By Joanna Pruess

prepared food focus

From tweaking portion sizes and ingredient choices to delivering creative serving and location options, top caterers share their best tips for keeping costs down and customer approval up.

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Most caterers have seen changes in the way their corporate and private clients are entertaining. Gratuitous glitz has lost much of its glamour and a sense of comfort—perceived or real—is essential. Especially now, as they head into holiday season planning amid a challenging economy, catering professionals are aiming to rely on creative solutions. Here are some of their proven strategies and areas of concentration.


1. Take a hard look at baseline costs.
More than ever, you need to evaluate both ingredients costs as well as the labor involved in preparing and serving. This is especially true for large events when some components of a dish become unfeasible. For example, says Tracey Amarnick, director of catering for the Bahia Resort Hotels, Bahia Sternwheelers and Evans Garage in San Diego, Calif., “for small groups, we make individual tostada salads with gourmet fillings and our own 14-inch shells. When we contemplated serving them to 500 people, we realized that the labor costs and time required were outrageous. We sourced out shells at $0.35 each.”

“We also don’t do cheese cubes and frilly toothpicks,” she continues. “Instead, we invest in artisanal cheeses served in wedges and in whole pieces. It makes a stunning presentation.” (Bahia includes a cheese sommelier for events so guests can speak with someone who is knowledgeable.) This type of menu is an investment for the caterer, Amarnick notes, but aged cheeses last longer. “Staff is instructed to wrap the remainders quickly and, when properly refinished, they can be used for a smaller group,” she says.


2. Re-evaluate portion size.
The concept of “more is more” in party planning is giving way to a cultural appreciation of luxury without excess. As John Martancik, chef/proprietor of The Cooking Company, in Verona, N.J., notes, the key is to make sure your priorities are taste and satisfaction. “For more sophisticated parties, we offer appetizers like Peking duck wraps, filet mignon on French bread with an onion confit or Thai shrimp curry salad in a wonton cup. The small size allows us to use fewer shrimp or less beef, but still gives a satisfying, robust-tasting tidbit.”

Rather than a big seafood display where guests keep loading up their plates and portion control is impossible, Amarnick uses small trio plates, like those used for sushi, with one shrimp on each side and two crab claws with cocktail sauce in the middle section. “We know how much seafood is put out. Portions are controlled and no one is fighting for the shrimp or crab,” she explains. The presentation can also be themed. For example, at a recent event Amarnick presented the plates on mini surfboard skimmers. It’s a concept that also can be adapted to a holiday motif.

Amarnick notes that a variety of creative serving ware can be used to successfully pull off small-portion presentation. “I found wonderful recyclable or biodegradable small plates in innovative sizes and shapes from companies like Rossetto,” she says. They offer shaped shot glasses and specialty trays for passing chilled soup shots. Decorative lab tubes in a specially designed holder are another distinctive presentation that is affordable, and the tubes can be washed and reused.

Colorful presentations rather than unnecessary garnishes can help make even simple foods or smaller portions appear more festive. Amarnick adds eye appeal with custom-designed chocolate spoons with hot pink, lime green or yellow swirled into the chocolate. Each edible spoon holds a mouthful of lemon mousse. Similarly, a rainbow of gazpacho colors—orange, red and green—is more interesting than a tray of one-color soup. They are fun items that give that sense of “wow”, she notes.


3. Work the high-low trend.
Whether it is Michelle Obama wearing both J. Crew and designer originals or premium wines being sold in a box, the trend in combining higher-end and lower-end options is gaining mass approval. Carole Peck, chef/partner of Good News Café and Catering in Woodbury, Conn., and author of The Buffet Book, dresses up baked macaroni and cheese with lobster to make it more elegant, and the cost of the pricey shellfish is amortized in the overall budget-friendly item. She also uses inexpensive grains, couscous and pasta. (“Everyone loves pasta and it always works,” she says.) Recently Peck added chorizo and artisanal ham to baked calypso and pinto beans. As for desserts, “bread pudding works great and all those old-fashioned puddings are coming back,” she adds.

If someone pays $500 for a ticket to a gala, the food needs to be pretty extravagant, but you can take a creative approach, says Andrew Spungin, executive director/chef for Waters Fine Catering, in San Diego, Calif. “We recently did a high-ticket event where, after the caviar, we served airline chicken—with the first joint of the wing attached—with a delicious jus as the main course. People loved it because too often in their circle they get a stuffy, contrived main course; this played into everyone’s basic longing for comfort right now.”

