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6 Creative Menu Design Ideas

Hosting duties, regardless of the occasion, are often rewarding, invariably time-consuming, and potentially stress-inducing. Such duties include deciding upon an event setting, preparing the site accordingly, managing invitations, and, of course, collaborating with a worthy caterer in the choosing of entrées, appetizers, desserts, and beverages. After all, those who trouble themselves with the attending of whatever event you have in mind will surely appreciate being fed amply and with quality cuisine.

And while courtesy and decorum will keep one’s guests from voicing any complaints to the host/hostess themselves, if the desire to complain can be diminished entirely, it certainly should be. Heading off complaints at the pass, so to speak, is partially achievable by means which extend beyond A+ recipes, which brings us to our 6 creative menu design ideas.

When meals are expertly crafted, clever dishes handsomely plated, and nutrition fused inspiringly with excellent flavor, diners will surely find themselves perfectly sated. But much of the dining experience hinges upon factors which have nothing to do with the actual ingesting of food and spirits.

Environment, atmosphere, music, and aesthetics contribute greatly to a gathering’s overall mood and reception, as evidenced by the clear differences that exist between an ultra-refined steakhouse and a sloppy fast food trough. Classiness goes a long way in elevating the otherwise ordinary act of dining from the mundane to the memorable. Central to achieving class when hosting a meal-centered gathering is the menu itself. Of course, the entrée options will speak for themselves, provided they are suitably original and tantalizing to the eye, but the manner in which they are presented is of equal importance in generating a palpable sense of sophistication.

Menu Design Ideas for Your Next Party

Take these 6 creative menu design ideas into consideration when formulating the cosmetic aspects of your next hosting project. All are subject to modification as one sees fit, but will stimulate one’s thinking on the topic of entrée presentation and articulation via thoughtful menu creation.

1. Pub Style—Based on the theme and context of one’s gathering, this recognizable and charming approach to menu design may comport nicely with the food and beverage offerings. In most cases, the pub style menu centers closely on beer, spirits, and cocktail choices, while the appetizers and meals are relegated to the margins in what is essentially a glorified supporting role.

This option works well for discerning crowds of brewery connoisseurs, or in service of a gathering more casual in its conception than, for instance, a wedding reception. Knowing one’s guest list composition will be enough to determine the appropriateness of the pub style menu; it ends up being a sensible fit, dine responsibly.

2. Traditional Restaurant—An inherent element of professional quality accompanies the aesthetic properties of a traditional restaurant menu design. Entrées, appetizers, and desserts each assigned their own “chapter” within the arrangement, all under the heading of one’s event title—this is the sort of reliability hosts yearn to channel and convey when presenting guests with their dining options.

3. Rustic Mediterranean—Rustic themes yield a certain sense of authenticity, particularly where food quality is concerned. This is doubly so when the rusticity is combined with a Mediterranean aesthetic. A feeling of connection to antiquity and to a simpler way of life radiates forth from menus designed along these lines. Provided the cuisine in question aligns at least to some degree with the Italian/Greek meals accordingly associated with Mediterranean culture, a rustic theme will suit your menu brilliantly.

4. Aristocratic Elegance—Not necessarily a stuffy, stilted option, the elegant use of calligraphic fonts and heavily polished imagery has the potential to elevate one’s gathering from a common touch affair to one of high-class splendor. Dependent entirely upon the tastes of one’s guest list and the quality of one’s cuisine, it is certainly among the more narrowly applicable of these 6 creative menu design ideas. Employ this style when looking to deeply impress.

5. Recipe-Centric—As health-conscious epicureans continue to take culinary matters into their respective kitchens, many among them take a bit of inspiration from their every dining out experience. Humor such adventurous souls with a semi-detailed breakdown of each menu item’s ingredients and preparation methods. This will surely result of menu photography and active discussion amongst one’s guests.

