You’re enjoying dinner at your favorite restaurant when you notice they’re promoting their new catering services. What great timing—you’re on the planning committee for an upcoming event!
When hiring a caterer, there’s more to consider than whether you love the food. Great food at a restaurant doesn’t necessarily translate to great catering for a large event. Catering an event requires much more than preparing delicious food. It requires the experience, staffing, equipment and systems to serve hundreds of guests efficiently and professionally. Start with these five questions before hiring any caterer for your event.
What types of catering do you offer?
If you envision family-style or plated meals at your event and the caterer only provides buffet service, you need to know that before you hire them. Restaurant-provided catering might be take-out or delivery-only, while other caterers offer full-service options that include everything from setup and meal service to bussing and cleanup.
All of these approaches can work well for different types of events. The important thing is to make sure the caterer you choose will successfully provide the type of service you want for your event.
Good follow-up: Can you provide client references for events similar to mine?
What is the largest event you have catered?
The caterer you want to hire may be an amazing personal chef or restaurateur. Preparing great food is very different from serving 250 or 400 meals at the same time.
Large events require careful planning for food quantities, preparation, transportation, equipment, timing and service. Ask about the size and type of events they have catered to make sure their experience matches the scale and complexity of your event.
Good follow-up: How do you plan for food quantities and ensure there will be enough for everyone?
How many servers will you be bringing?
Catering a large event efficiently takes enough trained staff to serve food and beverages to guests, clear tables, and keep service moving.
Experienced caterers should be able to explain their staffing plan based on your guest count, service style, menu and venue. They should also have a team that is accustomed to working together and understands how to execute service in an event environment.
Good follow-up: Are these experienced servers you work with regularly?
What is included in your services?
Off-site catering means bringing everything needed to the venue and coordinating the many details that go along with serving a meal away from the restaurant and commercial kitchen.
Ask exactly what your caterer will provide and what you or another vendor will be responsible for, including:
- Table settings, including glassware, plates, silverware and linens
- Chaffers and other service equipment
- Food and beverages
- Meal service
- Beverage service
- Bussing during the social hour and after the meal
- Set-up and breakdown
- Rental coordination
A caterer offering full-service event catering should be able to clearly explain what their team will handle from arrival through departure.
Good follow-up: Can I have you contact the venue to review their policies, procedures and any catering fees?
What is your process for after the meal?
The caterer’s job doesn’t end when the last guest is served.
Ask how they handle clearing tables, bussing dishes, removing food and trash, cleaning their back-of-house work areas, packing equipment and preparing rental items for return. Most importantly, ask how they manage all of this within the venue’s contracted access time.
A well-organized caterer should have a clear plan for the end of the event. Without one, cleanup can quickly become chaotic—and that can create unnecessary stress and expense for you, your vendors and the venue team.
Hiring a Caterer Is About More Than the Menu
When choosing a caterer, the food is certainly important—but it’s only part of the equation. The right caterer has the experience, staffing and systems to deliver a seamless meal service from setup through cleanup.
Asking these questions before signing a contract can help you identify whether a caterer is truly prepared for your event—and give you confidence that the meal will be one of the highlights of the evening.