Corporate Catering Ideas
Friday, May 31st, 2013
If you are in charge of putting together a corporate event this is the time to get creative and have fun hosting the event. There are several catering menus that you can choose from depending on the time of day the event will be taking place. In addition, you will need to consider group and portion sizes, along with any dietary restrictions your clients may have for health or personal reasons.
You can choose to go green by offering a green menu and green packaging for your clients. There are several dishes that can be put together by using organic and in-season ingredients sourced locally and meat and poultry items cultivated in a humane way. There is also the option of using 100 percent biodegradable dishes and plastic ware.
For a healthier catering menu you can serve several types of simple veggie trays along with a trio of bean dips such as rich hummus, spicy black bean and creamy cannellini bean. In addition, rather than serving a tray of different lunch meats, put together a variety of finger sandwiches or wraps with both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. Pita bread is also another great option that is easily halved for sandwiches and baked for chips using herbs and olive oil to accompany the dips being served.
If your hosting for a large group of attendees you can go all out with different food stations in which each area represents a different continent or country. You can also offer some American inspired foods to appeal to everyone.
Choosing to go with a themed catering event is also a fun way to go. Begin by crafting a menu and choosing décor relevant to your group, such as the client’s industry or the city’s sports teams. For example, if you are planning in incorporating your local baseball team into the theme you can choose to have a stadium-inspired food selection. Remember to have fun with any choice of catering you choose because the options are endless.
Mother’s Day Party Ideas
Monday, April 29th, 2013Mother’s Day is just around the corner. How about showing Mom how much you care about her by hosting a Mother’s Day party. Consider the following ideas on how to host a memorable and inexpensive Mother’s Day party this year.
Begin by choosing a simple Mother’s Day party theme. Once you have chosen one the rest of the planning starts to take place.
How about hosting a Mother’s Day brunch party with the whole family? You can have the brunch at your home or at a nearby restaurant. Make sure to have a little of everything, such as scrambled, fried, poached, or hardboiled eggs. Some bacon, sausage, ham, pancakes, waffles, and french toast. And for dessert donuts, fruit, and cookies are always great. If you choose to have a brunch at a restaurant make sure to make reservations in advance, since restaurants get very busy on this day.
Hosting a tea party is a classy way to say thanks to Mom. It is an occasion for multiple types of teas such as black, green, English, acai, and lemon to name just a few, and do not forget the milk, sugar, and honey to go with the tea. You can also serve some finger sandwiches such as cucumber, salmon, turkey and brie along with scones, muffins, and cheesecake for dessert. Again you can host it at your home or at a restaurant. Often times, a Mother’s Day tea party is a nice time for mothers, daughters and granddaughters to spend time together.
If the weather is going to be a comfortable one invite the whole family over to celebrate Mother’s Day with a barbeque. You can serve some grilled asparagus, corn on the cob, pasta salad and fruit salad, even some ribs, chicken, cheeseburgers, and hotdogs are always a hit.
When it comes to giving Mom the perfect Mother’s Day gift remember that anything from the heart is always appreciated. After all it’s the thought that counts.
Creative Corporate Catering Ideas
Thursday, August 9th, 2012It is great to know that you don’t have to settle for just box lunches as the only lunch menu for corporate and office catering. Box lunches are appropriate for working lunches, lunches where there is a limited time to serve people, and for long morning meetings where the attendees have no chance to get lunch on the way back to the airport or to a distant office.
You can be the office hero and offer a hot lunch either as a buffet or served as a banquet. There are so many options available to choose from. The menus can be as diverse as you want them to be. Discuss your ideas with a professional caterer who will guide you in designing the perfect catering menu certain to please your guest.
When planning your meal ideas, consider the time of year, any particular holiday that might be near the date of your event, and any menu that would complement the purpose of the meeting. You may even pick a theme and create the menu around that.
And, don’t forget about dessert. Dessert catering can be as simple as an assortment of cookies, dessert bars, cake, pies or tarts.
Some Themes To Keep In Mind Include:
Italian Menus
Parmesan Crusted Chicken or any pasta dish like lasagna or ziti, combined with a great Caesar salad, some oven roasted squash or Italian green beans and Italian bread.
Southwestern Menus
Fajitas are always a big hit. Offer a fajita bar featuring fajita beef and chicken strips, all the normal toppings, refried beans, Mexican style rice and flour tortillas with chips and fire roasted salsa or a 7 layer dip and you will have a complete meal.
