The most exciting part of planning an event is deciding the menu. Depending on the taste and preferences of your guests you decide what to serve. Right from deciding what to serve to how to serve there are many important decisions to make. Here are a few things that you should know when hiring a caterer for your event:
Ask your caterer for suggestions: When you are making menu choices and serving formats ask your caterer for recommendations. With the experience and expertise they have in the industry, your caterers must have worked on similar projects and should have a fair idea about what will work and what not. For a formal dinner party you can consider a four course meal including soup, salads, entree and bonne bouche. If you are planning a hors d’oeuvre party, make sure that the food is able to satisfy the guests.
Seasonal and fresh ingredients: Choose food items in your menu that are crowd favorites. Warm soups, crisp salads and seasonal items like berries and other fruits will be a hit among the guests. Warm cookies, hot chocolate and coffee are perfect after dinner desserts. Make sure your caterer is using only fresh and seasonal ingredients. A good catering company will always use high quality and fresh ingredients and avoid the use of canned and frozen products.
Understand your guests’ special requests: Find out if some guests have special requests. Some of your guests may want gluten-free or kosher food and others may prefer vegan options. If there are lots of kids coming to the party keep a separate children’s section for them. If your guests have allergies or intolerance to certain food, make sure that you inform your caterers well in advance. Some families also have special family recipes that they want to be a must-have in the menu.
Taste the menu: After you have chosen your caterer and decided a menu don’t forget to taste the food before serving it to your guests. Fix an appointment with your caterer when you can taste the menu. If there are certain things that you don’t like about the menu, you can discuss this with your caterer now and get it changed accordingly. Even small details are important and your caterer will help you take care of these details and make your event a success. It is also important for the caterers to visit the venue and understand the setup like where you want the bar and where the music system should be placed.
