Buffet catering is one of the most popular catering services that people use to entertain their guests during an event. Buffet catering gives freedom to the guests and allow them to choose how much food they want to have. To prepare a buffet, there are certain things that you need to take note of. You should always engage a professional caterer to assist in setting it up. Before you pick up your phone and start hiring, let me share with you 5 tips to prepare for your buffet before you hire a professional caterer:
1. Find out how many people are attending your event. Before you hire a buffet caterer, you need to know the number of attendees. However, it is impossible to get an accurate number of people who will turn up on the actual day. You should take note that there will be around 5 to 10 percent of people who will not turn up at the last minute even though they have registered for your event. So with this, you will not over-order the amount of food needed.
2. Which type of buffet do you want? You can either choose a normal buffet or a BBQ buffet. If you choose a BBQ buffet, you will make your event more relaxing and it also allow more interaction between your guests.
3. Pick the type of food for the buffet. You can choose different types of food for your buffet catering. There are Western, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, etc. Whichever type of food you choose, your buffet caterer should be able to fulfill your request.
4. Plan out the space for the buffet. Your buffet caterer will need a huge space to set things up on the day itself. So make sure that you plan out a space for him or her to work on. The place that you cater for buffet should be spacious enough for your guests to move around and interact. If it is too small, it can get crowded easily and make your guests feel unpleasant.
5. Brief your caterer on every single detail. To ensure a successful catering, you should let your caterer know all the necessary details before the event. Make sure that your caterer knows what time he or she needs to set things up and what time to clean up the setup area
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
Corporate Catering 101
Most corporate catering planning arrangements are placed on the PA or secretary or similar person and are usually on behalf of the boss or superior within the organization. The result is meant to impress, be professional and fall within budgetary constraints. If this task falls on you, here are some tips to a successful result.
Plan ahead. Ensure you have all your requirements at hand. Nothing is more frustrating than receiving calls from under-prepared clients. Style, number of people attending, demographic of attendees, time of the event, duration of the event, location, facilities, food and or beverage requirements and last but not least, budget. Each area is discussed below.
Style: Is the event formal or casual? What is the desired outcome? Who are you trying to impress?
Number of people: Often referred to as 'pax', the number of people attending the event is of paramount importance in planning both seating arrangements and catering alike. Have an idea before calling around.
Demographic: Understanding who your guests are will allow for appropriate catering requirements to satisfy a range of tastes and styles. Are the guests mainly men, therefore requiring more substantial food items? Or are they likely to be a greater female demographic who usually prefer smaller, daintier food items? Possibly the attendees are form a particular cultural or religious sect and more thought and panning is required not to offend. These are all important issues to a positive outcome.
Time and Duration: Have a clear understanding of when the event will start, have breaks and finish and the appropriate catering requirements for each interval. Both food and beverage components need thought and attention to satisfy each delegate to the event.
Plan ahead. Ensure you have all your requirements at hand. Nothing is more frustrating than receiving calls from under-prepared clients. Style, number of people attending, demographic of attendees, time of the event, duration of the event, location, facilities, food and or beverage requirements and last but not least, budget. Each area is discussed below.
Style: Is the event formal or casual? What is the desired outcome? Who are you trying to impress?
Number of people: Often referred to as 'pax', the number of people attending the event is of paramount importance in planning both seating arrangements and catering alike. Have an idea before calling around.
Demographic: Understanding who your guests are will allow for appropriate catering requirements to satisfy a range of tastes and styles. Are the guests mainly men, therefore requiring more substantial food items? Or are they likely to be a greater female demographic who usually prefer smaller, daintier food items? Possibly the attendees are form a particular cultural or religious sect and more thought and panning is required not to offend. These are all important issues to a positive outcome.
Time and Duration: Have a clear understanding of when the event will start, have breaks and finish and the appropriate catering requirements for each interval. Both food and beverage components need thought and attention to satisfy each delegate to the event.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Informanl Lunch Catering for a Laid Back Event
If it is an informal lunch like family gathering or an informal lunch catering, you can plan some grilling or BBQ. In that case you can opt for the grilled food you can include hamburgers, hot dogs and even sausages. You can also serve some tomatoes, pickles and onions. Also include some lettuce and cabbages and also potato. They make great cold salads.