6. Faux Amateur—Whatever it is about hand-written (or apparently hand-written) menus that resonates with the inner-optimist in most among us, has yet to be accurately identified. But resonate it does. The scribbled listing of dish descriptions will put the attendees’ minds at ease while suggesting a pleasant and largely casual gathering. Fonts are said to communicate nearly as much as the words to which they lend form; experiment joyfully with this theory.

Looking for more fun menu design ideas? Contact Made by Meg today to discuss your event.

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The Proper Way to Set Up a Buffet

Dietary preferences are continually changing in these United States, and largely in response to increased dietary knowledge within the population at large. Portion sizes now lean towards smaller servings, nutrition information is now a fixture on nearly every packaged food item and restaurant menu in the country, and every calendar day of the year is home to yet another revelation as to which foods are to be avoided by the health-minded, to say nothing for which “superfoods” should be incorporated into one’ diet posthaste.

With the evolving American diet front of mind, there scarcely seems room in the national conversation for the proper way to set up a buffet. The reason? Buffets are generally dismissed as lowbrow food troughs which contribute to the already pervasive problem of overeating. Calorie and carbohydrate barrels with little to offer the sophisticated epicureans amongst us.

Indeed, the word “buffet” itself is enough to summon images of fried foods by the metric ton, various fat-rich slaws, butter-saturated mashed potatoes, and dessert carts of decidedly questionable quality. But as is the case with so much in life, form and substance are distinctive characteristics deserving of their own consideration and evaluation.

And while buffets have perhaps historically been the province of lackluster cuisine, and thus deserving of the lingering reputation, the stigma need not persist when a skilled caterer is introducing the proper way to set up a buffet. Provided the buffet in question consists of healthy cuisine, the format via which said cuisine is served is of little consequence. Which is to say, those planning a large gathering of some sort might consider both the proper way to set up a buffet and outsourcing the buffet’s arrangement to a celebrated professional.

Buffet Setup Recommendations

Multi-Table Setup

The term “trough” is used above in a largely pejorative context, and consciously so. Buffets exist in the popular imagination as endlessly long tables from which diners can load up their 18” diameter plates with a cornucopia of decadent foods and accompanying gravies. Side-step the (perhaps unfair) notion entirely by arranging your own buffet with a series of smaller tables, each of which might be specific to a particular category of cuisine.

While the center table might feature entrees, another might be exclusive to breads and salads. Likewise, dessert and beverages merit their own real estate in this recommended arrangement, as do appetizers and hors d’oeuvres. Work closely with your caterer in designing your respective layout, but yield to experience and expertise when necessary.

Regional Variety

Buffets, regardless of where they fall on the quality spectrum, are universally celebrated for the sheer range of foods on offer. Whereas a standard menu ordering experience limits the diner to a sole entrée, a side salad, and perhaps a round of complimentary bread, buffets are restricted by no such limitations. And while there are indeed portion control risks which should be weighed (so to speak) accordingly, much of this depends upon the size of the servings in question.

Provide your guests with a wide swath of regional cuisine selections and ensure no discerning palate goes unsatisfied. Sushi, assuming it is of a fresh sort, is a terrific addition to any buffet arrangement, and its typically favorable nutritional profile will be well received by health-minded guests. One might also use the occasion to explore options of a more esoteric sort. African, South American, and Indonesian menus have much to offer and should be vetted for their compatibility with the host’s vision, budget, expectations, et cetera. Regardless of what specific foods populate one’s tables, allow “variety” to serve as the entertainment watchword.

Circulation

Keep proxemics in mind when arranging the buffet. One of the limitations which plagues the traditional long table setup is its crippling dependence upon the principle of the line. Even a fairly well moving buffet line is still, to the dismay of millions throughout recorded history, a line, and is therefore restrictive in more ways than can be comprehensively listed herein. Space out the tables in such a way as to allow for both easy locomotion between each and complete access to the table’s entire perimeter from any angle of approach.

This will ensure a more favorable food procurement and dining experience for one’s guests, while keeping movements unhindered. Affording one’s guests this relatively modest and intuitive luxury will allow for the buffet’s food to take center stage while eliminating the risk of lines forming anywhere in the vicinity. That in and of itself will hinder any negative comparisons to traditional buffet arrangements.

