Catering the perfect event

An event is the combination of many things but the food is a huge part of every single event. Here are some tips and facts to help you cater the perfect event.

There is a saying that states that nothing brings people together like good food. This could not be more true. Food is an institute/ occasion/ treat/ necessity/ item that encompasses all your senses. From the second you smell the gorgeous flavours rising from the dish, it stirs your emotions with anticipation and excitement for seeing the dish unveiled. Your eyes add more flavour to the dish you have not tasted yet, for example, imagine a glistening rack of barbequed ribs dripping with rich spicey sauce, chargrilled with smoky flavours from the barbeque. Why not try a soft aerated chocolate mousse that you can imagine melting on your tongue with strong chocolate flavours just by looking at it.

Some food dishes require different methods of eating such as eating a drumstick with your fingers or dipping sushi into soya sauce with chopsticks. Food also has the capacity to encompass the auditory sense, for example the crack of the sugar crust on a creme brulee as your spoon breaks through to the soft creamy centre or the sizzle of a steak on a hot griddle pan.

Finally the food can be tasted. Your taste buds get to experience the saltiness, sweetness, sourness and decadence that a well cooked meal encompasses! Gastronomy is the practice or art of choosing, cooking, and eating good food. Food has an ability to make you feel better on a bad day, to make you feel like million dollars and to form memories you will never forget.

When preparing food for an event, it is imperative that you put a great deal of effort into the food served. There are a large amount of items to consider when planning the food for any event.

Below are a few things to consider…

How many people are attending your event.

No one likes to go hungry, so it is very important to ensure that you have enough food for all the guests to enjoy. Many people attending your event would not have eaten prior to coming to the event so ensure that there is enough tasty and wonderful food to satisfy your guests hunger. It is always safer to err on the side of over catering versus under catering. In combination to satiating your guests hunger – it is important to have food available when guests are consuming alcohol.

The theme, look and feel of your event.

A theme of an event allows you to focus the vision of your decor ideas as well as assisting to navigate your food choices and food ideas, which is paramount when working with multitude food options available. A theme also gets your creative juices flowing, allowing your imagination to go wild by pairing your food with the theme you have chosen, such as a beach themed party being paired with tropical food such as pineapple cake, barbecued jerk chicken and pina colada cocktails.

How to serve your food to your guests.

Remember that your food can either be served as finger food on platters as your guests mingle with each other or served as a plated meal to your seated guests or a buffet. There are advantages and disadvantages to all of the above so you need to decide which suits your guests requirements and theme.
There are a few things to consider for each type of meal.Finger food has the ability to be incredibly inventive yet, it can not be a sufficient amount of food to fill your guests upv – especially if the food platters are emptied quickly by guests guzzling up the food near the kitchen entrance as waiters bring the food out, resulting in guests on the opposite side of the venue not seeing nor receiving food. However finger food is a social way of eating, allowing your guests to mingle amongst themselves while enjoying scrumptious food.
A seated meal with plated food allows your guests the opportunity to sit down in the comfort of a chair and enjoy a well prepared meal. Plated meals in general are a higher calibre of food such as lamb shank on mashed potato or grilled salmon with green beans. The disadvantage of a plated meal is that there is no option of “seconds” or more food, so if your guests are hungry – depending on the size of the meal, one plate may not be enough for your hungry guests.
A buffet is a wonderful way of catering for large amounts of people. It allows for a range of food dishes to be prepared allowing people with all tastes to be catered for such as vegetarians, vegans and lactose intolerance (to name a few). A buffet also allows for hungry guests to return for seconds allowing them feel satisfied at the end of the meal. A disadvantage with a buffet is that you are queuing for food and waiting in line to be fed which can be unappealing to some guests.

Food is essential to life and can elevate your event to incredible heights. Have fun experimenting and getting creative.