Finding a caterer is one the most stressful parts of planning an event. You’re already struggling to work out venues and schedules, and it’s no fun to add scouring the city for a capable Kansas City caterer to the list of things you have to do. How can you quickly determine whether a caterer is right for your event? I’ll give you three tips that will make it very simple.

The first is to make sure the caterer is licensed. This is the only way to guarantee that they will know and be able to follow the proper food safety guidelines for a large group of people. You wouldn’t want food poisoning to break out at your event, would you? Choosing an unlicensed caterer would be a good way to make that happen, so if you want to avoid making all your guests sick, just choose a licensed Kansas City caterer. Licensed caterers are invariably more experienced as well, so you win on every level.

The next thing to do is to make sure that they cater the specific meal you’re looking for. Many caterers only do dinners or luncheons or some specific meal of the day, and if you’re looking to have a different meal catered, they may not have the necessary experience to give you what you want. The best caterers have experience with catering all different meals, including breakfast, and should be able to cover you no matter when your event takes place.

Finally, you should make sure that the caterer will be able to work in the venue your event is being held in, or will provide a venue if you need one. Some caterers have a venue they can provide at the same time as the catering service, which is an advantage if you don’t already have a venue arranged for your event. Otherwise, you need to be sure to tell them where you know your event is taking place and make sure that they’ll be able to work in that environment. Some caterers may not be able to handle, say, an event on a boat, so you need to be very clear about this beforehand.

So, first you need to check that the caterer is licensed. Then you need to check that they can do the meal or meals you need catered. And then finally, you need to check that they can work the venue your event is being held in. If you do these three things, you’ll have the perfect caterer for your event.

The post Kansas City Caterer – 3 Tips for Choosing the Right Caterer for Your Event appeared first on Catering on the Move.

Catering Services San Rafael CA

Questions to Ask When Hiring Your Caterer

Besides your location the food and drink for your wedding bash will probably consume the largest portion of your catering services budget. Food catering costs are usually presented as per-person charges sometimes abbreviated in wedding brochures as pp after the amount. But be aware the per-person charge for catering services often does not include everything- Tax and gratuities sometimes called service charge might be extra and there may also be separate per-person charges for the meal drinks horsdoeuvres and even setup from a caterer. So your actual per-person charge might end up being considerably more than you expect. Bring your calculator along when meeting with potential catering services to help you arrive at the real bottom line for food catering.

There is more to consider. Nowadays many catering services offer a range of options in addition to catering. Some are actual event producers providing props special effects in other words complete event design. They might also be able to assist in finding a location coordinating your affair or lining up vendors. One thing a caterer ca not do however is cook up a 5-course Beef Wellington dinner for per person. When planning your catering menu be realistic about what you can serve given your budget and the size of your guest list.

A lot of factors come into play when selecting a caterer so do not be afraid to ask as many questions as you need to. You can refer to the following list whether your potential caterer works at your event facility or you are hiring them independently.

The Basics
1. Do you have my date open?

2. How much wedding catering do you cater per year and how long have you been in the catering services business?

3. Have you catered events at the location of my event? TIP- If you have not chosen your location yet ask the caterer if they can help you select one.

4. Are you licensed by the state of California? Are you licensed to serve alcohol with your food catering?

5. Will I need any permits for my catering services event? If so will you handle obtaining them?

6. Will you provide a banquet manager to coordinate the catering service or an on-site coordinator who will run the entire event?

7. Can you assist with other aspects of the catering like selecting other vendor event design e.g. specialty lighting elaborate theme events etc.?

For more anwers go to Catering Services San Rafael CA

The post what to ask when choosing a catering service appeared first on Catering on the Move.