Looking for more buffet planning ideas? Contact Made by Meg today to discuss your event.

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4 Wedding Reception Meal Options

Food has the potential to function as art, a potential which renders meals an important aspect of even the most modest marriage celebrations. These 4 wedding reception meal options operate within the framework articulated above. They are dynamic in their conceptualization, artistic in style, and, based upon how they are realized, likely quite economical.

1. Regional Theme

Foods, recipes, and ingredients derived from a given geographical region tend to combine well in a culinary sense. The oft mentioned Mediterranean Diet is perhaps among the more recognizable proofs of this concept, as its various seafood, pasta, oil, and vineyard offerings collectively yield entrees of both cosmetic and nutritional appeal. But a reception meal need not be limited to solely to the Mare Nostrum menu.

A reception might be thematically governed by South American vegetables, meats, and recipes, including: guatita, sancocho, and matambre. One might also look at various Southeast Asian cuisines, as Korean barbecue, the Thai soup Pho, and Cambodian cuisine are gaining traction in the American catering scene. Whatever region earns the couple’s coveted business, the themes accessible therein will serve the double purpose of satiating every diner’s palate while enriching the reception atmosphere.

2. Southern Barbecue

Given a list of 4 wedding reception meal options, one might not anticipate southern barbecue making an appearance. Formal dinners, wedding-related or otherwise, have traditionally leaned towards stuffiness—knife-and-fork affairs in which, given the neatness of the entrées, napkins themselves are a mere formality. But there are ways of doing things poorly, and there are ways of doing them rather well. Yes, even the seemingly sloppy, dripping, finger-licking characteristics of traditional southern barbecue can be harnessed in such ways as to yield a wedding-worthy dinner.

Furthermore, one might add a bit of cultural texture to one’s reception by employing the services of a caterer skilled in the theater of barbecue. Slicing of the brisket, pulling of the pork, applying of the sauce; there exists handsome spectacle in the barbecuing art. Treat the guests to its charms and they’ll surely leave high of spirit and full of belly.

3. New England Clambake

Though titled a “clambake” for the sake of convenience, clambakes are in fact not limited to any one mollusk. Clambakes are also the domain of America’s most beloved of crustaceans: lobster and crab. Putting this menu together yet? Lastly, New England may have monopolized the title, but clambakes are legally enjoyable by peoples of all geographical origin. There exists a unique duality in a well done baking of clams. The atmosphere is rather informal, while the food itself is classy, sophisticated, and hugely satisfying. A cooking method which is enjoyable to watch (there are hot stones involved), and an eating method involving the cracking of shells (stones are optional), a clambake will leave one’s guests feeling rather acculturated and accomplished indeed.

4. Brick-Oven Pizza

Pizza exists across so wide a culinary spectrum as to render it virtually immune from any pigeon-holed description. Frozen varieties scarcely belong in the same category as a brilliantly crafted brick-oven pie topped with healthful greens, ripe tomatoes, and classy cheese of one sort or another. It is difficult to envision to a wedding reception that would not benefit measurably from the presence of brick-fired pizzas populating every table. Whether served in a sharing or individual manner, entrée complaints are certain to be mercifully scarce when the pizza fires are ablaze.

Looking for more menu ideas? Contact Made by Meg today to discuss your event.

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5 Menu Ideas for Corporate Lunches

Dining on the job is and has long been a fixture in the professional sector, as shared meals are a reliable means of cultivating camaraderie between colleagues, business leadership, and the significant others of both. Whether taking the form of working luncheons, awards banquets, or as a weekly fixture on the calendar, on-site meals allow for the ancient “breaking of bread” tradition to manifest warmly in our modern world.

What has changed in recent years is the increasingly health-conscious diner whose particular considerations and preferences reflect a cultural shift away from processed, salt-laden, fatty foods of decades past, and towards wholesome, natural, nourishing meals which serve to satisfy, at once, the taste buds and one’s body.

