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Catering Moderated Discussion with Richard Kalnins November 13, 2001 2:00 PM Eastern time
Catering is one of the fastest growing segments of the foodservice industry, according to National Restaurant Association research. Higher-income households and increased corporate events and weddings have all contributed to the growth of the catering industry. Richard Kalnins, director of the International Caterers Association (ICA) in Washington, D.C., goes online to discuss the keys to a successful catering operation. Social catering, which includes weddings, anniversaries and cocktail parties, is a booming market. In 2000, social catering accounted for more than $3.6 billion in foodservice sales, a 6 percent increase from 1999. When added to catering operations that are associated with a restaurant, the catering industry served up $51 billion in sales in 1998, according to National Restaurant Association research. Kalnins began his career as a bartender and waiter at Juban’s Restaurant and Catering in Baton Rouge, La., which specializes in upscale Creole cuisine. He became the restaurant’s director of catering in 1997, where he supervised both in-house and off-premises catering events at Juban’s. During that time, Kalnins received many accolades for his work. New Orleans-based Gambit magazine named him the "Number One Caterer in Baton Rouge." The moderator for this discussion is Marnie Roberts, a staff writer for the Association’s award-winning publications, including Bread & Butter: The Bottom Line on Running Restaurants, Restaurants USA and Fork in the Road: Follow This Path to a Successful Restaurant Career. Marnie recently interviewed Kalnins for the November 2001 issue of Bread & Butter. Sorry, no more questions are being taken. Note:
MODERATOR: Good afternoon everyone. We are glad to welcome Richard Kalnins, the executive director of the International Caterers Association, here with us today to answer all of your catering questions. Lenexa, KS: What are some creative things you can do with fruits and vegetables, like using them as containers or vessels to hold other things? RICHARD KALNINS: There is the traditional melon basket. Carve it out, fill it with melon balls. You can take cantaloupe and score those like a sunburst, where you could have it hold a dipping sauce. You can take a head of cabbage, score it so it will lie flat, and hollow out the inside of it and put dipping sauce in that. MODERATOR: Are there any vegetables that you couldn't use? RICHARD KALNINS: Well, that depends on the size. I don't think cucumber would be good. The larger the fruit, the more volume it can hold. Gourds are great, so is pumpkin soup out of a hollowed-out pumpkin. Another thing that's effective is crudite, which is caterer talk for raw vegetables lightly steamed. Tulsa, OK: I work for a 17-unit fullservice concept that is trying to develop procedures for off-site catering. We seem to be struggling with covering all the bases while trying to keep things simplified. What are your suggestions? RICHARD KALNINS: "K. I. S. S.": Keep It Simple Sam. Start small. You may be able to feed in-house the capacity of 400 a night. To tackle that same type of service for an off-premises event is a whole other ballgame. Let's say you transport the party 60 miles from home base and forget the garnish for dessert. What do you do? You deal with it. Perhaps focus on corporate drop-off or pick-up catering instead of moving into a social realm. Again, keep it simple. Look at what you have on the menu that caters well so you don't have to create a new menu and go from there. Arlington, Virginia: What was your best catering event and what was your worst catering experience and why? RICHARD KALNINS:I like to think of all of my events as being special. My work is customized; we do different menus for every event. Every event has a different look as well. I guess the retirement of a Blue Cross/Blue Shield president in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was one of my best. It was 1,700 people, and I had his total trust to put that event together. I was considerate with the corporate budget. I made it look lush and lavish, but I achieved it at minimal cost. Instead of flowers, I had a company put the Blue Cross/Blue Shield emblem in ice and they shipped it to me from Miami. That was a hit. The worst catering event was a client who guaranteed the number of attendees at the Christmas party at 600. I know there had to be a thousand people. We sent the food out slowly through the event. We passed hors d'oeuvres to keep them away from the buffet. Washington, DC: Is it better to use a temp agency to supply employees or keep staff on hand? RICHARD KALNINS: That depends how much catering you do. I think there is a mix between the people on your own payroll versus using a staffing or temp agency. One thing I might suggest -- this is coming from my personal experience -- don't call up a staffing agency and have people show up all of a sudden. Have the people come by, meet with them, see what they look like. If it's a traditional Daughters of the American Revolution dinner, leave the server with the purple mohawk alone. Waitstaff are representing what you do and they reflect you and your business. MODERATOR: That's about all the time