Catering is a restaurant service that provides food for events outside its premises. It involves preparing, delivering, setting up, and cleaning up meals at external locations.
Consider a menu that includes dishes that can be prepared ahead of time. Baked goods, soups, stews, and some salads are perfect make-ahead options that can be made a day or even weeks in advance. Click the Catering In Chandler AZ to learn more.
The food and drinks portion of event budgets can often be the largest expense. Luckily, there are many cost-effective catering options available that allow you to create a memorable, yet affordable, special occasion.
In general, menus that are less expensive tend to be served during the day, while pricier dinnertime dishes may be limited to the cocktail hour. By selecting a menu with more affordable items, you can help keep your catering costs down without sacrificing the quality of the food.
A build-your-own-menu style catering option can also be a great way to save money, especially if you’re holding an event outside of the three main meal times. For example, you can offer a catered salad bar with a variety of greens and other toppings for your guests to customize their own lunch. This allows them to choose the exact foods they want and need while still meeting their dietary requirements.
Another way to keep your catering costs down is to avoid adding expensive upgrades or extras to the menu. Limit the number of entrée choices, skip the fancy cheese course and serve basic red and white table wine instead of Sommelier-selected pairings. Additionally, choosing a buffet instead of plated service can also be more cost-effective.
Consider focusing on vegetarian dishes as well, as these are often the most inexpensive options available. Vegetarian cuisines such as Mexican, Indian and Thai dishes can be stretched to feed a large group, and they’re a great way to address dietary restrictions without breaking the bank.
When possible, enlist the help of your colleagues to handle some of the food prep and serving tasks at your next corporate or professional event. This is a great way to get more bang for your buck and foster a sense of community within your coworking space.
Lastly, don’t be afraid to let your caterer know that you’re working with a budget. Most are accustomed to working with clients who are trying to maximize their savings, and they’ll be able to provide you with recommendations for ways to cut your catering costs without affecting the quality of the food.
Flexibility to Meet Special Requests
Catering is a key component of conference events and plays an important role in participant satisfaction and engagement. It is crucial to offer a wide range of food and beverage options that meet attendees’ needs, including dietary restrictions and preferences. Catering companies that are flexible and willing to go the extra mile in meeting special requests can increase customer satisfaction and build a strong reputation.
It is important for catering businesses to have systems in place to track and manage inventory, reduce waste, and ensure that items are available for each event. These systems can include software to automate processes and provide reports that help with planning and decision making. They can also improve coordination and communication between staff, vendors, and customers.
Another way to differentiate yourself from competitors is to offer a menu that includes unique food items and focuses on a particular theme. Offering a unique menu can attract new clients and create a memorable experience for your guests. It is also important to provide excellent customer service by being available to answer questions and resolve issues promptly.
A good catering company will keep up with industry trends and strive to offer high-quality products that are fresh and innovative. It will also be open to feedback and take measures to improve customer satisfaction.
It is essential to have adequate supplies of food and beverage, as well as utensils and cleaning products, for each event. Having these supplies available will prevent guests from having to ask for more, and will minimize the risk of spreading germs. Having extra napkins, plates, cups, and tongs available at each station will also be helpful.
It is important to communicate the catering schedule to attendees, especially if there are any mealtime conflicts with session agendas. This will allow participants to adjust their schedules accordingly and avoid rushing through meals or missing out on sessions. It is also important to have sufficient time between meal breaks to encourage participation and focus. It is also important to have water and coffee stations available throughout the conference, especially for those meetings scheduled after dinnertime.
Use Your Own Tables
You may not think of table service as catering, but there are many ways that food and beverages can be served during a conference or event. Some events will have guests stand and be tray served, while others may offer a variety of catering stations where attendees can line up to receive their choice of dishes and drinks.
When using linenless tables for your catering setup, you have the flexibility to play with different base finishes and heights. For example, on a lower grey slate catering table you can have bowls of lemon, strawberries and mint while on a higher mango wood table you might feature a beverage dispenser.
Table decorations are also a great way to add color and flair to your catering setup. Adding flowers, mason jars filled with lights or twinkle lights, vintage trinkets and succulents can instantly make your event feel special.
Rent Dining Tables
When renting tables for catering, you need to determine how many people you will be expecting. This will help you decide if there will be enough seating for everyone or if extra seats will need to be reserved in case of unexpected guests. In addition, the table formation that you have in mind may require specific numbers of chairs to make it work.
Using an online rental portal, it’s easy to rent table and chair sets that will meet your needs for almost any type of event. When compared to purchasing or borrowing your own tables and chairs, rentals offer an array of versatility, control and cost-effectiveness that buying simply cannot match.
Depending on the type of event, you may also need to rent other items such as linens, including napkins, plates and cups. When you rent, you can choose from a wide range of linens in different colors and designs to create an elegant look for your event. Typically, you need to cover the tables that you rent with linens because they will get a lot of wear and tear as they are moved around to accommodate all sorts of food and beverages. You can expect to pay a small premium for the use of linens with rentals, but it is much more affordable than trying to purchase your own.