Fortunately, there is no shortage of companies perfectly willing to accommodate this welcome shift, even if the restaurant and grocery stores spaces tend to lag behind in many regards.

Thankfully, such lagging is by no means true of all food vendors, with certain caterers rising to the challenge in enviable fashion and flavorful style. In fact, when arranging for your company’s next in-office meal gathering, keep these five menu ideas for corporate lunches in mind, as they are both nutritionally conscious and dense in flavor, to say nothing for aesthetically pleasing.

1. Pita Platter

Satisfying to the stomach, impossibly tasty, and really rather nutritious, pita platters are certain to please all but the most discriminating of employees. The pitas themselves provide a hearty and energy-packed alternative to starchy counterparts and are best used as an edible utensil. Platters are intended to be modified, customized, and arranged in perfect accordance with a given series of preferences and requests.

Kabobs often encircle a number of hummus varietals, while lightly steamed vegetables might be complement the array for purposes of both visual appeal and nutrient density. One might choose a side dish of rice to lay alongside the meat and produce selections, and a few bowls of tzatziki will go a long way towards ensuring a vanishing of the pitas. However one elects to organize their respective pita platter, bear in mind there is legitimate cause for this particular suggestion resting atop the five menu ideas for corporate lunches. It is simply difficult to displace the potential of such a dynamic ingredient/recipe collective.

2. Sushi

Ah, yes—sushi. There is not much more that needs to be said. Raw fish, ornately prepared and handsomely flavored, sushi arrangements are notoriously beloved in the corporate luncheon arena. They leave behind very little in the cleanup and are somehow as cosmetically appealing as they are nutritionally potent. One’s employees are sure to leave the meal with a sense of having done right by themselves in terms of quality and portion control, which might make for a welcome departure from more aggressive precursors (pizza parties, perhaps?).

3. Korean BBQ

Perhaps something of an odd entry on the list of five menu ideas for corporate lunches, Korean BBQ is nevertheless a deserving mention herein. The rice, the broth, the tender meat pieces—such meals often become the stuff of legend when re-imagined in hindsight. Few leave feeling empty after a meal of Korean BBQ, though all walk away with a sense of having taxed their respective taste buds to the utmost, as the cuisine is renowned for its range of spices and clever application of flavor-inducing preparation methods.

4. Flatbreads

Pizza will likely be a favorite food of Americans for generations to come, but there do exist slightly more sophisticated alternatives, at least one of which very much belongs on this list—flatbreads. Comparatively light in relation to all but the thinnest of thin crust pizzas, flatbreads tend to be characterized by healthier topping arrangements, smaller portion sizes, and the omnipresence of nutritious olive oil. These are well-received at parties and the like; audition the cuisine when next the company is feeling particularly generous.

5. Hors d’oeuvre Buffet

Expand the culinary horizons of friends and colleagues alike by way of an artful hors d’oeuvre buffet, the contents of which may range from the plain to the ornate without anyone being able to discern one from the next. Broccoli tarts, shrimp cocktail, fondue, and perhaps a selection of cured meats—these are but a few suggestions of literally thousands available when the menu is to be comprised of miniature cuisine of first-rate quality.

Let loose the imaginative energies when authoring an hors d’oeuvre menu. When working with a top-notch caterer, they’ll surely welcome the creative challenge.

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7 Late Night Wedding Treats

As likely as one may be to attend a number of rather conventional weddings in a given year, one may also find themselves enjoying nuptial ceremonies of rather unorthodox nature. Vows spoken at noon followed by a modest reception dinner around sundown might be a perfectly acceptable arrangement for couples and their families from coast to coast, and from border to border.

For many others, however, weddings and their ensuing festivities are taking shape in ways both inventive and unconventional. For the standard and the daring alike, a first-rate menu is simply essential. With food options front of mind, give some thought to these seven late night wedding treats. Whether planning your wedding and reception or advising a friend or family member on their own, the inclusion of a few signature dishes for a twilight reception will surely be well received by inevitably hungry guests.

