Planning your Reunion Menu
About a month before the reunion, you'll want to check in with the banquet manager and review the details of the menu, the layout of the room, the location of the bars, the check in tables and any special needs you may have like multi-media playback. Hotels will provide projection systems and screens for a price, (and not cheaply, I might add.)
The specifics of the menu can change up to about a week before (double check this with your banquet manager,) but you'll want to make the initial choices a month before.
Things to consider:
1.Long before you've planned the menu, you've decided on whether to have a Cash Bar vs. Open Bar or something in-between (maybe wine and beer only.) This is because the price you charge for reunion tickets a year before must reflect the cost of food and drinks, if you are not having a cash bar. Double check that soft drinks, juice and water are free.
That said, I believe a cash bar is the fairest way to deal with alcoholic drinks since not everyone drinks alcoholic beverages and the amount people drink varies. (Keep in mind also that as people get older they tend to drink a lot less.)
With an Open Bar, people only pay for what they use. It keeps the reunion price down. And if people are responsible for buying their own drinks, I like to think there won't be the temptation to over indulge, although there's always one...
2. You have to decide about appetizers. Will you choose butler passed h'ordeuvres? Or perhaps you'll be happy with crudite and bruchetta on spread out on a table for people to help themselves? Or maybe both?
3. Will you have a sit down dinner or a buffet? Often there is no difference in price. However, there is a lot of work determining seating logistics at a sit down dinner. So I would recommend a buffet with general open seating. The last thing you want to do is tell someone where they have to sit after waiting for ten years.
4. Food choices should be varied. Remember to include a meatless option (like a pasta primavera with vodka sauce) with some nice salads and grilled vegetables for your vegetarian friends. In general, chicken and salmon dishes are always popular. But beef is also an option.
Generally for a buffet, you'll have a choice of three main dishes (pasta, fish, and meat,) two salads, rice or potatoes and vegetables.
5. And of course dessert.
Mmmm. I'm getting hungry. But the fact remains that the food plays a minor role in the whole scheme of things. You need good food, but people won't remember it. What they will remember is the great time they had talking to people.
So there's no need to go crazy with the fanciest gourmet fare. If given a choice, people would rather keep the prices down.
Any thoughts you have on the subject? Please share with us.
The specifics of the menu can change up to about a week before (double check this with your banquet manager,) but you'll want to make the initial choices a month before.
Things to consider:
1.Long before you've planned the menu, you've decided on whether to have a Cash Bar vs. Open Bar or something in-between (maybe wine and beer only.) This is because the price you charge for reunion tickets a year before must reflect the cost of food and drinks, if you are not having a cash bar. Double check that soft drinks, juice and water are free.
That said, I believe a cash bar is the fairest way to deal with alcoholic drinks since not everyone drinks alcoholic beverages and the amount people drink varies. (Keep in mind also that as people get older they tend to drink a lot less.)
With an Open Bar, people only pay for what they use. It keeps the reunion price down. And if people are responsible for buying their own drinks, I like to think there won't be the temptation to over indulge, although there's always one...
2. You have to decide about appetizers. Will you choose butler passed h'ordeuvres? Or perhaps you'll be happy with crudite and bruchetta on spread out on a table for people to help themselves? Or maybe both?
3. Will you have a sit down dinner or a buffet? Often there is no difference in price. However, there is a lot of work determining seating logistics at a sit down dinner. So I would recommend a buffet with general open seating. The last thing you want to do is tell someone where they have to sit after waiting for ten years.
4. Food choices should be varied. Remember to include a meatless option (like a pasta primavera with vodka sauce) with some nice salads and grilled vegetables for your vegetarian friends. In general, chicken and salmon dishes are always popular. But beef is also an option.
Generally for a buffet, you'll have a choice of three main dishes (pasta, fish, and meat,) two salads, rice or potatoes and vegetables.
5. And of course dessert.
Mmmm. I'm getting hungry. But the fact remains that the food plays a minor role in the whole scheme of things. You need good food, but people won't remember it. What they will remember is the great time they had talking to people.
So there's no need to go crazy with the fanciest gourmet fare. If given a choice, people would rather keep the prices down.
Any thoughts you have on the subject? Please share with us.
Comments