If you would like to have an informal lunch, minus the long cooking time, you can opt for fish. Tuna steaks or white fish that has been steamed with vegetables in tinfoil on the grill will be perfect for a quick and tasty lunch among friends. Here's a word of caution, though. Before planning a fish meal, check whether any of your guests suffer from allergies to seafood.
If the lunch is a celebration, the menu will need to include heartier dishes. You can go in for chops or grilled steaks, with grilled vegetables or a tossed salad as a side dish.
If the day is especially hot, you might want to go in for a cold lunch. The menu could include chilled shrimp that has been boiled and peeled, along with different types of sushi and cold green salad. A salad bar is optional. You can, however, include on the menu cooked and chilled steak, turkey, chicken or ham along with grated cheese and boiled eggs with different types of dressings. As you get involved in deciding a proper lunch catering menu , you will find that the job is no longer a tough task.
If you would like to have an informal lunch, minus the long cooking time, you can opt for fish. Tuna steaks or white fish that has been steamed with vegetables in tinfoil on the grill will be perfect for a quick and tasty lunch among friends. Here's a word of caution, though. Before planning a fish meal, check whether any of your guests suffer from allergies to seafood.
If the lunch is a celebration, the menu will need to include heartier dishes. You can go in for chops or grilled steaks, with grilled vegetables or a tossed salad as a side dish.
If the day is especially hot, you might want to go in for a cold lunch. The menu could include chilled shrimp that has been boiled and peeled, along with different types of sushi and cold green salad. A salad bar is optional. You can, however, include on the menu cooked and chilled steak, turkey, chicken or ham along with grated cheese and boiled eggs with different types of dressings. As you get involved in deciding a proper lunch catering menu , you will find that the job is no longer a tough task.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
A Great Lunch Catering
If you have been entrusted with the responsibility of planning a lunch catering menu , you need not panic. Even though the task is not an easy one it isn’t a difficult task either. All you need to have is a proper planning, and all your things will into place well.
The first step to a successful catering is to begin with decisions. You need to finalize on the theme of lunch, the sort of food that is simply loved by the invitees, the number of invited people, and finally doing all these keeping the budget of the lunch in head. The budget of the lunch will depend mostly on whether it is an official lunch or an informal party.
In case you are planning for a corporate lunch or an official lunch, then your lunch catering menu can include items like a Deli sandwich platter, vegetarian platter, upscale platter, wrap sandwich platter, a vegetarian meze platter or a fresh salad platter. You can even create a sandwich bar with your local deli. You can also include different kinds of meats like the sliced turkey, chicken or even ham. You can also serve chips, pickles, olives and finger food sides.
The first step to a successful catering is to begin with decisions. You need to finalize on the theme of lunch, the sort of food that is simply loved by the invitees, the number of invited people, and finally doing all these keeping the budget of the lunch in head. The budget of the lunch will depend mostly on whether it is an official lunch or an informal party.
In case you are planning for a corporate lunch or an official lunch, then your lunch catering menu can include items like a Deli sandwich platter, vegetarian platter, upscale platter, wrap sandwich platter, a vegetarian meze platter or a fresh salad platter. You can even create a sandwich bar with your local deli. You can also include different kinds of meats like the sliced turkey, chicken or even ham. You can also serve chips, pickles, olives and finger food sides.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Catering Delicious Mexican Food!
Do you find yourself searching the internet for Mexican food catering companies only to find that you don't know a thing about them. You got family coming in town and you obviously wanna impress them, and you only have one chance to make a first impression. Well here's some advice.
1.) While some people might have a cynical predisposition to leave only negative feedback, most people use review sites to help their fellow consumer. So check the review sites like Urbanspoon, Yelp and City Search.
2.) If the potential caterer has a restaurant, GO THERE. Check 'em out. If the food and service are terrible at the restaurant, guess what, their catering product is probably going to be terrible as well.
3.) Ask for references. Any reputable caterer will gladly fork over, no pun intended, a list of happy clients.
4.) Its not all about the price. Cheaper is not better, just as more expensive is not better. It comes down to a dollar vs. product. What is the biggest bang for your buck. So start with a philosophy of "What is the most quality I can afford?" and go from there.
5.) Apples to Apples. Make sure your comparing apples to apples. If one caterer provides a condiment that another doesn't, take that into consideration.