When considering these seven late night wedding treats, keep in mind that a skilled and celebrated catering chef will be more than willing to collaborate with their clients in the designing of a clever, delicious, and memorable reception menu. The suggestions listed below (each certain to do well with reception attendees) are each highly subject to special modifications, based upon the culinary and/or dietary considerations of a given couple and their families/guests. Look at these highly recommended seven late night wedding treats with an open mind; each is open to reimagining, particularly when prepared by a first-rate culinary artist.

Late Night Wedding Treats

1. Miniature Sandwiches

The sandwich ranks highly among food aficionados, casual diners, and dinner guests for its simplicity and filling properties. Capable of housing within its bread slices all manner of meats, cheeses, vegetables, and condiments, sandwiches tend to effectively assuage hunger while also satisfying the palates of even a more selective herd of guests. Consider exploring a few clever options for the deceptively conventional finger food. In terms of convenience and ingredient potential, miniature sandwiches will keep late evening wedding guests perfectly satisfied and rightly impressed.

2. Sushi

Healthy, taste-laden, aesthetically pleasing, and hugely popular amongst American diners, a few sushi platters will enrich the atmosphere of any wedding reception, regardless of the overarching culinary theme of a given wedding reception. Particularly suitable as an appetizer, sushi ranks among the most cherished of reception snacks, as it often as pleasing to the eye as it to the taste buds. Like miniature sandwiches, sushi is endlessly configurable and can be prepared with virtually any combination of ingredients and in a seemingly infinite number of designs. Don’t exclude this one from the wedding treat roster.

3. Tarts

Whether packed with fruits, vegetables, meats, or a spread of some sort, the tart is a perennially beloved presence found in classy lunch buffets, continental breakfast platters, and large gatherings along the lines of a party or wedding reception. What many find most appetizing and deserving of appreciation about the tart is its diversity of both ingredient options and its healthful potential. Often falling under the “dessert” heading, tarts might just as well be packed with broccoli, beets, or fresh blueberries.

4. Vegetables Platter

Reception guests are likely to part ways with dietary discipline the longer a wedding reception intrudes into the later evening hours. Afford the stronger-willed among them a viable option in the form of an artful vegetable tray. In addition to finger food convenience, vegetable platters tend to provide guests with a welcome alternative to less healthy fare. A round of carrots, broccoli, asparagus, and cauliflower will make for a terrific visual addition to any wedding reception feast while keeping fiber and antioxidants accessible for those so inclined.

5. Cupcakes

Prepared in ways both adventurous and conventional, cupcakes are rarely met with disappointment amongst party guests. Whether attending a low-key birthday party or a high-concept wedding reception, a few trays of cupcakes will keep the unwashed masses from rebelling against their hosts. Available in more variations than there are stars in the night sky, cupcakes will energize one’s guests well into the late evening hours.

6. Dark Chocolate

Populate the tables with a few handfuls of classy dark chocolate. The deep, rich taste will stimulate palates throughout the reception hall, while cacao’s purported health benefits will assuage those feelings of guilt which invariably accompany indulgent dining choices so closely associated with wedding cuisine.

7. Espresso

If one plans upon keeping reception guests dancing through the night and into the early morning hours, keep an espresso bar firing on all eight cylinders throughout the duration. A bit classier than one’s standard cup of joe, espresso (and its various premium coffee cousins) will ensure sustained activity levels throughout the night while perhaps counteracting the effects of those other beverage varieties known to populate an occasional wedding reception.

Need help? Connect today to explore catering options for your next event.

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Top 10 Mini Bites For Your New Year’s Eve Party

As 2023 draws near, prospective party hosts might do well to examine our list of top 10 mini bites for your New Year’s Eve party, as American culinary tastes continue to gentrify. Speaking of which, parties (regardless of theme or occasion) might be categorized in a binary capacity—those which feature low-grade, cost-conscious, hugely unhealthy food items, and those which provide guests with respectable, delicious, and comparatively nutritious cuisine.

