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Tips to Tailoring Your Party Catering Menu to Your Guests
Imagine a lively backyard party with all your closest friends and family, all mingling with smiles on their faces, savouring every bite and creating great memories. This is all thanks to a well-tailored party. Party catering is a key factor that goes into how well the party goes. Flavour pairings and overall cohesiveness in the bbq menu can make or break a meal. Barbeque catering offers a variety of flavours for you and your guests to enjoy, whether it is a small and intimate event or a company-wide mixer at the office. Cater your events to your guests with Smokin’ Bones to create an unforgettable experience.
Learn more about the importance of meeting your guests’ preferences at your next party below.
Understanding Dietary Restrictions
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Food is a very customizable thing. Whether it’s due to preference, health or religion, everyone has a different diet, and it’s essential to take them into consideration, especially as a host. This is to ensure every guest is accounted for. Be sure to survey your guests for any dietary restrictions, such as vegetarianism, gluten-free, or allergies. You can contact them personally or simply attach a note to the RSVP that you send out. This way, you can create a menu that accommodates any diet. This may be to avoid those ingredients or develop substitutes. Discuss these arrangements with your caterers.
Customizing the Menu
Before planning your menu, be sure to gather all the necessary information from your guests. This includes dietary restrictions, who are attending, etc. This will help with portion control and accommodate everyone who will be joining. Once complete, figure out what your main protein dish will be. This can be rotisserie chicken, ribs, burgers, or you can opt for no-meat options like tofu. You will then choose side dishes that will complement the flavours of the main. This will help to create cohesiveness. Barbeque catering offers a great combination of food, all with that same smokey flavour. Explore the many possibilities with your catering professional.
Incorporating Themes and Flavours
Themes are a great way to enhance the party experience. It can depend on many factors like the season and occasion being celebrated. Being aware of what is in season for produce can be beneficial to take advantage of the optimal quality of food. Flavours like coconut and pineapple can be great for summer to emulate a tropical vibe. On the other hand, peppermint and gingerbread flavours are more common in the winter, closer to the holidays. Making use of different cuisines can enhance your menu as well, broadening the range of tastes and creating a variety for the palette. Presentation can also help to tie the food into the overall party theme, using themed cutlery and labels around the food.
Interactive Food Stations and Dietary Considerations
When it comes to casual and small party catering events, hosts typically stick to a buffet-style food service. This way, guests can create their plates based on their individual food preferences. An interactive food station can consist of a bunch of different protein choices and sides to accommodate allergies and dietary restrictions. With that being said, buffet style comes with the possibility of cross-contamination, using the same serving utensils for all the dishes. It’s crucial to ensure each item has its own utensils to avoid any allergic reactions. You can also choose to add to the labels if the item is gluten-free, dairy-free, halal, etc., to provide further guidance to your guests.
Communication with Guests
When hosting, the main goal is to ensure guests are satisfied with their experience. Communication starts with the invites, where you can ask for their opinion on menu items. This can be due to health concerns or simply preference. In many office cases, a survey goes around asking what everyone’s preferred menu is to get a better idea of what to serve. Social media is also a great way to get in contact with your guests. If your guest pool is small enough, you can opt to message each attendee directly for their preferences. It can sometimes be hard to get guests to voice their opinions, so keep the surveys short and possibly incentivize feedback.
Party Catering in the GTA
As a guest, you want to enjoy the food that is being served at the event. This will not only enhance guest satisfaction but create an enjoyable overall experience for them. They will feel valued as guests and heard and understood when it comes to food preferences. With Smokin’ Bones, work with our professionals to create an excellent event for you and your guests.
