Do it Yourself Banquette
Hiring a catering company to feed a large number of people for a special event can be very expensive. If you enjoy cooking and planning this can be a do-it-yourself project that can save you a lot of money. This method employs the buffet-style banquet to reduce the need for food storage space and allows you to do much of the food-prep ahead of time. Instead of hiring someone to cater your next special event, save a little money and do it yourself with these helpful tips.
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Things You'll Need
- Planning notebook
- Food
- Drinks
- Single-use aluminum pans
- Paper plates
- Plastic silverware
- Napkins
- Serving utensils
Instructions
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Make a menu. Planning cannot be emphasized enough, it will make the difference between a delight and a disaster. Plan dishes that can be prepared ahead of time.
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Focus your attention on the main course. Choose a dish that appeals to a broad range of tastes such as lasagna, baked chicken with dressing or if you have a helper that can grill while you finish other preparations, barbecue chicken is always a crowd pleaser. Plan the use of your oven according to available space. For example you cannot cook four large dishes at the same time if you only have space for three. If you plan to have a hot main course, choose one hot side dish such as potatoes or a hot vegetable.
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Select the remainder of your sides that are best served cold or room temperature such as bean salad, coleslaw, potato salad or broccoli salad. Typically, most people have much more refrigerator space available to them than oven space and another benefit to serving cold dishes is they can be made ahead of time.
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Choose desserts that serve a lot of people. Cakes, pies, brownies and cheesecake are all easy and most can sit out at room temperature for a considerable amount of time, freeing up valuable refrigerator space.
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Shop for all necessary items. Make a list using your menu as a guide. Think through the process of making each dish as you add the ingredients to your list. Have recipes handy for reference to avoid forgetting items you may not use often.
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Make a schedule for the days preceding your event. Schedule tasks that can be done ahead of time to avoid a last-minute time crunch. Certain foods can even be frozen and thawed the day before they are needed. Desserts such as cakes, cookies and brownies all freeze and thaw well.
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Use disposable aluminum pans, quality paper plates and plastic silverware. Few people actually own enough large serving dishes to serve a big group and these single-use pans make clean up a snap. Don't skimp on the quality of the paper plates and plastic silverware you use, it could be much more costly for a plate to soak through onto a piece of furniture or someone's expensive clothing.
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Don't forget the drinks. It is easy to become so focused on the food that drinks are forgotten. Plan a reasonable variety of drinks to appeal to the broad tastes of most groups. Choose a cola, lemon-lime and tea, both in diet and regular, to appeal to most large groups.
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Tips & Warnings
Make special accommodations for people with dietary restrictions and vegetarians.
References
- Photo Credit Comstock/Comstock/Getty Images