New Year’s Eve parties are no exception in this regard, with many hosts electing to serve chip/dip combinations and flat soda beverages, while others elect to impress guests with inventive recipes and hors d’oeuvres of premium quality. For many guests, the prospect of free food is itself worth an RSVP, regardless of quality and nutrition. But for many others, a bit of thoughtfulness on part of the host—particularly where cuisine is concerned—might render memorable an otherwise forgettable gathering.

New Year’s Eve Party Mini Bite Ideas

With that notion in mind, give some thought to these top 10 mini bites for your New Year’s Eve party.

1. Broccoli Tarts

Cruciferous vegetables (kale and broccoli, among others) are enormously popular for the sheer range of health benefits they offer. Taste, on the other hand, is a hurdle many must overcome in order to partake of those aforementioned benefits. The accompaniment of a pastry tart and a dose of flavorful seasonings will render the consuming of broccoli far more pleasant an experience than is often the case, and without compromising the vegetable’s healthful properties.

2. Sushi

Done well, sushi is a nutrient-dense, flavorful, aesthetically pleasing appetizer or entrée. Of course, the American palette has dictated that a number of surprisingly unhealthy variants of this iconic Japanese cuisine populate the menus of sushi restaurants across the nation.

But these are very much an exception to an overarching rule: sushi is nutritious, it is ornate, and it is a blank canvas onto which a creative chef may paint to their heart’s desire. A word of warning—sushi goes quickly in large gatherings; ensure you prepare enough for all in attendance.

3. Fruit and Nut Mix

It is difficult to disappoint when serving a trail mix of one sort or another. Usually comprised of dense, chewy, satisfying foods, a good fruit and nut mix will keep hunger at bay while stimulating more or less the tongue’s every taste receptor. The combination of lightly salted almonds and naturally sweet dates, for instance, measures up well against even the most indulgent of dessert options.

4. Hummus

There is not much to say about hummus which is not readily known by all but the sheltered of souls. Ground chickpeas comprise the majority of a standard hummus recipe, as well as a good share of its nutritional composition, but it is the addition of lemon juice and olive oil that both compounds the dish’s healthful benefits and enhances the flavor tenfold. Keep a supply of pitas nearby.

5. Bruschetta

Fairly simple to prepare, what separates good bruschetta from bad is the quality of ingredients used. Treat guests to homemade bread, ripe tomatoes, rich olive oil, and a generous dose of oregano for bruschetta worthy of their ingestion.

6. Guacamole

Once more of a regional favorite, guacamole is essentially America’s choice appetizer at restaurants of all genres, in any number of regions, and between the hours of sunrise and set. A wide range of solid recipe variants exist online; find one which will satisfy tastes and diets alike.

7. Meatballs

A bit messy if consumed in haste (as so many are), and not always prepared with dietary considerations in mind, the meatball is nevertheless a worthy addition to any party food array. Use lean beef and enrich the flavor/nutritional properties with a few choice herbs and spices. Toothpicks are a perfectly acceptable alternative to actual dinnerware with this menu item in particular.

8. Chicken Kabobs

In terms of food-on-a-stick varietals, kabobs of any sort are a time-honored favorite. Chicken tends to comport with a fairly large percentage of American diets (barring vegans/vegetarians) and is quite good for the human organism when prepared well. A healthy peanut sauce will ensure these go quickly, satiating a few appetites along the way.

9. Garlic Edamame

This suggestion truly requires no further explanation. Edamame is virtually impossible to dislike, as are food items doused in garlic sauce. Serve it proudly but prepare to extricate yourself from the scene posthaste. Bodily harm often befalls those who stand between hungry masses and garlic-infused appetizers.

10. Shrimp

Make certain the accompanying sauce is commensurate with the crustacean’s quality. Disparity between the two is known to diminish both the dip and the dipped.

New help coordinating the food for your holiday party? Let Made by Meg take care of all your culinary needs. Contact us today to start planning.