Asian Inspired Menus
Another fun and different catering menu is Teriyaki beef or chicken, Asian rice and an Oriental vegetable blend of green beans, broccoli cuts, onions, mushrooms and red peppers complete with fortune cookies.
International Menus
This office catering idea involves picking different items from different countries and putting them together. For example, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Duchess potatoes, herb crusted tomato and Caribbean vegetable blend (broccoli, green beans, yellow carrots and red peppers) offered with a golden dinner roll.
Steps for Planning a Graduation Party
Monday, June 18th, 2012The days of pep rallies, class trips, team practices, and school shows are coming to an end for your child. It’s time for graduation an exciting time, but also one filled with some sadness about saying goodbye to the past, while looking ahead to the future. Involve your graduate in all of the graduation party decisions, and be sure to make it an event he or she has a great time making new memories to take with her into the next stage of her life.
What You Will Need to Decide
When will you hold the party? You could host the party directly after the graduation ceremony or you could plan it for a different day. If you are hosting a party for an older child, your party will probably compete with other classmates’ parties. So it is a good idea to do a little research by talking to other parents. That way you will know if you’re hosting the only party in town or one stop among many.
Where will the party be held? If you decide on an outdoor party you should be prepared with a tent or alternative backup plan in case of bad weather. If you chose a location other than your home for the party, then you should reserve the location for the event and book the caterer.
Pick Your Style and Theme
The style and theme you select will help you as you plan the other elements of your party. Some possible themes include:
-A formal dress-up party: Ask the kids and adults to come in formal attire and create formal place settings with linens, china, and elegant floral arrangements.
-A casual, flip-flop shoes party: Let everyone be themselves in their most casual attire. Use paper goods, plastic serving ware and invite everyone to hang out for as long as they wish.
-Host an open-house luncheon
-A Hawaiian Luau party theme is very popular for graduation parties. Invite your guests to come dressed in fun, tropical clothing.
Build a theme around the graduate’s future plans. For example, if your child will be attending college in New England, you could serve a New England Clam Bake to your guests. Be creative and have fun as you prepare for a memorable day.
Tips For Planning A First Communion Party
Sunday, April 29th, 2012The First Communion is a milestone in any child’s life that you will want to plan a special party for. After all, it only happens once. For this important day you will need personalized invitations, banners, flowers, decorations, balloons, and other items.
Here are some steps you can take to ensure your child’s First Communion is a success:
Location and Theme
First, decide where you would like the First Communion party to be held. Some options include the local church, an elegant hotel, restaurant, hall, or even your own backyard. By choosing the location first, it makes the various elements of the party planning process much easier. Next, decide a rough schedule of events for the First Communion party. For example, begin by drafting an itinerary including guest speeches, refreshments, snack times, picture times, and other ceremonial agenda items. Also, select a theme for your party. You can highlight the religious aspect of the celebration or you can emphasize the child’s personality and characteristics. You can also use banners and balloons with colors that your child enjoys to decorate.
Invitations and Gifts
Consider putting together some type of small gift bag or item to memorialize the event. This can be a picture of your child, religious tokens, or food items. Also, utilize various flower arrangements at the First Communion party to add a joyful element to this important celebration. Designing your own invitations will add a personal touch and generate more interest in the child’s First Communion party. You can purchase some hard card stock, or go online to find and create a design.
Catering
You may also want to consider putting a special menu together for the First Communion party. Any meal or dish you would serve at an Easter gathering would be appropriate for a First Communion party. For the main course, consider a hearty leg of lamb, baked ham, turkey platter, and chicken served with a choice of salad and a bread roll. For dessert, the cake or other treats should have a design in the form of a cross to complete the theme of your First Communion party.
Spring Wedding Ideas
Monday, March 26th, 2012Spring is one of the most popular wedding seasons. There are many spring wedding themes, colors, dresses, decorations, menu items, flowers, and favors to choose from. Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you prepare for your spring wedding.
Wedding Invitations
One of the first steps in setting the mood for a spring wedding is sending out spring themed wedding invitations. Typically, the invitations have spring flowers or spring scenery on them.
Wedding Attire
Since temperatures are typically not too hot and not too cold, there are many options for the wedding dress. It is important to choose a versatile dress that can suite you in both warm and cold weather.
