FAQs

Well. In most ways, it should work the way that you, the Host says that it does.

A good Caterer should make your wishes the template for how things are done.

That's what we do. Service is as important as the Food.

Here are the typical steps involved in securing a caterer:

1.  Upon contact, we discuss your party date, size, venue, and budget.

(It is very helpful to have a general idea of what your budget is prior to contacting Caterers. Knowing your budget can save you a lot of time and prevent general sticker shock.)

2. Menu is discussed. 

Special Diets, Allergies, & Preferences are laid out so that offerings can be put together. It is helpful for both you and the Caterer if you come prepared with basic but useful information such as "nothing spicy", "we really don't like seafood", or "we couldn't make it to New Orleans last year so we were thinking Creole". The turnaround to Finalized Menu is dramatically decreased when you have some idea of what is that you want.

3. Service Style is established.

Buffet? Plated? Passed Heavy Apps. All of these Service Styles make a difference in both the flow of your evening as well as your overall costs.

4. A Menu and Service Invoice are submitted.

The Caterer sends you a detailed invoice which has every detail discussed in line-item form drawn out on a document for your review.

5. Deposit is tendered and Date is confirmed.

We can't say this often and loud enough: 

"Until you leave a deposit, the only thing you and a Caterer have had is a conversation."

 No matter how great the vibe was, understand that while you are "weighing options", someone can call about the date that you've requested and make a deposit, rendering your conversation with the Caterer veritably moot.

Once you have made your deposit, your Caterer should send you a new invoice which indicates your submitted deposit. From there on, you'll both be in contact for menu or logistical items, as needed.

If you are serving a large amount of people: Yes.

If you want do minimal to no planning: Definitely.

If you have never cooked for a large amount of people, don't have the equipment to do so, and do not want to do any cleanup or other related chores: Absolutely!

A Caterer brings much more than Food to your event.

A Caterer offers experience, organization, infrastructure, and peace of mind.

We are currently not licensed to sell Alcohol but have experienced, licensed, and insured Bar Services we contract with to provide these services to our Patrons.

One of the most important questions you can ask of us.

Pricing can go all over the place based on the Food offered, Service Style, Venue, and other Logistical factors.

Costing can be as simple as "Tell me what you can do with our $75.00 per person budget."

Costing can also be as complex as "We want Filet Mignon for 125, Passed Appetizers, a few Salad Stations, and a Dessert Bar."

Generally, you can expect to pay $50 per person for simple parties of 100 or more to $150 per person for smaller affairs.

Additionally, elevated dining  with top-notch service and furnishings can run the host upwards of $200 per person.

Consider your budget prior to contacting a Caterer. This is helpful both to you and the company. It helps them know what to offer you and helps you have the comfort of knowing you are getting the most value possible from your engagement.

Any Caterer who doesn't should be thrown a severe side-eye.

Children typically do not affect consumption enough to have a significant impact on most catered affairs.

Accomodations do need to be made for Children, however, and because of this Children are billed at a fraction of the regular rate.

(We are not going to charge our Patrons for a few two year olds who eat from their parents' plates.)

We have found that our services are a better fit for those seeking to Cater events of more than 25 guests. Our average party sizes average between 50 and 100 guests. 

Currently our maximum event size is about 200 guests, depending on the service requested.

Yes!

This is the leading cause of sticker shock for most hosts.

You've come up with a budget of $75.00 per person for your event. You contact a Caterer and have a conversation based on $75.00 worth of FOOD. You might not have taken into account the need for Servers, Additional Kitchen Help, Travel Outside Of Service Area, Tax, Etc...

In actuality, in order to stay within budget, you'd probably aim for $50-$55 of Food with the rest of the budget going towards fees.

When engaging a Caterer, expect to see some additional fees on your invoice. 

Usually, the additional charges can be easily explained and, in many cases the invoice altered to come closer to fitting your budget.

In our opinion, any Caterer that isn't flexible in this way might not be the best fit for most hosts.

Yes! Yes! Yes!

In Southern California, it is nearly impossible to get 50 or more people together who all eat the same thing.

We always look forward to finding ways to say "Yes" to our Patrons. There aren't any Special Needs that  we can not accomodate.

We try.

What we mean by this is that we do not pretend to be Glatt Kosher experts.

Per request, we serve the following Religious Diets as follows:

Halal:

- We acquire Beef, Lamb, Veal, and Goat from reputable sources who follow associated rules and guidelines.