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10 Reasons to Host a Holiday Party at Your Office

Birthday celebrations, sporting events, graduations, and, of course, holidays in these United States are widely acknowledged as being the most ideal and excusable periods of time in which to gorge oneself on indulgent foods the likes of which one is best advised to avoid under otherwise normal circumstances. And while birthdays are usually replete with punch and cake, gatherings predicated upon athletic contests (Super Bowl, NBA Finals, et cetera) with toppings-laden pizza and chicken wings (traditionally), and graduations with still more cake, the holiday season offers a sheer smorgasbord of rich, seasonally specific, indulgent baked goods and festive beverages.

In other words, it is a time in which to toss aside one’s sense of nutritional responsibility in order that the spirit of the season might not be slighted by dietary abstinence on what are to be the merriest of days. A promise of unfettered feeding is but one of the 10 reasons to host a holiday party at your office.

Okay, then–placing aside this fantastical thinking, there actually do exist a great many ways in which to enjoy holiday eating without forfeiting the health and fitness which provides for its bearer a far greater sense of fulfillment than could ever be equaled by a day (or month) of instantly regrettable binge-eating. When considering the below-listed 10 reasons to host a holiday party at your office, take inventory of all the responsible catering options at one’s disposal as they pertain to holiday party planning responsibilities; do right by guests, friends, and colleagues via providing wholesome foods which flavorfully align with the spirit of the season.

So long as the holiday season is upon us, why then should not the spirit of said season visit itself upon the professional spaces in which we are nominally most productive and in which a lion’s share of our waking hours are spent? The very notion itself provides occasion to bond with one’s colleagues in that time-honored manner which historically served our ancestors with the utmost reliability: over food. While reflecting upon the above-articulated suggestions, consider also these

10 reasons to host a holiday party at your office

Office Party Planning

Camaraderie—Barriers come crashing down during periods of festivity, particularly when the provided food is to everyone’s liking. Facilitate the easing of tensions over a choice spread of quality dishes.
Variety—When encouraged to contribute a specialty of some sort, many an office worker or colleague will take it upon themselves to produce cuisine of particularly inventive nature. Expand one’s culinary horizons by prompting co-workers to do the same.
Morale—The days and weeks which comprise a year can drag-on in seemingly endless fashion, and often demoralizingly so. When the holidays make their annual appearance, welcome them in uplifting style. Wholesome, autumnal/winter foods will go a long way towards achieving increased morale, particularly in the context of a holiday soirée.
Leadership—“Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown…” or so Henry IV is thought to have remarked. Bosses often find their responsibilities rather lonesome in nature, as leadership tends to be a somewhat isolating phenomenon. Welcome your own management into the communal fold by ensuring their invitation to an office holiday party. Wise catering choices might just lend themselves to talks of promotion…for those who don’t mind a bit of uneasiness.
Leftovers—This one goes without saying, in truth. However, let us do the saying: provide generously day of, eat generously for days thereafter. Not all foods keep to an equal degree; though, with respect to those that do keep, holiday parties yield excellent dividends.
Trial Run—Holiday parties tend to precede their home front counterparts. Whatever culinary ambitions one might have been harboring since early-January may be trialed in the proving grounds of one’s office environment. Good work in the breakroom may well yield perfection in one’s dining room.
Dietary Influence—Share with colleagues the flavors provided by one’s favorite healthy catering operation; as in, the flavors they might otherwise never experience on account of being stuck in the convenience food ruts inhabited by so many a busy professional.
Unfamiliar Faces—Holiday parties benefit greatly from the presence of so-called “+1” guests. These are mostly spouses and significant others of one’s colleagues, many of whom are themselves familiar strangers. Appreciate the opportunity to revel in new company.
Anecdotal Gold—Even a comparatively tame party is bound to leave in its wake a narrative residue; each attendee belonging (to some degree or another) in some other attendee’s recounting of a notable tale. Enliven the office for months thereafter with the reliably unreliable telling of increasingly tall holiday party tales.
Creative Gift Exchanges—There are limits as to what co-workers are willing to spend on gifts for one another. With that in mind, invest a bit of time/energy in the engineering of an artful gift-swapping concept. One would do well to ready oneself for the inevitable appearance of homemade offerings, varying widely in terms of effort and material quality.

