedding page does not say what is included in a wedding offer.
• Terms. Deposit, cancellation and lead time are not stated.

Who it suits

Toutvent suits couples marrying around Thun who want one partner for food, service and venue help, with a choice that is rare in one place: a party in a large hall, an elegant dinner by the lake or in a forest house, or an intimate reception for up to 32 seated guests on a boat. The long history, back to 1990, and the experience with very large events suggest a team used to logistics.

The caveats are the German-only site and the lack of published prices. A couple from abroad should say in the first message which of the 3 wedding styles they have in mind, the guest count and the date, since the choice of location drives everything else.