Food & Entertaining
Cook for Hire
Leave the cooking (and the preparation and the cleanup) to the caterers.
BY
Tammy Worth
PHOTOGRAPHY
courtesy Entrees Made Easy

The holiday season — a chaotic ensemble of parties, holiday shopping, school functions and relative-hosting — is typically the busiest time of the year for the catering industry. It’s no wonder that even the most avid at-home chefs look outside of their own kitchens for assistance when hosting parties or simply trying to ensure that a satisfying meal is on the table each night.

“It really does get crazy during the holidays,” says Mark Juhnke, owner of Blue Pot Personal Chef and Catering Services. “It’s the time when people most use caterers.”

If finding a caterer is still on your to-do list, the Yellow Pages should not be the place to start. Most caterers say it is best to talk to friends or co-workers or inquire at parties where you enjoyed the food. “The best caterers in town can probably be found through word of mouth,” Mark notes.

Shawn Monroe, owner of Creative Cuisine (you can find their listing in our Find Shops & Showrooms area), recommends narrowing choices down to three options and then asking questions, such as whether a caterer makes his or her own hors d’oeuvres and uses fresh produce. You should also expect to be able to taste the food before you hire a caterer. Most businesses will offer a small sampling of their menu to prospective clients.

Once you have found a company, it is best to book well in advance during the holidays. Laura O’Rourke, owner of the Culinary Center of Kansas City, recommends booking holiday parties in June. But for those doing some last-minute looking, two weeks’ notice is fine for most small events, and for larger parties of 200 or more people, three weeks should be sufficient, according to Mark.
“For such a date, you are almost booking the caterer for the night, so they won’t be able to book more events for that evening,” he says.

When meeting with a caterer to plan your event, it is best to come with a budget in mind. It saves both the host and the caterer time. “A lot of times, people really don’t know how much the cost is,” Laura says. “But most caterers would rather you tell us what we have to work with and we will back into it.”

There are typically two components to a caterer’s fee: the food and the extras, including staffing, linens and rentals. The costs for the food vary widely depending upon the kind of meal. Laura tells clients to expect around $25 per person for appetizers only. Mark says his range for the same is between $12 and $20 per person, as is Shawn’s.

The costs beyond food also vary, mainly because of the variety of services available. Offerings range from the bare necessities to a fully staffed party where the caterer handles setup and takedown, along with providing tables, chairs, linens, china and floral arrangements. Most also have ties to other vendors, including deejays and florists, if those services are needed. These additional costs can often double or triple the amount spent for the event.

“It depends on what you want out of the party,” Laura notes. “Is it obligatory that you have a few people through your home and move on or do you want to create a truly memorable experience?”

Laura says she typically recommends that clients take advantage of the Culinary Center’s staffing services to make the whole event go more smoothly. “It is not the area where you want to save costs,” she says. “It is important to have someone who is managing the food even if you put it out yourself. Getting Uncle Lester to do the bar is not always a good idea.”

Mark agrees. “We try to make it as easy a process as possible for the people,” he says. “The last thing someone wants to do after a party at 11 p.m. is to clean up all of the dishes.”

You should also know what kind of party you intend to have. Caterers will want to know the length of the party, how long food will be served, how comfortable the hosts are with entertaining, what kind of foods the hosts like, the formality of the event and maybe even who the guests will be.

Most caterers will call to check in prior to a party to ensure everything is on track, but feel free to call your caterer as well. “A good caterer wants repeat business,” Laura says. “If they come in and create a party for a client that is reflective of what the client wants and have taken enough time to understand, everybody wins.”

If you’re looking beyond a one-time event to everyday meals, personal chefs and food preparation services also can be a lifesaver during the holidays. Mark says he provides most of his clients three to five days worth of meals that can simply be “thrown into the oven” or that just need a small amount of assembly. The menu varies depending on the client and can cost from $12 to $50 per person, per meal.

September through December are the four busiest months in the meal-preparation industry, says Richard Armstrong, regional developer and owner of the Overland Park-based Entrees Made Easy.

You can assemble your own meals, which can take between 30 minutes to one hour, pick up preassembled food or have meals delivered for a $10 charge. The price for the food ranges from $26 to $210 for as little as two three-person meals or as many as 12 four- to six-person meals. And Richard says the company is planning specials that coincide with the holidays, including a November turkey meal complete with all the trimmings.

While the holidays will always be harried, the least you can do is to keep yourself well-fed and hang on for the ride.