Should You Hire a Caterer for the Holidays?

Are you planning to host a holiday party for the first time? Are you planning to invite your family and friends to your house for a huge celebration?  

If your answer to those questions is yes, then you’ve got one thing to keep in mind. You will need help. This is particularly true when it comes to preparing food.  

Hosting a party can be extremely stressful, especially if you’re going to invite a lot of people. To help you get rid of stress, you should consider hiring a Savannah GA caterer. However, is hiring one really worth it? 

Impress Your Visitors with Delicious Meals 

When you go through the hassle of sending out Christmas party invitations, you need it to be truly memorable. Candles and twinkling lights can help to set the mood. But it will be the cuisine that brings people together and keeps them there. 

Professional catering will provide the greatest experience for your guests. Your catering service will know how to present shrimp or chicken satay in a visually appealing manner. The food will not only taste excellent, but it will also look like art. 

When guests taste and see the excellence at your Christmas celebration, they will feel appreciated. And you never know, you might get invited to one of their celebrations in the future! 

Get Delicious Food from Professional Cooks 

If your normal cooking routine involves a microwave, striving to be a world-class cook for a Christmas party usually doesn’t go well. You want your visitors to have a good time and want to stay at your party. As a result, it’s best to leave the food preparation to the professionals. 

You may get properly cooked chicken and quiche with house-made glazes from a professional caterer. At an appetizer counter, you can choose from spinach dip or baked brie, or you can order complex salads. 

Get More Options 

Understanding what guests might eat and having the means to provide options are essential when planning a meal. Some of your visitors may expect typical Christmas meals, whereas others prefer lighter fare or international flavors. You may also have guests who have dietary limitations. 

All of this necessitates the availability of alternatives. This necessitates the use of space. However, if you haven’t upgraded your kitchen yet, you may not have enough space to prepare a large meal. 

Catering services, on the other hand, have access to commercial facilities where food preparation is a breeze. With your menu, you’ll be able to cast a larger net and keep everyone pleased. 

Save Time 

Are you pressed for time? You might be rushing to recitals or shopping after work every day, leaving little time to organize a holiday party cuisine. Plus, with supermarket chains packed and overrun, you can wind up spending hours looking for the correct ingredients. 

When it comes to preparing an event, the last thing you want to do is overlook the food. Your guests will be underwhelmed if you serve a modest dish during your celebration. Fortunately, you may delegate the work of planning to a competent catering business! 

How to Hire a Caterer for Your Wedding?

Are you getting married soon? If so, you probably want everything during that day to be perfect. You want to get all the details right. This includes the food.  

Factors such as choosing the venue and hiring a caterer might appear minor. However, they’re extremely important to the success of your wedding day. You want your guests to feel like they’re in a great atmosphere with the finest meals.  

It might appear like you’ve got tons of options for wedding caterers out there. However, doing a bit of research can help you choose the right wedding Lakeland FL caterer for your big day.  

Think About Flexibility 

While many caterers have set recipes, yours should be open to working with you to plan the perfect event. Perhaps you’d want to try some Vegan options or change up one of your pasta meals. The ideal caterer won’t be so inflexible that they won’t be able to satisfy your party’s needs. 

Sample The Food Yourself 

In print, many menu items seem fantastic. However, a wedding is a significant expense, so you’ll want to ensure that your guests are happy. 

If you’re serious about hiring them, they might give a free or discounted tasting. Before reaching the final selection, ensure you get a chance to sample the meal. 

Check Out the Menu 

It’s your special day, so make sure the meals you serve reflect your preferences. During cocktail hour, perhaps you’d want to have event stations available. A mac and cheese bar, grilled cheese station, or even a carving station might be included! 

Your guests will be hungry during cocktail hour, so make sure you have enough alternatives to keep them satisfied. You should also consider whether you’d prefer passed appetizers or more stationary selections. 

You might want to consider having a buffet meal at your wedding reception so that everyone has something to eat. If you’re entertaining a large group, consider a themed buffet with a variety of ethnic and cultural alternatives. A luau, a Chinese meal, or even a Thanksgiving feast are all possibilities. 

Your guests can escape the lines associated with a buffet if you want a sit-down supper. However, you should inquire about the possibilities accessible to you from your caterer. 

