You have donned your toque and cooked up delectable dishes that will have everyone exclaiming, “My stomach is one happy place!” But as you know, in the catering business, you also need a host of equipment that will not only ensure that your food looks appetizing, but that it is safely transported from your kitchen to the party site and that the overall presentation looks professional.
Really, having the right equipment is essential to having a successful catering business. And wowing your clients not just with your cooking expertise coupled but also with smooth and seamless service, excellent logistical planning and implementation, as well as attractive presentation, will win you even more clients. After all, you are aiming to give your client not just a meal but a dining experience – where the taste, textures, looks and colors work together.
So, here are some of the catering must-haves that should be part of your catering business, aside from the standard kitchen equipment. With the right equipment, you can flawlessly manage various logistical and organizational aspects of your catering job and prove to your clients that you are the right choice:
Dinnerware. It cannot be denied that you will need good dinnerware, especially if you are planning to cater to more formal events. Aside from the dinner plates, you will need salad plates, bread and butter plates, soup bowls and teacup and saucer. You can also consider getting some place setting extras such as charger plates, rim soup bowls and accent plates.
Cabinets for transporting and holding food.When you are catering a large event, you need holding cabinets which you can use to store and heat pre-cooked foods. With holding cabinets, you ensure that the taste stays consistent, vegetables keep their crispness, the meats are moist and the food hot and ready to serve. Holding cabinets provide natural convection heat and humidity that keep your dishes for even prolonged periods (which is handy when the food is en route to the venue).
Chafing dishes.These are standard buffetware made up of large serving dishes with heaters underneath. These come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. When choosing chafing dishes, look for the following qualities – appearance, durability, portability and the ease of controlling the heat. The chafing dishes should also be stable enough so that it won’t be knocked over. It is also advisable to get chafing dishes that have lids that are supported by braces or that have rolling covers. This way, your servers don’t have to worry about where to put a hot lid while they are busy with a long buffet line. You should also invest in good chafing dish accessories, including tongs, food scoops, fuel holders, lighters for the fuel cells and water pans.
Serverware. Make your buffet table look even more delightful or serve your food with style using elegant serving platters, vegetable bowls, gravy boats (with stand), serving trays and pickle/relish dishes. Having these serverware at your buffet table adds an elegant touch and also allows you to provide an attractive array of mini appetizers.
Soup warmer.Soup warmers are usually large electronic tureens that keep the soup warm. These can also be used for chilli, stews and sauces.
Linen and Decor.You may also need to provide additional amenities such as chairs, table, table linen and tabletop accessories such as table card holders and salt & pepper shakers.
Uniforms.The members of your kitchen staff should wear the requisite cook’s jackets, trousers, toques and aprons. This is not just to present a professional image to the clients but also to ensure that the kitchen exercises proper hygiene by limiting hair and skin contact with the food. Your servers should also be in uniform so that diners can identify the wait staff. This avoids embarrassing instances where a guest mistakes another guest for a server.
It is crucial to understand that the right tools will help you integrate your processes from end to end, resulting in an efficient and impressive catering service. It is important that you also have the right supplier for your catering needs. Lionsdeal provides you with the catering and restaurant supplies you need at excellent prices.
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