- We do not use any Alcohol in the perparation of menu items.

Kosher:

- We use Proteins obtained from Kosher providers.

- We do not mix, in any way, non-parve dairy with proteins.

- We use seperate utensils and cooking recepticles for preparing dairy and meat items.

- For Glatt Kosher adherents, we provide a list of produce needed and receive it from their trusted source.

- We take care to not allow utensils and recepticles to not come into contact with surfaces, dishwater, or any other item rendered not kosher by being exposed to non-parve items.

Ahimsa (Hindu)

- We work closely with Patrons to ensure that Vegetarian items are prepared in accordance with their preferences in mind.

We invoice our Patrons based on the initial count that they provide.

We indicate either verbally or in writing that there are thresholds of guest reduction that can affect the cost per person.

Here's what a guest reduction looked like for a recent Patron...

Intial Guest Count: 100

Cost Per Person: $75.00 

2nd Guest Count: 83

Cost Per Person: $79.75

Final Guest Count: 75

Cost Per Person: $83.00

It would be a good idea to get everything finalized within 30 days of your event.

We understand, however that many factors can change details and we will 100% work with you to accomodate any and all changes. If it incurs any costs, we'd be happy to make needed allowances.

We do!

We encourage it, actually, especially for Weddings and Anniversary parties.

Tastings are an excellent investment. They allow you to fine-tune your menu and have confidence that you are making the right selections for your guests.

We welcome you to schedule a tasting with us. 

We credit a portion of the cost of tastings to your final invoice.

We offer (among others) the following common Catering styles:

Fully-Attended Buffet Service

Plated Service

Passed Appetizers

Buffet Stations

Plattered Appetizers

Self-Serve Buffets

Lunch & Picnic Deliveries

Company Picnics

...and many other combinations 

We are currently developing a menu suitable for pickup options.

At the moment we are happy to deliver our offerings to those who have opted to not have a fully serviced event.

We have menus adapted specifically for Delivery.

Our deliveries are accompanied by emailed reheating and serving suggestions.

Some of our items are not available for delivery as they require assembly or technique that would be compromised if not done properly.

We offer our services to all kinds of venues.

We are experienced working in:

Wedding Venues

Event Spaces

Outdoor Settings

Offices

Homes & Estates

Fairs & Expos

We happily work with you as the planner to determine which Rental Items you need and acquire them from one of our partners.

We can also refer you to a Rental Company who will assist you.

Why Not?

We try our best to compile menus that are good as-is, but understand that many of our items might sound good with another menu.

While we will advise you that our Jeera Mosaru Roasted Chicken doesn't pair well with our Truffled Ricotta Polenta, the ultimate decision is up to you.

The Patron is always right.

Who are we to tell you that you have to eat what's on our crafted menus?

Fully customized menus are available, at a premium, to any Patron seeking to kick it up a notch!

A deposit commits both you and us to your date.

Our deposit policy is flexible, depending on the event size.

Generally, we require a deposit of 50% for most events.

Larger engagements can sometimes have deposits staggered over a period of time.

Our Cancellation Policy is straight-forward and simple.

But first, let us explain Cancellations a bit...

When we set a date for you, it removes our availability for others. When we receive inquiries for that date, we "lose business" by turning those parties away.

As a result, a cancellation from you results in a loss of business. While you are in no way responsible for this, it is incumbent on the Caterer to cover any associated losses as is deemed fair and standard practice but not to the extent that it profits the business at the expense of the Patron.

Our Cancellation Policy:

>90 Days

Full Deposit Refunded

+ 10% Administrative Charge

>60 Days

75% of Deposit Refunded

+ 10% Administrative Charge

>60 Days

50% of Deposit Refunded

+ 10% Administrative Charge

>30 Days

25% of Deposit Refunded

+ 10% Administrative Charge

<30 Days

10% of Deposit Refunded

+ 10% Administrative Charge

<14 Days

Deposit Non-Refundable

We do not have one.

We like to earn our tips, not require them.

The only exception is larger Corporate Events where there usually is no one on hand to hand out tips to individual Chefs, Servers, and Stewards.

In these instances, we add a gratuity onto the invoice (with the permission of the host).

gratuities can always be adjusted within 1 Business Day after the conclusion of an event

Our cancellation policy varies depending on the type of event and timeline. Contact us to discuss our cancellation policy for your event.