Some good fabrics to choose from are:
•Batiste (an opaque fabric that is very light)
•Crepe (a thin fabric available in a wide variety of fibers and finishes)
•Damask (made of various fabrics and has patterns/designs woven into it)
•Duchesse Satin (a lightweight hybrid of rayon/polyester and silk)
You may also choose to add a sash or embroidery of a different color on your dress.
Today’s weddings are becoming more and more colorful. Some two-color combinations that many couples use are:
•Light blue along with chocolate, ivory, pastel green, or white
•Pastel green and ivory
•Pink with any green
•Lavender and yellow
Spring Flowers
You can save a lot of money on your wedding by purchasing in season flowers. Some in season spring flowers include:
.Allium .Magnolia
.Bells of Ireland .Snapdragon
.Boronia .Lilac
.Cherry Blossom .Lilies
.Daffodil .Violet
.Hydrangea .Pansy
Spring Wedding Decorations
Purchase decorations that are pastel blue, pink or lavender. You can also choose to place seasonal flowers up as centerpieces on the reception tables.
Wedding Menu
Serve fresh young vegetables such as sugar snap peas, baby carrots, baby asparagus, or potatoes. You could even serve fresh carrot cake along with fresh fruits. Also consider serving strawberries, mangos, apricots or pomegranates.
Saint Patrick’s Day Catering
Wednesday, March 14th, 2012March is here! So time to put on everything green and start planning your 2012 Saint Patrick’s Day event. Whether you are Irish or not you can still experience those authentic dishes and celebrate. No matter what size gathering you plan on having with your family and friends, the best way to ensure a carefree celebration is to forget about cooking and cleaning, and have it catered!
This holiday, which has religious roots, has grown into a worldwide cultural celebration. Of course if you are Irish it’s a day to be proud, and if you’re not, than it’s an excuse to “cheers”. So, what better way before going out to the pub than to have some hors d’eourves? Or if you’re staying home, have your party completely catered!
If you haven’t started planning already, determine the venue for the big day. Make sure the place is suitable for the amount of people you plan on inviting. Having a comfortable environment and enough room for everyone will allow all of your guests to interact.
Once the venue is settled, decide on what the guests would like to eat, within reason of course. You can’t have a party without food, so having an adequate amount, which your guests will enjoy, will make the celebration a hit. Also, have music playing for entertainment, so make a playlist full of songs that will go over well with the crowd.
Finally, we must address the theme especially when it comes to Saint Patrick’s Day, which means going green! Decorating with shamrocks and gold coins will get your guests in a celebratory mood on this great day. Once you have all these simple planning steps figured out from venue, food, to decorations it will make your Saint Patrick’s Day party wildly successful!
Catering Ideas for Different Events
Sunday, February 26th, 2012One of the first things you must do before you host an event or hire a caterer is to decide on a good catering menu that your guest will enjoy. Keep in mind that food selections should be appropriate for the type of event taking place. The type of food that is served during a shower will not be the same to what is served during a corporate party or wedding reception. Therefore, you want to choose your foods selections with careful consideration to the event. Putting some thought into the food you serve ahead of time will help ensure that your event is a big hit!
A Formal Reception
If you are hosting a formal reception like a wedding or anniversary, you will want to include appetizers as well as some sort of sit-down meal. Appetizers can range from cheese and crackers, to bacon wrapped scallops depending on how formal the event is, and how much money is in your budget.
You can have the meal served or buffet style. Make sure you have a choice of beef and chicken as well as plenty for the vegetarians attending. Don’t forget the salad, dinner rolls, and desert.
Barbecue Catering
Catering a barbecue involves a whole different selection of catering ideas. Barbecues are meant to be relaxing and fun, so a buffet style catering is perfect. All you will need to do is line up some tables and place the food on platters and warming trays. Some foods to include are: BBQ Ribs, burgers, chicken wings, hot dogs, corn on the cob, potato salad, coleslaw, macaroni salad and fruit salad.
Backyard Party
A backyard party can range from small to large. The same foods served at a barbeque can also be served at a backyard party, along with tables for buffet style dining. If you don’t want the standard barbecue menu, you may include things such as: chili, ham, or a roast setup at a carving station, pasta, and more!
Cocktail Party
Cocktail parties are not sit-down affairs. They are generally pretty mobile with the guests standing and moving around. For this event, you want to choose foods that aren’t too messy and are easy to carry around. The foods to consider are those that can be speared on a toothpick and won’t drip sauce all over the place. The standard cheese, crackers, and grapes are always a hit, but also add other appetizers so your guests don’t get bored.
