7 Things to Look for in a Caterer
Planning an event can be daunting, but if done correctly, you can leave a lot of that stress behind once the festivities get underway. When you trust your planner, your venue, and your caterer, you free yourself up to enjoy the experience that you’ve created. While each of these groups plays a vital role in the success of your event, today we’re going to talk about caterers and how to choose the best one for you.
1. You want a caterer that shows strong investment in your event. It’s no secret that when people invest in what they’re doing, they perform better. You don’t want your guests being fed and served to the bare minimum of quality that you’ve purchased; instead, you want a team that will go above and beyond for you and yours. If your caterer’s focus is only on their payment, then you can expect their food and service to reflect that.
2. Expansive and adaptive menus can make a world of difference. When you’re putting in the money, time, and effort to organize an event, you want to make sure that you can get the kind of foods that will leave your guests enchanted. Part of a menu’s quality is based on the freshness of ingredients and the skill of the kitchen, but even the based made dish is ill-advised if you don’t like the flavors. Maybe you have vegetarian, vegan, or glucose intolerant guests; if so, you’re going to want to make sure that the caterer can take these needs into account while still providing some excellent dishes.
3. A comprehensive contract protects all involved. A good contract will benefit everybody. It is the structure that encourages a healthy relationship between you and your caterer. This document carries the details of the caterer’s obligations to you; covering what services they will provide, the timetable they will follow, and how much you’ve agreed to pay them. Without this, any arrangement between you and the caterer is just a verbal agreement.
4. An experienced chef and kitchen can carry the day. Everything goes smoother when you’re working with experts; this axiom is especially true when planning events. When your chef and their staff know what they’re doing, it saves you from stress and safeguards your guests from disaster. The more experience your caterer has, the better of an experience they’ll be able to deliver for you and your guests.
5. An eye for detail is a path to success. If your caterer is asking you lots of questions, don’t worry, this is a good thing. The more questions the caterer asks, and the more specific those questions, the more attention you can expect them to pay to meeting the nuances of your event needs. It might seem tedious in the moment, but it will pay off handsomely when it comes time to serve.
6. Taste and presentation make for long-lasting memories. When attending events, people tend to remember both how the food tasted and how it looked. Delicious food with an artful aesthetic can go a long way towards ensuring your guests form beautiful and long-lasting memories of your event. This is another reason why you want to get a sense for the quality of food the caterer provides as well as the styles of presentation they use when serving their dishes. Click here to explore our lookbook for a little foodie inspiration!
7. A matching of caterer to venue is sure to impress. It can be disconcerting when a catering service and a venue are out of sync, stylistically. When picking a caterer, you want to ensure that they and their food will be a good fit for the location you’ve selected. Many caterers will list venues they’ve worked with before or ones that they recommend. These details can provide valuable insight into whether they’ll be a good fit for what you have planned. We’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite venues to work with that we hope you’ll find helpful!
With multiple years in the restaurant and catering business and expert staff to compliment your event, you can trust you’re in good hands when you cater your event with Justin Thompson Catering. We’d love to learn more about your upcoming event and talk about how to create the perfect menu to ensure it’s a big success! Click here to inquire today.