Ready to throw your next holiday party? Contact us today to organize all of your food needs.

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Buying Organic Foods on a Budget

The importance of healthful produce in one’s diet can simply not be overstated. Replete with nutrients and polyphenols with which the human organism can both healthily regenerate itself and simultaneously guard against degenerative disease, organic fruits, vegetables, and herbs are of fundamental importance to the maintenance of one’s physiological well-being. Whether one is supremely athletic, fairly fitness conscious, or only moderately active, the essential nature of antioxidant-rich, nutrient-dense foods rings true for us all. Given this truth, it is worth exploring how the cost-conscious amongst us may go about buying organic foods on a budget.

Throughout most of recorded history, given times of year saw the harvesting of certain crops which flourished under specific climatic conditions. What grew well during the drier summer months might well never have seen the light of day a mere three months later, while fruits suitable for springtime harvesting might have been fatally vulnerable to colder winter climes.

The result, of course, was a necessarily limited diet at any given moment in time. Fortunately for the era in which we find ourselves, agricultural advances in recent generations have allowed for the year-round producing, harvesting and distributing of virtually all produce, while preservation methods such as freezing/refrigeration afford purchasers longer periods of time in which to enjoy nature’s bounty.

Modern agriculture and logistics being thus, the prospect of buying organic foods on a budget is all the more favorable for those so inclined, as the industry as a whole is shifting ardently towards the yielding of produce devoid of those unsavory elements which compromise organic ratings.

A trend which began on the peripheries of food culture, eventually found a home with the wealthy and upper-middle class, as evidenced by the widespread presence of organic fruit and vegetable sections in grocery stores of all sorts. Of course, boutique stores in gentrified communities have long been associated with the organic movement, but the increasing popularity of farmer’s markets and food cooperatives has contributed greatly to widespread embracing of sensibly priced, high quality food.

Keep in mind these few marketplace considerations when buying organic foods on a budget.

1. Mainstream grocery stores have caught on and are looking to reclaim much of the market share they’ve forfeited to boutiques and high-class counterparts. Being late to the party has not prevented the large national chains from now providing their customers with a host of organic fruit and vegetable offerings. Furthermore, these chains are often able (and eager) to undersell their smaller competitors, in departments organic and non-organic alike. The clear winner in such an instance is the consumer, who was once rather limited in terms of organic produce options.

2. The boutiques and high-class grocers who once seemed to have cornered the organic food market are now finding it necessary to adjust fire, so to speak. At risk of losing large swaths of the customer base upon whom they once held a friendly stranglehold, many posh grocery stores are re-pricing organic fruits, vegetables and juices to render them somewhat commensurate with what their middle-tier counterparts are offering. Rarely will the prices matchup penny for penny, but neither will the food quality. After all, what renders a high-end establishment high-end are the standards to which such establishments hold both themselves and their vendors.

In most cases, produce shipments to wealthier food purveyors are expected to meet certain minimum quality levels in terms of freshness and appearance. The costs for adhering to these minimums are subsequently passed on to consumers, many of whom are perfectly willing to shell out the additional shekels for premium produce. However, once again, the consumer stands to score a tacit victory of sorts, as many top-tier grocers are resigned to reducing their bottom lines in order to stop the bleeding brought on by national chains entering the organic food space.

3. Farmer’s markets provide health-minded, financially responsible consumers with a venue in which to both purchase locally grown and harvested produce at fair prices and to engage directly with the growers and harvesters themselves. There exists an intrinsic value in the act of purchasing one’s food in the absence of a middleman, while the fruit and vegetable bounty available for sale tends to be of the highest quality available.

Many of these markets also offer baked goods and beverages prepared with the yields of their harvest, also of organic quality and almost always priced quite favorably. If the option exists, one should cherish the prospect of purchasing organic foods within the quaint and rustic scene of a local farmer’s market.

Want to learn more about buying organic foods on a budget? Connect with me, Meg Hall, a LA-based chef. I look forward to hearing from you soon.