Looking to Hire a Caterer?

I found this article at marthastewartweddings.com.  It's one of the first questions we're all asked after attending a wedding: How was the food? The dining arrangements at your wedding constitute one of the biggest decisions you can make. Food helps set the tone of the wedding, and menu variety, quality, and presentation all contribute to the culinary experience.

If your reception venue doesn't provide in-house dining service, it can be difficult to distinguish between caterers that offer similar services. Peter Callahan, founder of Callahan Catering and recent caterer of Martha's nephew's wedding, shares tips on choosing the right caterer for your wedding (Our answers to these questions are listed below each question):

• Ask what they do best: A caterer might present itself as a jack-of-all-trades that can give you whatever cuisine you envision, but every caterer has its specialty. "Find out what he thinks is terrific on his menu," Peter says, "and decide how well that melds with your own sensibility.
• At Cannon Events & Catering, we have a couple specialties.  We love to do cocktail parties and intimate dinners.  We do buffets and plated dinners as well, but as stated above, everyone has a specialty.
• Consult friends: No one knows better than the customer whether a caterer does a good job, so ask friends whose taste you share if they have any firsthand recommendations -- or horror stories.
• We have a list of "love letters" that talk about what we do.  We will provide those to you with our full catering packet. We are constantly updating them.
• Know what they supply: Be sure to ask what kind of rentals the caterer supplies, such as china, silver glasses, linens, etc. Sometimes the reception venue or florist will provide these items.
• As for what we supply, it depends on the event and number of guests.  We do have china, silverware, glassware, and linens for smaller parties.  We also supply disposables for different events.  For what we don't have we rent from Sun Rental and L'Nique Linen Rental
• Book early: The best caterers are in the greatest demand, so book as far in advance as possible to ensure that you get your top choice
• While booking early is the best options, we have done several events at the last minute.  It isn’t ideal, but a good caterer will do their best to accommodate last minute requests.