A Shower
Most of the time, a shower does not call for a sit down meal. Shower foods should be light foods like finger sandwiches along with potato and macaroni salad, and of course dessert.
Choosing Your Wedding Cake
Monday, January 23rd, 2012Your wedding cake is one of the most essential elements of your wedding day. It will appear in your wedding pictures, and will be a focal point for your guest as they arrive into the reception area. As you decide on your cake type remember that it is what will pull together the colors and theme of your wedding. Your wedding cake should be as individual as you. Take time to shop around and decide on a bakery, the cake, style, and decorations. Here are a few factors to keep in mind while you cake shop:
.Create a checklist:
.What is your cake budget
.How many guests
.How many tiers/designs
.What colors/decorations
.What is your cake top?
.When is Your Wedding?
.When is Your Wedding?
The date and location of your wedding will affect the type of cake you choose. If your wedding will be taking place in the summer, mousse or ice cream cake will not be a good choice. Discuss with your baker the types of cake that will be in season.
.Choose a Reliable Bakery
You can begin your research online. This will allow you to obtain customer feedback, and view images of the bakery’s work. Make sure to select a bakery that provides a wide range of cake styles. Once you have chosen a bakery, visit the location and meet with the staff. This is your opportunity to provide sketches, ideas, and samples of your colors to leave with the pastry chef. Make sure to get everything in writing.
.Give Yourself Time to Pick Your Wedding Cake
If you have already chosen a color scheme and the wedding venue, then it’s a good time to get the cake designed and ordered. Your cake should be ordered 6-8 weeks in advance.
.Go Cake Tasting
This is one of the most important steps before finalizing your cake. If the cake will consist of multiple flavors, taste all of them. Flavors like chocolate, strawberry and vanilla will vary depending on how the cake is made, its formulation, its frosting, and more.
.Cake Size, Icing, Decorations
Wedding cakes come in all shapes and sizes—the options are limitless. When deciding on the size of your cake, keep in mind the number of guests attending. The type of icing you choose can be a simple sugar and flour recipe, or even a rich cream cheese icing. Today, many couples are choosing to match their icing color with the overall theme of the wedding. You can decorate your cake based on the décor and theme of your wedding, go with crazy and outrageous decorations or decide on lace, embroidery appliqué or elegant drapes or swag. The decision is all up to you so have fun with it!
Making Your Event a Success
Thursday, December 15th, 2011Have you ever wondered what makes an event a success? There are many components to achieve a successful event such as matters concerning your guests, food, entertainment and the very beginning preparations. With the involvement of speakers, attendees, audiovisual presentations, catering, and venue selections, any event is a complex affair. However, with the right combination of all the event elements yours can become a hit!
Some Tips To Help Get You Started On Your Event Preparation Can Include:
-Create A Checklist—Include food, bar, entertainment, venue, invitations, guest list, etc. Use your checklist as you plan your event. Make sure you add details as you go along and check off the tasks that have been completed.
-Plan In Advance—Send the invitations out and advertise ahead of time. The larger the event, the more time you should give yourself. Allow at least two weeks for a small private party and three months or longer for a significant event in which people have to travel. This gives your guests plenty of time to plan and prepare.
-Guests should be made aware of the purpose and theme of the event. Provide this information on the event’s invitation, poster, or flyer. This information will help your guests know how to dress and prepare for the event.
-Choose An Appropriate Venue—Begin by asking yourself, is there enough space for your guests to mingle, dance, and provide entertainment? Is there a bar and facilities for serving food? Is there enough space for a sit-down meal or is it limited to stand-up? Does it have adequate climate control and restroom facilities?
-Have an adequate number of bartenders and servers.
-Make sure that there is enough food that it is high quality, and that it fits the theme or mood of your party.
-Appoint hosts if you having a large event. Have friends or associates help greet guests and even introduce them
to other guests.
-Think About Having Name Tags—Providing name tags allows attendees not acquainted with one another to feel more comfortable approaching someone they might not know.
-A media presentation is a great enhancement to any event. You can choose from high-tech audio-visual productions to slide shows to exhibits to posters.
-Entertainment can make or break an event. Consider a mix of entertainers to provide a variety of entertainment. Some popular choices are a DJ or a live band. Most recent trends show that event planners and hosts are choosing magicians and stand-up comics.
-Review your checklist regularly to make sure that everything is running smoothly.
Last but not least, remember to show appreciation and gratitude for the groups and individuals who helped to make your event a success!