Spungin notes that his company supports local and artisanal products and tries to find a way to incorporate them even on modest customer budgets. “For a recent tenth anniversary of a neighborhood school, we served meatloaf made with locally raised Brandt beef wrapped with Fra’ Mani pancetta. Essentially, we took an old favorite and presented it in a more upmarket way. When you put food like that in front of people, it does something special by recalling childhood,” he says. Comfort foods done well speak to all strata and ages of society.

Amarnick adds, “You can also get more bang for the buck by using a less expensive cut of meat in a creative way. For instance, rather than tenderloin of beef with blue cheese and port wine sauce, substitute thinly sliced marinated flank steak served as three small roulades with the same wine sauce and, perhaps, dried truffle instead of fresh. Also, try using expensive ingredients as garnish rather than as a main ingredient.”

Sliders are another popular hors d’oeuvre being served across the country with countless variations. The mini-burgers can be made with ahi tuna, black angus beef, turkey, veggies or crab cakes. Even high-quality mini hotdogs in a good bun with designer toppings are a fun food that is reminiscent of pigs in a blanket but with an elegant twist.

Variety also packs a punch with both clients and guests feeling that they’ve been well taken care of. Martancik notes that people respond to ethnic stations, like Mexican, Asian or Italian, because they are flavorful and fun and can keep costs in check. A cassoulet as a centerpiece of a French table with celery remoulade and baguettes is perfect for a party with friends. Amidst all that, he doesn’t forget American classics such as the aforementioned mac and cheese as an hors d’oeuvre, sliders at cocktail parties and cupcakes instead of decorated sheet cakes.


4. Offer serving options with savings.
Packaging and serving premium-quality food in an unusual and value-driven way is all the more important during this economy. For buffets, Peck suggests presenting dishes in sauces rather than individual servings to help reduce costs because not everyone takes a full helping. Martancik adds that he sees a rise in family-style parties with one platter on each table instead of elaborate buffets or sit-down dinners. This works, he says, because only one course is involved. Some caterers are also shortening the length of parties or shifting what was once a dinner party to a brunch or Sunday lunch venue.

Throughout New York, “people I work with are looking to eliminate the cost of rentals, service and the feeling of a formal event, says Jason Apfelbaum, president of Chef & Company in Manhattan’s Flatiron area. “In 2008, we received more than $1 million in holiday party cancellations. Today, cocktail parties with heavy passed hors d’oeuvres are much more prevalent than sit-down dinners. ”

Martancik suggests that some clients use disposable tableware for the dessert portion of their parties. After serving the main course on a rented china plate with silverware and a linen napkin, they can economize by a few dollars.


5. Help clients rethink locations.
The new economy has brought about a surge in using different entertaining venues. “Many of our clients are house proud with gorgeous properties,” says Spungin, “so we encourage them to enjoy their space and let guests spread out. We can set up a field kitchen outside or in their garage.” Passing fork-friendly foods that are already apportioned on miniature plates works best in these settings, he adds.

Martancik encourages clients to look at alternative spaces like church or temple rooms that cost less than sleeker event spaces. One client rented a local town’s train station. They may require more creative menus and space planning but can end up being economical for the client. As a bonus, around the holidays some public spaces may even be available already decorated.

As you review these ideas and decide what makes the most sense for your business, be sure you remain focused on the most important thing—keeping your brand strong. One of the biggest challenges of the recession is to make the necessary adjustments to keep your business in the black while keeping your company’s mission and image on track. For example, Good News Café’s Peck notes that while she has adopted new menu ideas and ways of working with clients to stretch dollars, she hasn’t cut her commitment to sustainability. “Over the years, I’ve partnered with local farms for meat and vegetables and, obviously, I have to pay more for the products. I’ve maintained these relationships—and my principles—and am gratified to see customers who appreciate the movement and are still willing to pay the price and that the momentum hasn’t faltered,” she adds.

It is also key to know your customer base and know what they expect from an event—and where they don’t want to compromise. “My clients do not want to change the kind of events they are accustomed to,” says Janeen Sarlin of New York’s Cooking with Class, a boutique caterer who has worked with private corporations for more than 30 years. “So, while the level of my personal attention and commitment to high standards haven’t wavered, the frequency of those events has slowed.” |SFM|

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