Catered Food Station – What is that?

Catered food stations are a great way to provide food for your guests while allowing them to mix, mingle, and enjoy the event. Typically, the portions are smaller at food stations, enabling you to offer more menu variety than you could with a traditional catered buffet or plated meal. The best way to present these is to situate different stations throughout the venue, allowing guests to move around and chat with other guests.

No matter which you select, your guests will be treated to an extraordinary event!

Italian Theme Food Station
Mexican Style Food Station
Around the Word
Fun Holiday Activity Stations

Stations are designed for 50 or more guests.  Volume discounts are available!
We can also compliment your theme with beverages, party rentals, and place settings.

Italian Theme Food Stations

Appetizer Pasta Bar Station
Grilled chicken, beef meatballs, bacon, rotini, and bow tie pasta, pesto cream, and marinara sauce, sautéed veggies
Parmesan Chicken Medallions
Chicken breast medallions with our signature Parmesan breadcrumb mix served with marinara sauce
Caramelized Flatbread
Fresh zucchini slices and red onion accented with fresh basil, Parmesan, and ricotta cheese baked on flat bread
Charcuterie Board
Prosciutto, salami, ham, provolone, Havarti, and gouda cheeses, assorted olives, and grapes. Served with mustard, crackers, and party breads
Caprese Skewers
Marinated fresh mozzarella skewered with fresh grape tomatoes and basil and drizzled with balsamic
Fresh Fruit Kabobs
Fresh Hawaiian Gold Pineapple Chunk and Strawberry
Party Sugar Dusted Lemon Square
Mini bars of creamy lemon custard baked on top of a shortbread crust, dusted with powdered sugar
Party Cheesecake Cups
Individual cup creamy cheesecake on graham cracker crumbs, garnished with whipped topping and sprinkled with more cracker crumbs. Add fresh berries for a special touch

Mexican Theme Stations

Street Tacos Station
Select fajita beef steak, chicken, or veggie tacos served with a fresh lime wedge
Bacon Wrapped Chicken
Chicken breast tenders and a strip of fresh jalapeno pepper all wrapped up with bacon and marinated with a sweet and spicy glaze
Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
Sweet and spicy marinated shrimp and fresh jalapeno slice wrapped in bacon and marinated with a sweet and spicy glaze
Queso & Chips
Tortilla chips, Queso, cheddar cheese, shredded lettuce, diced fresh tomatoes sliced jalapeno peppers, and sour cream
Pineapple Mango Salsa
Tropical mango and pineapple salsa served with cinnamon flatbread strips
Fresh Fruit Kabobs
Fresh Hawaiian Gold Pineapple Chunk and Strawberry Kabob
Caramel Flan
Sweet custard with caramel sauce

Around The World Food Stations

FRANCE

Mini Chicken Cordon Blues (French)
Breaded chicken stuffed with ham and Swiss cheese
Smoked Salmon Crostini
Sliced smoked salmon, cream cheese, fresh lemon, and dill on toasted garlic crostini toast
Almond Crusted Brie
A wheel of buttery soft brie smothered with toasted almonds served with flatbread strips
Party Cream Puffs
Chocolate Eclairs

MEXICO

Street Tacos Station
Select fajita beef steak, chicken, or veggie tacos served with fresh lime wedges
Bacon Wrapped Chicken
Chicken breast tenders and a strip of fresh jalapeno pepper all wrapped up with bacon and marinated with a sweet and spicy glaze
Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
Sweet and spicy marinated shrimp and fresh jalapeno slice wrapped in bacon and marinated with a sweet and spicy glaze
Caramel Flan
Sweet custard with a caramel sauce

GREECE

Spanakopita
Phyllo triangles filled with spinach, feta, cream cheese, and a touch of garlic
Greek Veggie Tarts
Plum tomatoes, Greek olives, cucumber, onion, and feta tossed with Greek vinaigrette and served in party phyllo cups
Marinated Olives
Jumbo green olives, pitted kalamata, and mixed olives
Baklava
Crispy phyllo dough layered with honey and nuts

ITALY

Cocktail Meatballs with Marinara Sauce
Parmesan Chicken Medallions
Chicken breast medallions with our signature Parmesan breadcrumb mix served with marinara sauce
Caramelized Flatbread
Fresh zucchini slices and red onion accented with fresh basil, Parmesan, and ricotta cheese baked on flat bread
Charcuterie Board
Prosciutto, salami, ham, provolone, Havarti, and gouda cheeses, assorted olives, and grapes. Served with mustard, crackers, and party breads
Caprese Skewers
Marinated fresh mozzarella skewered with fresh grape tomatoes and basil and drizzled with balsamic
Party Tiramisu
Sponge cake, espresso-flavored mascarpone mousse and whipped cream

AMERICA

Party  Sliders
An assortment of beef steak, chicken, veggie, and brisket slicers  served with cheddar cheese
Macaroni and Cheese Station
Served with diced ham, bacon, and shredded parmesan and cheddar cheeses
Mashed Potato Bar
Country mashed potatoes or whipped sweet potatoes served with a host of toppings
Parmesan Kettle Chips
Our signature house-made parmesan chips
Mini Fudge Brownie
Decadent fudge walnut brownies studded with dark chocolate chunks

Fun Holiday Activity Stations

We even created some Holiday Activity Stations where guests can create their take-away gifts as a special treat from you…just for the holidays!  Let them eat, enjoy, and make a gift to take!