we have for questions. Is there anything else you think our readers should know about the catering industry? RICHARD KALNINS: We are primarily an educational group dedicated to supporting off-premises business. If you have any questions about any of the topics that came up today, contact me at rknca@aol.com, or my direct line is 202-331-5945. There are no stupid questions. We all had to start somewhere. Even the pros don't know it all. MODERATOR: I want to thank Richard Kalnins for coming in and sharing his wealth of information with our friends out in cyberspace, and I hope you join us for our next discussion, which will take place on December 13 at 2 p.m. We'll talk about the pros and cons of letting movie and TV productions using your restaurant as a set. Nassau, Bahamas: What food-cost percent should one cost a catering menu as opposed to a fullservice-restaurant menu? RICHARD KALNINS: Caterers price it less than restaurateurs do to achieve food profit. The average food cost for a fine-dining restaurant would be 28 to 32 percent. Most caterers generally run 20 to 25 percent, 25 being on the high end. Nassau, Bahamas: What is the best way for a restaurant to promote that it offers on- and off-property catering? RICHARD KALNINS: I'm a big believer in four-walls advertising. That means advertising on the four walls of your restaurant. Every piece of collateral material produced in that restaurant needs to be "Joe Smith restaurant and catering": the menu, the beverage napkins, the matchbooks, your sign outside your restaurant. If you have trucks, by all means, advertise on those. You can't go overboard to have the name of the company and the fact you caterer as well. Another place to promote your catering service would be at charity events. If you have a kitchen and you produce a menu and you have a vehicle, you can cater. I would recommend getting the word out among the current clientele and the word will spread from there. That's what happened with the restaurant I worked in Baton Rouge, called Juban's. The restaurant is a fine-dining Creole restaurant that does an incredible job in-house. "We had a wonderful reception here," the customers would say or, "Wonderful dinner. Would you mind catering my daughter's wedding?" Why not? If your representation is great and you do a good job with in-house work, the off-premises work is a natural one. South Riding, VA: With the economy lagging and the travel industry affected by the recent tragedy, what is a good strategy to try to keep business booming? RICHARD KALNINS: I don't think business is going to boom for any of us for a while in the Washington-Baltimore area. The largest caterers in the nation are based here. Losses of a million-plus are not uncommon from the big boys in the industry. Meanwhile, up the road in Baltimore, which is only 45 minutes away, some have had the best October ever. Corporate work has really taken a beating. That's where the majority of the cancellations have been. People will always get married, children will always have their bar mitzvah. I would concentrate on that. Be flexible with the clients as well, flexible in menu pricing and choices and in taking deposits. I think especially your old-time clients that you have been working with for a while, they are going to appreciate what you've done in the past and that will set you above other caterers who are not willing to be flexible with new clientele. Stay the course, hunker down, eliminate costs where you can, and go on a spending and hiring freeze. You might have to look at the Christmas menus in a new light. You probably have booked a lot by now, I hope. Be as flexible as possible in pricing and guaranteed numbers and deposits. Greenville, MS: What trends do you see in the catering business? RICHARD KALNINS: Hello, Mississippi. I would say anything Spanish, Spanish cheeses, wines are particularly hot right now. I have been going to a lot of restaurants across the country, and I see Mediterranean and Greek influence. As far as service goes, I see a lot of people getting away from cocktail buffets and actually serving seated dinners. That's not to say cocktail parties will go out of style. As far as cocktail buffets go, I see more hors d'oeuvres, and I see more of a variety of things on a buffet. In the past, you could get away with maybe six items on a buffet but need to serve more of each item. Now I see more variety, maybe anywhere from eight to 10 items on buffet and less of each item. That's the thing about catering, the fewer items you have on the buffet, the more of each item you have to put out. I see silver being brushed aside. We are going with a contemporary look now -- copper, brass, wood, natural materials are very popular, hammered metal is very hot as a serving item. I would say we continue to move forward in the bright colors with the lime greens and shocking pinks and bright blues. But when I speak to caterers across the country, they see a return now, since September 11, to a traditional Christmas. They look to that as a time of comfort. