Oh god, they asked you to plan the company event, didn’t they? And now you’re sitting there wondering how the hell you went from being good at spreadsheets to suddenly being responsible for feeding 200 people without poisoning anyone or blowing the entire quarterly budget. Welcome to the club – we’ve all been there, and it’s exactly as terrifying as it seems.
But here’s the thing – you’re not actually supposed to become an event planning expert overnight. That’s why catering companies exist, and in NYC, you’ve got some of the best ones in the world.
The trick is knowing how to work with them without losing your mind or your job in the process.
Let me guess what’s running through your head right now.
Commercial Catering Services To The Rescue
You’re probably thinking about that one company party you went to where the chicken was drier than the Sahara, or that networking event where they ran out of food an hour in and people were eyeing each other like they might start eating the furniture. Yeah, those are the horror stories that keep event planners up at night.
The Real Deal About Corporate Catering
Here’s what nobody tells you about corporate events: the food is basically the only thing people will remember six months later. They won’t remember your PowerPoint presentation or that inspiring speech from the CEO. But they will absolutely remember if the food sucked or if there wasn’t enough of it.
Corporate catering is weird because it’s not like planning a dinner party for your friends. Your friends will eat your burnt lasagna and pretend it’s delicious because they love you. Your coworkers? Not so much. Plus, you’ve got all these random dietary restrictions to deal with – Karen from accounting is gluten-free, Mike from IT is vegan, and your biggest client keeps kosher. Fun times.
And then there’s the politics of it all. The food needs to be nice enough to impress clients but not so fancy that your employees think you’re wasting money. It needs to be corporate-appropriate but not boring. It’s like trying to thread a needle while riding a unicycle.
Picking a Catering Style That Won’t Ruin Your Life
Okay, so you need to feed people. But how? The good news is that there are basically three ways to do this, and each one has its pros and cons.
Buffet style is like the Swiss Army knife of catering – it works for almost everything. People can see what they’re getting, they can avoid stuff they don’t like, and it’s usually cheaper than the fancy plated stuff. The downside? You might end up with that one guy who treats the buffet like his personal all-you-can-eat challenge and leaves everyone else with crumbs.
Plated service is the fancy option. Everyone gets the same thing, it looks elegant, and you feel very important watching servers glide around with matching plates. But it costs more, takes forever, and if someone doesn’t like what you picked, they’re basically stuck picking at a roll for the next hour.
The Cocktail Party Route
Then there’s the cocktail reception thing, which is basically fancy finger food and drinks. This is perfect if you want people to mingle and network instead of sitting at tables avoiding eye contact. The food is bite-sized, the atmosphere is relaxed, and if someone’s having a terrible time, they can grab a drink and pretend to be fascinated by the appetizer table.
The key here is making sure you have enough substantial stuff that people don’t leave hungry and cranky. Nobody wants to be known as the person who threw the event where everyone had to stop at McDonald’s on the way home.
Working with Caterers Without Losing Your Mind
Here’s where things get interesting. Good caterers are like therapists who happen to be really good at food. They’ll ask you a million questions that seem irrelevant but are actually keeping you from disaster. How many people are coming? What time is the event? Are there any dietary restrictions? What’s your budget? Do you have a backup plan if the venue burns down?
Answer these questions honestly, even the embarrassing ones. Yes, your budget is probably smaller than you’d like. Yes, you do have that one executive who’s allergic to everything except plain chicken. Yes, you are completely terrified that this whole thing will be a disaster. They’ve heard it all before, and they’re not judging you.
The biggest mistake people make is trying to be cool and acting like they know what they’re doing. Trust me, your caterer can smell fear from a mile away, and they’d much rather work with someone who admits they need help than someone who pretends to be an expert and screws everything up.
The Menu Minefield
Let’s talk about the dietary restriction situation, because this is where things get really fun. It used to be that you just had to worry about vegetarians, but now everyone has something. Gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, keto, paleo, vegan, pescatarian – it’s like feeding a bunch of very particular aliens.
The good news is that professional caterers deal with this stuff every day. They know how to make food that works for multiple dietary restrictions without making it taste like cardboard. But you need to give them a heads up about what you’re dealing with. Send out a survey, ask around, and don’t assume that guy who always eats pizza will be fine with whatever you pick.
The Money Talk Nobody Wants to Have
Let’s be real about budgets for a minute. Corporate event budgets are usually somewhere between “laughably small” and “barely adequate,” and somehow you’re supposed to create magic with whatever crumbs they throw at you.
Here’s a secret: timing is everything. Breakfast events are cheaper than lunch events, which are cheaper than dinner events. Afternoon receptions cost less than evening ones. If you can be flexible with timing, you can stretch your budget way further.
Also, don’t get caught up in trying to impress everyone with fancy stuff. Sometimes the simple options are actually better. Nobody’s going to complain about really good sandwiches and salads, but they will definitely complain about mediocre filet mignon that tastes like shoe leather.
And please, for the love of everything holy, factor in tips and service charges when you’re comparing quotes. That “cheap” caterer might not look so cheap when you realize you need to add 20% for service and another 15% for gratuity.
Making This Thing Actually Work
At the end of the day, your job isn’t to become the next Martha Stewart. Your job is to feed people decent food without causing any disasters or bankrupting the company. If people leave feeling satisfied and nobody gets food poisoning, you’ve won.
The secret to pulling this off is finding caterers who actually give a damn about making you look good. They exist, even in NYC where everyone’s seen everything. Look for people who ask good questions, who seem to understand what you’re trying to accomplish, and who don’t make you feel like an idiot for not knowing the difference between canapés and hors d’oeuvres.
And remember – even if something goes wrong, it’s probably not as big a deal as it feels in the moment. People are surprisingly forgiving when they can tell you tried your best. Just don’t run out of coffee. That’s the one thing they’ll never forgive.
