Tips for Event Catering

Event catering is an excellent choice for multitude of functions. Whether you are hosting a small party with a few of your closest friends or throwing a large wedding reception, catering is a wonderful way of ensuring your guests are well fed with great tasting food. In addition to cooking and serving the food, many catering companies can also help you with setup and cleanup. This is an essential service particularly for large events. Providing a well dressed place for your guests to dine will make a great impression on them as well as facilitate the atmosphere of the party. If you want to have your next gathering catered, here are a few tips for making sure things go well.

Party Size: It is very important that you give your caterer an accurate number of the people who will be attending your party. The amount of food they will make will be based on this number. Although, many event catering companies cook a little bit extra to accommodate people who want a second helping, it will certainly not be enough to handle a significant increase from the original number. To avoid running out of food or having food go to waste, get as accurate a count as you can. This is probably best accomplished by having everyone you invite RSVP that they are coming and whether or not they will be bringing a guest.

Buffet is Better Than Wait Service: It is very impressive to have a staff of waiters personally serve your guests their food. This can also help with portion control and ensuring every person gets a meal. However, this service typically costs more because of the extra personnel the event catering company has to hire and may require a little more effort to make certain everyone gets a meal they will eat. Wait service is best for smaller events. For large events, like corporate gatherings, it is best to have a buffet where everyone services themselves. Not only is it cheaper, it is also much easier to plan and implement.

Quality Over Quantity: If you are on a budget, opt for three really good courses instead of five or more selections. This will save you money and reduce food waste. Most people won’t notice that there is no soup or that there is only one dessert if the food that is served is high quality. Additionally, try not to go overboard on the hors d’oeuvres. One or two good appetizers are better than a passel of hors d’oeuvres. The event catering company can help you pick out a great menu for your budget.