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: I am planning a holiday party and would like to know how to judge the amount of "finger foods" needed per person if I am only serving finger foods and desserts? RICHARD KALNINS: Will you be serving alcoholic beverages? Because alcohol always plays a key in how much food you serve. Another concern is, how long is this event? Is this a polite cocktail party from 5:00 to 7:00 or 6:00 to 8:00? You are not feeding people dinner if it's a cocktail party. However, most people come with the expectation to dine. Heavy hors d'oeuvres has been considered dinner in the industry. You also have to know the age and gender of your guests. That's important as well. I would say for a two-hour event, about a pound and a half of food for every guest, because people are going to come with an expectation to dine. However, if you preface this in the invitation -- "reception from 5:00 to 7:00 or 6:00 to 8:00" -- people may get the idea this is not dinner. Bensalem, Pennsylvania: When ordering a turkey for Thanksgiving how do you figure the size of the turkey needed? RICHARD KALNINS:I knew we would address the bird somewhere around here. I have taken this from a local caterer in Bethesda, Maryland. Her holiday food guide portions out a small turkey, which would be 11 pounds, to serve eight to 12 guests. A medium, or 16-pound, turkey is estimated to serve 12 to 16 guests, and a large turkey, which is 22 pounds, has been estimated to serve approximately 16 to 22 guests. That's the bird alone, no relish or sides. Willow Grove, PA: My son and I have been in heated discussions about his menu choices for his upcoming wedding. If giving the guests two choices, what do you suggest? RICHARD KALNINS: You need to give guests two choices, and you need to offer a vegetarian alternative. Traditional surf and turf is always popular. You might want to offer chicken or pork, but if you are kosher, you can't do that. By and large, the most popular is beef and pork or seafood with a vegetarian alternative as well. Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania: Hello, Richard. What is the proper tip rate for the cooks/servers at a country club? We will already be paying them for the service, but I would like to show my appreciation for their hard work and dedication on our day. Who should we tip? RICHARD KALNINS: Most country clubs operate on a tip pool. That's where they divide a percentage of the tips to the front of the house and to the back of the house. Having been a country-club bartender in a former life, I don't know if the kitchen help got much from the tip pool. I don't know what to tell you about the proper rate. I don't know what is appropriate for your Lehigh Valley; it depends on your location. I think a generous acknowledgment of their services is 20 percent, again depending what your budget is and the lengths they go to produce the event for you. Cooks don't get tipped unless they go above and beyond the call of duty. I have had cooks tipped before by clients. Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania: Part two: We will probably have some family that will not be able to eat the base meals due to kosher restrictions. There are alternative meals provided, but what are some guidelines I can use to make sure the food is "kosher" ready, and if necessary, is there any information I can provide them? RICHARD KALNINS: Are we talking kosher or modified kosher? That's a whole other situation. I won't get into the differences between those two types of kosher. If it's country club, I am sure they deal with kosher food. Of course, you have to take a count of meal choices from your guests. Include that in the invitation. If I were the manager of that club, I would make sure I had an approximate count of what those kosher and nonkosher meals would be. As a rule of thumb, most caterers prepare 5 to 10 percent over what the guaranteed number is supposed to be. As long as you communicate with the club manager, I think you will be OK. Washington, DC: How much money do I need to start a catering business? RICHARD KALNINS: It's going to be substantial in Washington DC. Real estate is at a premium. Startup cost is difficult to calculate because I am not sure if you are looking to buy all the equipment, rent some of it, if you are interested in catering the entire thing off-premises, if you do corporate or social or concentrate on one or the other. Maybe start by concentrating on corporate events to get your name out there. That would be the clientele to draw from. Start slowly, save your money. I am going to throw out a figure based on what I talk to others about -- $75,000 to $100,000 to start up a catering business. That's minimal for equipment and support staff for the Washington area. Hyattsville, MD: What kind of permits do I need to start a catering business from my home? RICHARD KALNINS: Jurisdiction is locally enforced. I am not sure what it requires in Maryland, however, I know the majority of townships, cities and states in this country do not allow people to cater from their homes. If you do cater from home, you have to have a separate catering kitchen in which you don't prepare your own meals for your own consumption. If you have a catering business at home, you have to have a kitchen and area exclusively devoted just to the catering operation. I want to encourage people not to cater from your home. Food safety is paramount. I am not trying to discourage people to get into catering, but as a legitimate caterer who pays taxes, overhead and insurance, you need to play by the