6.) Portion Size. It's time to get specific. Whether it be a quantity or weight, you want to know. Do not settle for terms like "enough for one person".
7.) Hidden Charges. Don't fall for the low per head charge only to realize that the caterer failed to mention anything about a service charge, gratuity, or delivery charge. Any reputable catering company will be upfront with costs.
1.) While some people might have a cynical predisposition to leave only negative feedback, most people use review sites to help their fellow consumer. So check the review sites like Urbanspoon, Yelp and City Search.
2.) If the potential caterer has a restaurant, GO THERE. Check 'em out. If the food and service are terrible at the restaurant, guess what, their catering product is probably going to be terrible as well.
3.) Ask for references. Any reputable caterer will gladly fork over, no pun intended, a list of happy clients.
4.) Its not all about the price. Cheaper is not better, just as more expensive is not better. It comes down to a dollar vs. product. What is the biggest bang for your buck. So start with a philosophy of "What is the most quality I can afford?" and go from there.
5.) Apples to Apples. Make sure your comparing apples to apples. If one caterer provides a condiment that another doesn't, take that into consideration.
6.) Portion Size. It's time to get specific. Whether it be a quantity or weight, you want to know. Do not settle for terms like "enough for one person".
7.) Hidden Charges. Don't fall for the low per head charge only to realize that the caterer failed to mention anything about a service charge, gratuity, or delivery charge. Any reputable catering company will be upfront with costs.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Your Business Lunch Catering Specialist
Many of us have had to attend a business lunch or meeting for work which was catered. But how many of us had to hire the catering company? Often times, these meetings are scheduled the day before - or even the morning of. If you are charged with the task of finding food for the next business lunch, don't panic. Here are some tips for catering a business lunch on short notice.
Find out who will be attending the lunch meeting. How many people will be eating? Ask your boss or the meeting executive whether or not the lunch should be casual or more upscale. This is important because you certainly will not want to order a three-course meal for an informal business lunch. Conversely, you will not want to order sub sandwiches for a room full of executives or board of directors, unless specifically asked. Of course, you may have a budget to which you need to adhere. This may also determine the type of food you purchase for your business lunch. In most cases, however, sandwiches and fruit or potato chips are ideal for an impromptu business lunch.
Try to find out what type of food the attendees prefer. If there is time, take a quick poll of the attendees and see if they have a craving for a certain type of food. You can also provide them with a choice - Mexican or Chinese food? Sandwiches or Pasta? Be careful, though. You may have a lot of differing responses, which will leave some of the attendees disappointed in your food selection. When in doubt, it is best to make the decision yourself. If you have had business lunches catered with these people in the past, think of some of the dishes that you know they enjoy.
Find out who will be attending the lunch meeting. How many people will be eating? Ask your boss or the meeting executive whether or not the lunch should be casual or more upscale. This is important because you certainly will not want to order a three-course meal for an informal business lunch. Conversely, you will not want to order sub sandwiches for a room full of executives or board of directors, unless specifically asked. Of course, you may have a budget to which you need to adhere. This may also determine the type of food you purchase for your business lunch. In most cases, however, sandwiches and fruit or potato chips are ideal for an impromptu business lunch.
Try to find out what type of food the attendees prefer. If there is time, take a quick poll of the attendees and see if they have a craving for a certain type of food. You can also provide them with a choice - Mexican or Chinese food? Sandwiches or Pasta? Be careful, though. You may have a lot of differing responses, which will leave some of the attendees disappointed in your food selection. When in doubt, it is best to make the decision yourself. If you have had business lunches catered with these people in the past, think of some of the dishes that you know they enjoy.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Our Customers Love Us!
"Good Morning Richard!
Thank you for the WONDERFUL catering event. Your group even got praise at our all-staff meeting this morning from the co-owners of the house and company. I can assure you that based on the feedback I got on the food and overall catering party, that we’ll be using you folks again. Everything was wonderful!
Thank you so much!
-Trish"
Thank you for the WONDERFUL catering event. Your group even got praise at our all-staff meeting this morning from the co-owners of the house and company. I can assure you that based on the feedback I got on the food and overall catering party, that we’ll be using you folks again. Everything was wonderful!
Thank you so much!
-Trish"
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