Who doesn’t want to put on a good spread of food at their events? Your events catering is part of the programme. You’ve no doubt had the conversation about exactly what food you should provide at your events. Will it create the right impression: as you don’t want to be seen as scrimping on the food front? Now do you!
So what events catering should you provide…can be one of those tricky event planning conversations…where competing views are a plenty. However for all those newbie, occasional or accidental event managers out there: be warned that the food you provide at your event can unwittingly have a much greater impact on your guests than you may wish…and not in a good way.
I’m starving: What’s for breakfast
If your delegates find themselves feeling a little tired after a break or lunch, then no matter how engaging the speakers or activities are they may feel they need a time out, to take five…have a nap. Let’s assume you have put together a great programme, everybody as far as we know it has had a good night’s sleep…so that leaves us with their energy source – the food they eat. The science says at certain times of the day blood is directed from the brain to the stomach to help digest food – making you feel a little less alert. It doesn’t however have to be this way if we choose the food available to delegates wisely.
Breakfast should consist of things like whole grains, porridge, fruit, and multi-grain bagels. These foods are high energy sources and easily digestible. Meat heavy breakfasts along with break staples – biscuits, muffins, and pastries are sleep induces. Shame I like all of them!
Nap time!
In terms of lunch then high calorie lunches over 800 calories will make you sluggish as will white breads, pasta and potatoes. Your meat dishes should be ideally, chicken and turkey accompanied by plenty of vegetables and salad. As a coffee lover myself…then do make sure there are plenty of water stations and or water on delegate tables to compensate for the dehydrating effect of caffeine. I am not a food expert but know enough to know that what you feed your guests will have an effect on their alertness and engagements levels.
Your events catering needs to be designed to energise and keep your audience focused and so needs to be a mix of protein, fat and carbohydrate. I suggest therefore taking professional advice.
You can of course have some sort of physical activity as part of the programme at key times of the day, to wake everyone up! These activities are popular with some and disliked by many!
As I said – I really am no food expert, so if you have any good and bad examples of event food options please do tell!
About the author: Chris Powell, The Event Expert
I run an event management training and consultancy company delivering in-house and on-line bespoke event training courses and consultancy services to accidental, occasional and professional event managers. My objective: to give them the confidence and ‘how to’ skills to design, plan and deliver their own successful and rewarding events