rules. How do you get licensed? There are several options. You don't need to go to the expense or trouble of building a brand-new facility for your operation. Let's think small here. When you start out, you have to think about paying bills and payroll. What I would suggest, is to find a church kitchen and see if you can lease the off time. Most churches only use it once or twice during the week and on the weekends. Schools are another possibility. How many school cafeterias are in use during the weekend? Not many. In the summer they are practically a ghost town. I think they would be delighted to work with you in a leasing situation. A third alternative would be to go in with a consortium of other caterers or rent from an established caterer. For that, you have to have your tax ID number, the health inspection certificate and a business license. This is a topic that could go on for more than an hour. If you want more information, contact me at the International Caterers Association, at www.icacater.org. Bethesda, MD: Are taste tests the usual practice for evaluating caterers? RICHARD KALNINS: I can speak for the industry on this. Caterers hate tastings. Why? They take a lot of time, and you are not sure you will get the event. I only took tastings if I had a contract with someone who didn't know my food or if it was for a committee. If you do one, I would schedule three or four tastings in one day at the same time, and I would not serve that actual menu item to those people because all of your menus were created for that event. I would give them samples of the style of the cuisine. Tastings are not customary. If you have a high-profile or high-ticket event and it's between two caterers that would be fine. But a normal event off the street? No. Columbus, Ohio: How do I find out if a caterer is reputable? RICHARD KALNINS: Wonderful question. I think the best way to find if a caterer is reputable is to ask for references, see what events they have done, look at their portfolio and what they have created for other events. Also, realize that you need to compare apples to apples. Don't ask for a steak dinner from one and go to the second and ask for chicken. And make sure you give the caterers you are working with a fair shake to bid on your event. Oakland, CA: Is there an advantage in using a restaurant caterer over an independent? RICHARD KALNINS: It's all perception. If you have a good relationship with a restaurant caterer who understands the mechanics of off-premises catering, that's good. However, if there is an off-premises caterer who has it down and knows how to deliver that quality of service, go with them. I can't say one is any better over another. If I were going to a restaurant that catered, I would look at the track record. Washington, D.C.: I know about the restaurant industry's Restaurant Industry Operations Report, but I have been frustrated in my efforts to find a similar publication for the catering industry. Do you know of one? RICHARD KALNINS: There is not one, unfortunately. Our association, the International Caterers Association, is taking it on in our five-year plan. We are trying to lay the foundation through our educational foundation to support such an endeavor. Right now there are no overall figures by my association or the National Association of Catering Executives. The best resource that I have found has been the National Restaurant Assocation. MODERATOR: You can learn more about the National Restaurant Association's Restaurant Industry Operations Report in the research section of Restaurant.org, or you can buy a copy through our online store. Bordentown, NJ: I am planning to prepare a buffet for my church. There will be about 50 people there. What should I serve? Is there a certain order in which I put the food on the table? For example, people need to pick up plates, napkins and silverware first -- then what? Salad? Pasta? Main dishes? Thank you for your help. RICHARD KALNINS: We have all done church buffets. The budget impacts everything. Budget is one thing that can be handled in different ways, and your region can also determine what you serve. What would work in Baton Rouge would not hold up in New York City. You can't go wrong with chicken. It is prepared many different ways and holds up well. Another alternative is pork. It can be prepared in a number of different ways. I would keep it simple, contingent on a budget. You might want dessert preplated at the table to save on serving time and facilitate the ease of service. One of the things to address is how you put things on the buffet other than food. My experience has been don't put the plates and silverware together. If this is a buffet situation, you probably are going to have the silverware rolled. Have it at the end of the buffet so they don't juggle the plate and silverware at the same time. Some Web browsers have the ability to automatically display the latest questions and answers. If you would like this page to automatically update every 45 seconds click here. To check sooner or if your browser doesn't support this feature, click the refresh button on your browser. The opinions expressed by Table Talk guests do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the National Restaurant Association. |
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