Read Reviews 

Once you’ve limited down your options, you can start reading reviews online to get a sense of what previous customers have to say. A single review may not provide a lot of information, but a trend of similar comments might give you a good picture of what to expect. 

Perhaps numerous previous clients have mentioned a particularly good server, which you’ll want to ensure you obtain. Perhaps many people have remarked on the low pricing or a dish you’d like your wedding guests to sample. 

Get Recommendations 

You may find a lot of suggestions for your wedding catering by doing a simple internet search. It’s best to hire someone local because they’ll be acquainted with your venue as well as the scope and size of usual weddings. You’ll also have to worry less about factors slowing them down, such as traffic. 

Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Professional Catering Company

There are a lot of questions you need to ask yourself if you are looking for a caterer for your event. Will the caterer be available on the day of your event? Will they accommodate any dietary restrictions? What options can they provide?  

These are some of the most common questions that come to mind when you’re hiring a caterer. However, why do you have to ask these questions? What if you just hire the caterer without asking them?  

Today, we’re going to share with you some common questions to ask before hiring a Cape Coral FL caterer and why you should ask them. 

Do You Accommodate People with Allergies and Dietary Restrictions? 

Nowadays, a lot of guests are asking for accommodations for dietary restrictions. This includes vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, and more. 

Aside from that, people also need accommodations for allergies such as gluten, shellfish, nuts, and more. Allergies can be extremely frustrating at best. At worst, it is life-threatening.  

A professional caterer should be able to make accommodations based on these needs for almost any restriction. Of course, a caterer should fulfill your requests when you tell them upfront. Because of this, it’s ideal to include special meal needs in your invitation. 

What Types of Serving Options Do You Provide? 

A lot of caterers have buffet-style catering services. This includes the caterer bringing your dinner, lunch, or breakfast selections. They can have a team from the company prepare the food selections on-site and serve them through the buffet line from stylish and upscale serving platters. However, they can also serve them in a casual style with warmers where guests will serve themselves.  

Another option that a professional catering company can provide is full-service catering. With this, the company will provide members of their team to serve as preparation staff, waiters, bartenders, and even an on-site chef to handle every single thing in your event.  

They will serve your guests and make sure that every single thing is clean and packed once your event is done.  

Will The Caterer Keep the Food Warm During the Event? 

Transporting the food from the prep area, such as their kitchen, to your event venue will need the caterer to hold the food at the right temperature for safety. Doing so will also help avoid any food-borne diseases. 

Furthermore, the caterer should utilize implements and containers certified by the NSF. In addition to that, all food needs to be held and stored at the right temperature, whether cold or hot. They should follow the regulations from the local health department.  

A reliable caterer will use a range of tools to achieve this. They can use heating lamps, soft coolers, portable food warmers, and more.  

Because of this, you need to ask a potential caterer how they’ll guarantee your food will not be subjected to potentially risky conditions. This will help you avoid any complications during and after the event.  

Always hire a caterer who knows how to keep the food warm from the preparation site to the event venue.  

Catering Ideas for New Year’s Eve

Every person around the world has various concepts of ways to spend the New Year celebration. A couple of people prefer a simple night at their house with their loved ones. A few would go downtown for a wild evening of partying. Some invite their relatives and friends to celebrate the New Year with style and glamour.  

If you plan to invite a lot of people over to your house, you’ll probably need help preparing enough food. This is where a caterer comes in to help. 

However, what food should a Gainesville FL caterer prepare for you? Here are a couple of things to consider: 

Appetizers 

You can prepare your guest the feeling of quick fullness if you let them eat appetizers before meals. A couple of appetizers you should consider for your New Year’s Eve include: 

  • Bruschetta with Basil and Tomatoes 

Think about having Bruschetta topped with chopped tomatoes and sweet basil. This will make your New Year’s Eve more elegant. You can prepare this meal a day in advance as well.  

  • Butternut Squash 

This is a creamy appetizer best for a traditional dinner on New Year’s Eve. All you need are thinly sliced carrots, chopped onion, and butternut squash to create a flavorful and rich vegetable soup. 

