You’ve decided to have a party….Great! You’ve selected a date, sent out the invitations, chosen a menu, and now you have to order the food.  One of the most common questions we get at Capriotti’s from our customers is, “How much food do I order???”.  Don’t Panic! Every hostess is afraid of not having enough food for their guests or having too much food that they are eating leftovers for a week!  As experienced caters, we have found that answering the following questions will help you determine the right amount of food for your next catered event.

What time of day is your event? If you are having a dinner time party versus a lunch time party, your guests may be hungrier and expect to eat more so plan on healthier appetites!

Who are your guests? Will the party be for all adults or adults and children? Taking a few minutes to breakdown your guest list by age groups is another great way to narrow down how much food to order.  Are the children under 12 or teenagers?  To feed those “under 12”, consider them as 1/2 a person for the guest count.  Those over 12 should be treated the same as an adult guest and in some cases, those teenagers may even have a bigger appetite!

How many entrees are you serving?  Most items are sold per pound and serve approximately 3 to 4 people. So it’s easy enough to determine if you are having 40 people, you would need approximately 10 pounds of your entree.  However, If you are serving multiple entrees like chicken, roast beef, pasta and meatballs, you may want to reduce the amount you order for each entree and cut it down by 1/3 on the assumption your guests will eat a smaller portion of each entree. 

How many side dishes will you have?  Again, most cold salads are sold by the pound and serve 3 to 4 people so you can base the amount you need on how many different salads you are having.  If you are having multiple salads such as potato salad, cole slaw, and pasta salad, you can also reduce the amount you would order by 1/3 per salad.  Adding in a tossed salad or antipasto adds a “vegetable alternative” for your guests and is a great filler item.

Are you serving appetizers?  If you are serving appetizers, your guests may not be as hungry as you think by the time the main course rolls around.  If you are just serving cheese, crackers, and veggies, stick to the original order of food you determined based on the number of entrees and side dishes.  If you are serving heavy appetizers and several of them, decrease your entree and side dish orders by 1 pound per 20 people.

How many desserts are you serving?  When fabulous desserts are being served, your guests may limit their consumption of the main course to “save room for dessert”.  If you are planning on serving a variety of desserts, cut back on your entree and side dish orders by 1 pound per 20 people.

The fear of running out of food is always in the front of the hostess’s mind!  Alleviate that stress by relying on an experienced caterer like Capriotti’s!  We are happy to assist you in recommending what menu items work well together and the amount of food you will need to order.  So, don’t panic…give us a call for your next catered event: 570-929-7200.  At Capriotti’s we are in the business of passionately perfecting life’s celebrations!