Catering Tips For Entertaining A Large Number Of Guests

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Any guest at a big event, like a cocktail party or a wedding, is most likely to snoop around looking for anything of entertainment value.

Which will become worthy of their curiosity: the color of the buffet flame or the source of your unending surplus booze? As the host, you naturally have to anticipate what will resonate well with your guests, especially if it’s going to be a big crowd.

But more than just piquing their curiosity, you also have to ensure that your event can actually accommodate the number of guests you have.

This is especially important when it comes to the food you will serve, as well as the size of the venue. If you’re hosting a big event, you can opt to hire a catering service by clicking here.

That said, below are the catering tips to remember when you’re hosting an event for a large number of guests:

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Prep Ahead

The key to the success of a big event is planning ahead of time. This may involve getting all the required cutlery ready, stacking cocktails in wine carafes, and purchasing the necessary ingredients, among many other preparations to be made.

One important thing you need to do is to confirm the number of guests who will attend. This can take a lot of time so be sure to send invitations beforehand. Confirming the attendees will give you a proper estimate of their number, which can help you plan to ensure they are all satisfied during the event. 

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Think about How You Want the Food to be Served

A family-style appears more intimate and efficient even for larger crowds compared to the buffet, especially if it’s a seated dinner. One thing about the buffet is that it will require your guests to wait in line, which is not entirely pleasing.

For an open cocktail party, however, the buffet can be the most appropriate option. Keep in mind that it is challenging to regulate food temperatures in the buffet when compared to the family-style. That’s why it might not be the most suitable style when entertaining a large number of guests.  

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Presentation is Critical, No Matter How Trivial

The guests and attendees in your event are there to have fun, and to enjoy the food and ambiance. Despite the large crowd, however, you can make each one still feel special by taking time to make sure the presentation of the venue as well as the dishes are well-styled.

A small scattering of herbs on a finished dish, or having lighting in a specific angle in the venue, is worth making your presentation stand out.

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Choose Recipes That Don’t Require to be Served Hot

One of the biggest struggles for your catering team will always be how to keep everything hot. To prevent the legwork this might present to you, dinner should be served with only a few hot dishes.

Otherwise, let everything else be served at room temperature. For instance, roasted vegetables and chicken are okay if they are not bubbling hot. However, it would help being more careful with seafood since they are quite delicate and, in most cases, have to be served piping hot. 

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Check for Special Diets

Another important yet often neglected factor in having an event is knowing about your guests’ dietary requirements.

Consider the demographics of your attendees, especially if most of them are comprised of elderly people as you will certainly need to take into account their dietary restrictions when creating your menu.

Also, ask if any of your attendees have specific allergies, or if they don’t eat a particular type of food. It is crucial to know about this ahead of time to prevent catering hiccups, as well as endangering anyone’s health.

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Prepare Ingredient Quantities

After confirming the number of guests and having settled on a menu, you then need to calculate ingredient quantities. For instance, if the recipe is meant to serve 50 guests, you have to determine the amount that is enough for one person.

The measurement for one person can then simply be multiplied by the number of guests to get the right quantities of ingredients. It is vital to make sure you have the proper fridge storage as well to store all prepared ingredients before the day of the event.

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Consider the Event Style

One thing you should also decide upon is the event style, which will help you align your style of catering in a way that sufficiently entertains your large number of guests.

For instance, in a formal dinner party, your menu should buck sausage rolls and party pies. Know whether your guests will be standing or seated. If they are limited to standing, the best option is to serve foods that don’t need cutlery.

Alternatively, you can do a little research on party ideas to understand how to match up the event style and catering style for a more intimate experience with your guests.

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Conclusion

To successfully entertain a large number of guests, it is essential to plan ahead, confirm the number of attendees, and choose recipes that don’t require to be served hot.

Moreover, it is also prudent to check for special diets, hire some staff to ease your work, and prepare ingredient quantities so there will be enough food to go around for your guests to enjoy. 

Julie Higgins
Author
Julie is a Staff Writer at momooze.com. She has been working in publishing houses before joining the editorial team at momooze. Julie's love and passion are topics around beauty, lifestyle, hair and nails.

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