Useful Information When Hiring A Catering Company

Great food at an event can leave a lasting impression on your guests. Cue catering services, which can range from bento boxes to full spread buffets depending on your budget and needs.

Food is always the centre of attention and if you’re having a huge event, you really don’t want to mess that up.

Services and Specialisation

Take-away boxes: pre-packed meals for convenience

Traditional buffet: Several tables of food suitable for large crowds

Cocktail party: A service offering drinks to the guests at the start of the event

French service: For formal events and fine dining, food is served to your guests

What makes a good caterer?

  1. Has an in-house chef that supervises and handles the details and creative aspects of food
  2. Plans a menu that suits your requirements
  3. Offers many options and is able to handle many types of events
  4. No record of health issues with their food in the past

Main price factors

  1. Type of food – more exquisite food can skyrocket your budget if you’re not careful
  2. Service style – a more personalized service means more labour required. Also included in this is the need for setup or decorations, which will affect the cost.
  3. Location – If the location is rural and hard to set up in, costs will be higher. Furthermore, if you need a kitchen, this would result in more costs for generators and equipment

Average Price Range When Hiring A Caterer 

Pricing

For catering services, one can expect to spend between $15 – $50 per head, this can also vary based on the type of service you require.

Tips, tricks and challenges

  1. Always ask to taste their food, never blind purchase just because someone said they were good.
  2. Know what you require for the event and work from that. Never go in blind and be swayed by fancy packages that are more than you need
  3. Remember to take into account special dietary restrictions and if the caterer is able to service them such as vegetarian, halal and other diets.

Advice from other buyer(s)

  1. For catering, call up a few catering companies, at least 3. Before you call, have the following ready: date of event, how many people, halal or vegetarian etc, your budget per head. Ask them to send you their quotation based on your event needs. Every catering company has different cost, check if there are hidden costs like table cloth, extra chairs etc. This is subject to what kind of event you are organising as well. – (Den Teo, business owner)