Main Course Meal 

The ideal way to pick the main course meal for your party is to choose a set of flavors or a theme to base around your meal. 

  • Hot Salami Pizza 

If you want a pizza party menu, consider getting a hot Salami pizza grilled to deliciousness with cured meats and sweet peppers. This makes for an excellent main course.  

While they’re tasty at any time of the year, you’ll probably like them more during New Year’s Eve. 

  • Tangy Molasses Barbeque Ribs 

This meal is perfect for a BBQ party during New Year’s Eve. It’s a tender brisket. Tangy mustard and wheat beer add a huge flavor to your BBQ ribs. You should think about serving this dish with a homemade BBQ sauce to get the most out of your night. 

Side Dishes 

One excellent way to introduce vegetables and fruit into your diet is to add one or more side dishes. A couple of side dishes to consider during New Year’s Eve include: 

  • Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus 

Wrapping thin slices of provolone cheese and prosciutto around fresh asparagus is an easy but delicious side dish for a New Year’s Eve party. Your guests will be delighted when they eat this. 

  • Bacon-Topped Green Bean Casserole 

Do you want your green bean casserole to be more special during New Year’s Eve? If so, consider adding a couple of wild mushrooms and bacon strips.  

If you don’t like mushroom, you can use mashed potatoes instead.  

Desserts 

When it comes to desserts, you’ve got two options to choose from for your New Year’s Eve celebration. You can serve Homemade Butterscotch Meringue Pie or Apple Pie with Cheddar Cheese Crust.  

If you don’t know how to create these desserts, a professional catering company can make them for you. This will help you focus on other elements of your party.  

Catering Ideas for St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s Day is a unique holiday for most Americans. It has evolved into a festivity of the American-Irish culture with the incorporation of drinks, special foods, dancing, music, and tons of greens.  

If you want to participate in the American version of this holiday, you should consider starting your meal with a green festive dessert or appetizers.  

Unfortunately, preparing these meals requires a lot of work. It can also be a bit stressful and overwhelming. Luckily, a Naples FL caterer can help you with your catering needs. 

So, what meals should you prepare for this festivity? Here are some foods to consider: 

Berry Fool 

Berry fool is a light fruit dessert that you can create with almost all types of berries. The word “fool” comes from “fouler”, which is a French word that means to mash.  

While it’s well-known in Ireland and England, it’s both a tasty treat to residents of Europe as a whole. You can combine and mash together all the berries with chilled heavy cream to produce a refreshing dessert for a unique event.  

Traditional Irish Colcannon 

When you think of Ireland, you probably immediately think of potatoes. Of course, there is a reason for this.  

Many years ago, the potato was the staple crop in Ireland due to its calorie-dense and nutritious qualities. It is also extremely durable against the elements.  

During St. Patrick’s Day, Colcannon is a popular food. It is comprised of cabbage or kale mixed with Irish mashed potatoes.  

Irish Cabbage and Bacon 

For those who don’t know, Irish bacon is almost the same as Canadian bacon. It is a smoked and lean pork loin.  

Irish bacon was traditionally the most well-known meat on the table in the country. The main reason for this is that it was extremely affordable.  

However, the first immigrants from Ireland to the US found pork prices to be on the expensive side. Because of this, they switched to using beef.  

To make things simple, cabbage and bacon are more traditional. On the other hand, you can make cabbage and corned beef if you want the Irish-American variant.  

Irish Boxty 

This popular Irish meal originates from the northern parts of Ireland. It’s a pancake made with Irish potato. It is comprised of grated and mashed potatoes, baked in a pan or fried in butter.  

Typically, the mashed potatoes are fried until they have a brown and crisp look. Irish boxty got its name from an Irish word “Bacus”, which means bakehouse.  

Instead of mashed or boiled potatoes, you can serve Irish Boxty as a side dish.  

Cottage Pie 

Cottage pie is simple the beef variant of shepherd’s pie. You will only need to replace the ground lamb with ground beef. With this, you can transform this Irish classic from a Shepherd’s pie to a cottage pie.  

Keep in mind that the kind of meat you use in the pie will greatly depend on your personal preferences. Some individuals might choose to use ground chicken or ground turkey.  

You can also combine both pork, veal, and beef if you think one meat is a bit boring.