Food is an important aspect of any major event. Whether it’s a wedding reception or a corporate party that you’re planning, you’d certainly like to hire a caterer. Upon hiring a professional catering company, your guests would be treated to some delicious food and an impeccable service.
They’ll be all praise for the experience that your caterer has given them. Now, if the catering company doesn’t live up to the guests’ expectations, it’ll be a big embarrassment for you. It is extremely necessary, therefore, to consider the red flags while hiring a catering company.
1. Issues with communication
If your caterer asks you a lot of questions, it’s definitely a good sign. A professional caterer would want to know everything about your upcoming event. The questions that the caterer is asking you are a part of the company’s efforts to know the details. These questions are an indication that your caterer is paying attention to detail.
They also show that your caterer is not just interested in preparing food but also the overall service. Be careful if you come across a catering company that doesn’t ask you anything besides the menu you want. It’s likely that you may face certain problems on the day of the event.
2. Untrained staff
You must ask the caterer about the qualifications and experience of the chefs and servers. In the business of catering, the quality of service is of great importance besides the quality of food. The catering companies who don’t care about the service often hire staff only when an event approaches.
The catering staff at your event might not have the required experience to handle their work efficiently. This would be a risky affair. To avoid being in such a situation, hire a professional catering company that has experienced and reliable staff.
3. Agreements not in writing
Stay away from the catering companies that don’t operate on agreements that are in writing. Agreements that two people make verbally are quite okay for small transactions between friends and family members. However, when it comes to hiring a catering company, you must have everything in writing. You must always remember that transactions like these are business transactions.
There should be no room for doubt about the cost, menu, responsibilities, and expectations of the parties involved. A written agreement would give you complete peace of mind as you’ll not be responsible for any misunderstandings.
4. Doubtful quotes
Before you go ahead with the preparations for your event, you must have a clear plan of the event. Once you’ve planned everything, the next thing to do is to get quotes from as many caterers as possible. When you have all these quotes, get rid of the ones that are way above or below your budget.
You’d undoubtedly like to have a lower price, but the fact that something is cheap raises a few concerns. When a catering company is quoting a low price, it must be planning on cutting costs on certain things. They might be the ingredients they’re planning to use in the food or the quality of service offered.
