In
my years of Banqueting Management, I have fed a lot of folks. From parties of
500 to intimate groups of 2, groups rejoicing, groups mourning, grand buffets,
eight course meals, German meals, Indian meals, Polish meals, vegan meals,
gluten free meals, breakfast, lunch, brunch, dinner, supper, late night, you
name it! I have found that there are certain standards that will bring forth a
lucrative business. I have complied these suggestions and observations that I
would like to share with you:
1) Everything
is in the planning stage.
Work all the details out if you can as soon as you can. Careless planning may lead to missteps that
can muck up your operation, and more importantly negatively affect the guest experience. If you are working with a sales team, give
them all of the information they need to present to the clients to sell the
events. Let them know how you intend to execute events ahead of time so that
they can answer any questions that the clients may have on the spot. The
ability to directly answer questions that the booking clients may have shows
professionalism and gives the sales team an edge to make the deal. Once the
event is sold, keep in constant communication with the sales member or service
manager in charge of the event as to keep up with any occurring changes. A
cohesive relationship between all of the departments means better reaction time
for the service departments and a better experience for the guests. The last
thing you want the guests to see is the staff scrambling around trying to
adhere to changes that could have been addressed at an earlier time had a good
communication procedure or protocol been implemented.
2) Margins. Unless you are running a soup kitchen,
you will need to make your numbers work. Break-down everything into dollars
when costing out an event starting with the overhead. What is your cost to turn
the lights on and start cooking? How much do you pay someone to book events? If
you are using old menus, when was the last time they were audited with current
food costs? Give your prices enough “wiggle-room” in your cost to price margin
to cover your butt in the event of cost increases. There may also be times when
you may have to adjust your prices in order to fit a client’s budget and to
make a sale. It is important to have your prices ready for these anomalies.
3) The
Walk-Through. Go over
the event orders with your other service team members and make sure that you have
enough service wear and furnishings in inventory. Also be sure that you have
enough staff available. When the room is
set for the event, try to imagine yourself as a guest moving about the event
room. Get a feel for the “flow” of the room by actually walking out the event. Make sure that the staff has enough room to
service the guests properly. If the staff looks uncomfortable trying to squeeze
into tight spots to provide service, it may make the guests fell uncomfortable as
well. If it is a Buffet service, make sure that it also has good flow. Keep the
number of people in mind when deciding how many food service vessels to provide
and where to put them in order to provide optimal maneuverability. Make sure that the food items are placed in
the correct order in the buffet assembly, and that the proper utensils are in
place. You have to remember; most all of the guests will be holding a plate
with one hand and using the other to serve themselves the food. Awkward serving
utensils that are hard to serve food with are cumbersome and hold up the whole
meal experience. Try to limit the amount of plate ware on the buffet as well; too
many cups, dishes, ramekins etc. can be hard to juggle in a buffet line.
4) Presentation…is everything! Put your best foot
forward. From the start to the end of the event the guests will be inspecting
your “house”. Make sure that all nooks and crannies accessible to the guests
are in top presentable fashion. All staff should be inspected for proper attire
and hygiene. These staff members are the face of your business, so it is
imperative that they be in pristine form. They should be fully aware of the
whole event timeline from start to finish so that they can answer questions
presented by the guests. They should know the complete layout of the facility
as to direct guests to where they need to be and to where certain facilities
are located. A well informed staff reflects professionalism. As for food
presentation, make it beautiful, but practical. A good balance of garnishment to
food on the plate or buffet is essential as one can outshine the other.
Remember: Enhancement through balance! Choose garnishments that make sense. Also,
make sure that all service ware is cleaned and polished. A smudgy chauffeur will
say a lot about your business, as will a spotty glass.
5) The
Next Event. It is
important I state that every event is an exhibition to future customers and an opportunity
for future business. Some people may be
willing to ask a server or manager for information on how they could hold a
future event in your facility, but that is not always the case. Businesses
should consider linking with future customers via social media in a discrete
fashion. This could be done by including link options on the event brochures,
or by requiring patrons to “like”, “follow” or log onto your webpage when signing into the facility’s
Wi-Fi service. Having someone actively post your current events on social media
feeds will help activity.
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