Catering for Business Functions

• The Philosophy of Business Entertaining
• Sandwiches in the Board Room
• Buffets
• Finger Food
• In-house Catering
• Entertaining Clients and Suppliers
• Restaurants vs Catering

The Philosophy of Business Entertaining

A modest spend on catering can have a disproportionate effect on your business because it helps you build relationships. Frankly, it tastes better when someone else is paying so your clients are in a good frame of mind. When people are looked after, made to feel important and their bellies are full, they're relaxed and easy to talk to. Much more so than in a confrontational Board Room setting.

The more you build a relationship with your clients and suppliers, the better and more open the communication. And the better the communication, the higher the trust. If you want someone's attention, invite them to a catered event. You'll be amazed at the difference in response levels if your invitation says 'join us for lunch'. A cooked breakfast, a light supper, finger food around the pool; these are phrases that make a difference when business people have a choice about attending your events.

You put a huge amount of effort into putting together a business presentation but you know it's true that often, people's judgement about your company will be heavily influenced by the quality of your catering.

Sandwiches in the Board Room

There are good reasons sandwiches are the most popular catering option for executive and sales meetings. They're healthy, quick, diverse and filling.

Although we do foccaccia, bruschetta and exotic combinations on request, our experience is that keeping to known sandwich formats is good practice. People don't want to have to inspect a sandwich.

A mix of bread types is sensible but resist the fancy; here are the low risk options: ham and salad, smoked salmon, tuna, chicken, straight salad, curried egg.

We do three-layer ribbon sandwiches with a rich visual appetite appeal. The sandwich format should suit the occasion and the demographic. Older folk generally like recognisable cuts and fillings are less adventurous.

Buffets

This is a very efficient way of serving lots of people quite quickly. Much lower cost than plated service. And it gives you plated hot food options like pasta, pot roast and stroganoff. A buffet is ideal when you're doing a sit-down presentation that includes lunch. It also gives you complete control over the seating arrangements.

Finger Food

When you want people to mix, this is the best option. Unless your employees are experienced caterers, you're better off using professionals. Using catering staff frees up your people to work the crowd, increasing the number of sales encounters and the chances of good business results.

Finger food gives you the flexibility to serve food very quickly or by extending the number of dishes, fill your guests and keep the conversation going. If your clients have been sitting down in meetings all morning, the finger food option lets them move around and mingle.

In-house Catering

It's no secret that people communicate differently around food. When we eat together, we bond. The shared food experience promotes conversation, reminds us we are all human and takes us away from the linear thought that dominates our task-driven business lives. If you want to improve your corporate culture, schedule regular events where people eat together.

Entertaining Clients and Suppliers

Corporations and small businesses already know that business is about relationships. And corporate functions invariably revolve around food. The money you spend buying food for an important client meeting produces the best return on investment you will ever get. But only if the food is tasty and served professionally.

A professional caterer will want to know what sort of business function you are hosting, why are you hosting it and what timing imperatives there are. They will then advise you on the food type and what is necessary to make it a successful catering event.

Sometimes you'll want to do this on your premises, other times we'll recommend a venue or outdoor setting. Perth lends itself to outdoor catered functions; King's Park, South Perth foreshore, Matilda Bay, Peppermint Grove and of course, cruises on the Swan River and boat trips to Rottnest. Your local park or oval might also be suitable.

Restaurants vs Catering

A restaurant is often the right way to celebrate an achievement. It gives a sense of special occasion and reward that is sometimes perfect. Usually that works best as a dinner. It's hard to get back to work after a restaurant lunch; everybody just wants to go to sleep.

Catering gives you a great deal of control, letting you precisely manage the timeline and the meetings environment. It's a way of reducing risk, saving time and it will cost you half or less than a restaurant meal. Look at it this way, your budget would fund twice as many presentations. If you think that makes good business sense and you're looking for a quality caterer in Perth, Western Australia, call Santino on 9331 2874.