Food Tasting
A food tasting is when an event planner/caterer or chef invites a prospective or definite client to sample freshly made dishes either to ensure the quality of the company’s food or to pick menu items. Usually a food tasting is done as a courtesy to give the client a real reason to book with that caterer or event production company. Food is the most important thing at an event. If you invite people to an event and don’t serve some type of food whether it be as simple as bread, butter and cheese or a buffet full of appetizers, people will be confused. If you serve an inappropriate amount of food, your guests will be confused. Therefore, having a food tasting for a prospective or definite client is a good way to get them to book with your company, especially if they are looking at other caterers. Event planners can decide to provide a selection of foods from the proposed menu or to offer their own selections if the client has not selected specific food items.
At a food tasting, the event planner might want to have a sample of the proposed centerpiece (if possible), nice china and anything else that they think would impress the client. The food tasting is the first and could be the last chance to show the client what your company can do. No one wants to hire a caterer whose food they do not enjoy, so make sure that if you decide to have a food tasting it is the best representation of what your company can do. Usually, a food tasting is on a very small scale and in terms of the attendees should only be three to four people. If you are planning a corporate event there could be a larger number of people who need to taste the food, especially if a special events committee is planning the party. The food tasting is also another way to get the client comfortable with the company and to talk more about the event. If the client is tasting food that has been pre selected there could be menu changes. The event planner should be prepared to provide additional costs (if necessary) for upgrades or changes while keeping the client’s budget in mind
