How far should you Book your Catering?

With a catered event, you can relax, knowing someone else is taking care of the food preparations and serving for you. It can be a wonderful experience, but don’t put it off until the last minute. Many catering services are booked months in advance. Around the holidays you will find it is difficult to secure a spot on any of the calendars if you don’t talk to them at least three months in advance.

Since most weddings take place on a Saturday, that is also a busy time for catering businesses. As a general rule of thumb, as soon as you know the date of your event and how many people you will invite, it is time to start talking to catering service providers. You don’t want to rush hiring anyone. Instead, it is important to take your time. Evaluate the menu, cost, and quality of the food.

At least six months before your event, decide who you would like to hire. It can be a business you are loyal to. You know their food and service, and have no doubt they will be exceptional for your needs. In other situations, you have to taste food and talk to owners to get a feel for what they can provide. Scheduling time to taste food and talk about options should be done as early as possible.

Book your catering at least 90 days in advance. The time is going to fly by, and you don’t want to drop the ball. Otherwise, you may get stuck with a caterer that charges too much or the quality of the food isn’t what you had in mind. You don’t want to be disappointed and you certainly don’t want your guests unhappy with what you served to them.

It is recommended to follow up with the caterer about 60 days before your event. A quick call or email to verify you are on their calendar and there aren’t any hiccups is important. This will give you please of mind, too. Make sure the caterer has your current phone number and email in the event they do need to talk to you about anything between how and your event.

Two weeks before your event, reach out to the caterer again and confirm all is on track. This can be a good time to go over specifics, too. For example, what time they will arrive, how the food will be served, and other details. Booking your catering needs in advance and then following up as your event gets closer ensures the lines of communication are open.

Hiring a catering service for your event will be something you appreciate when that big day arrives. You can remain calm, relaxed, and enjoy the event. You won’t be stressed over food or other details. The ease of all of it may encourage you to host more events in the future!