Make and Take Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
Guests will layer ingredients for chocolate chip cookies in a gift bag, tie with baking instructions and a bow
Make and Take Cranberry Cookie Mix in a Bag
Guests will layer ingredients for cranberry white chocolate  cookies in a gift bag, tie it with baking instructions, and a bow
Holiday Trail Mix Gift Bags
Guests can make custom trail mix with Chex mix, Cheerios, pretzels, white chocolate chips and M&M’s
Holiday Hot Chocolate Gift Bags
White, Mexican, or regular hot chocolate mixes assembled in a mason jar or a container you want to use
Cookie Decorating Station
Giant sugar cookies guests will decorate with icing, sprinkles, colored sugars, cinnamon candies, M&M’s, and peppermint S’mores for Two Treat BarBaskets of graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate bars wrapped in a holiday gift bag complete with a bow
Ornament Painting
A clear ornament guests will decorate with acrylic paint, swirling their color choices inside the ornament

Appetizers all set for a train ride!

Taking a pre-dinner train ride means you have to have some appetizers to nibble during the ride. We were asked to prepare these custom boxes – one for each passenger, individually sealed and ready for their eating pleasure.

Since there isn’t much room on a train, and no actual dining table, we created these hand held appetizer boxes with a collection of treats passengers could easily eat while holding a beverage. One to two bites and no utensils needed either! And, to minimize moving about on the train, each passenger appetizer box included a hand towelette to avoid any rush to the rest room for hand washing.

Minimal trash is a must on a train, we chose menu items that were easy to eat, required no heating and packed in boxes that, once emptied, could easily be stacked and stowed in one small trash bag. Here’s how we made them:

Building a great salad is easy to do.

Get the freshest ingredients you can buy, mix and match lettuces, veggies, fruits, nuts, cheeses and other salad items and start building your perfect lunch or dinner today.

Here is more information on the most popular salad ingredients to consider adding to salad today.

See how we made ours:

Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten-free and Keto Diet Catering – what’s it all about?

And how do you cater these dietary restrictions?

Need help with your menu?

When creating a catering menu for a group of people, it’s best to ask your guests if there are any dietary restrictions that should be considered. The most popular menu requests are vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and the most recent menu request is keto friendly. Other limitations that affect catered menu planning are actual food allergies which should be treated very carefully and shared with any caterer you hire.

The most common allergies include milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, fish, soy and wheat.  And some people have uncommon but still very real reactions to certain ingredients like spices, mushrooms, garlic, food additives and even some food dyes.  Any and all information you collect about your guests’ special needs you should provide to your caterer and request they note those details on your menu.

Vegetarian Catering Menus

Vegetarian menus are fairly common and easy to provide. Vegetarians don’t eat animals, but they do eat products that come from animals. There are 4 types of vegetarians:

Lacto-ovo vegetarians eat dairy products and eggs but avoid meat, poultry and seafood.

Ovo vegetarians eat eggs but no dairy, meat, poultry or seafood.

Pescatarian vegetarians, though in the vegetarian category, do eat fish and seafood but no meat or poultry.

Vegan Catering Menus

The best way to think about vegan menu items is this: if the food source has a “mom” they can’t eat it. Beef, chicken, fish and seafood all have or had a mom so they rely on fruits and vegetables as the staple in their diet. In order to incorporate necessary proteins (meats) add menu items that have soy, tofu, edamame, whole grains (quinoa and oats), beans, seeds (pumpkin, hemp and tahini) and nuts (almonds, cashews and peanut butter).

Gluten-Free Catering Menus

People with celiac disease, or those who have sensitivity to gluten, can have reactions ranging from slight to severe and their menu needs should be taken seriously while others opt to follow this diet for non-medical reasons. Gluten is actually a protein found in wheat, rye and barley and all of these must be avoided in any menu for guests on this diet. Certain food ingredients can also contain gluten like modified food starch, malt and maltodextrin which could be used in processed fruits and vegetables, salad dressings, gravies and sauces.  It’s best to have your caterer assist you in identifying suitable menu ideas for those on this diet because they should know what they can prepare to meet this demand.

Keto Friendly Catering Menus

This is becoming a very popular request for catered meals. A ketogenic diet is based on very low-carbohydrate and high fat diet meaning many fruits and vegetables can’t be used. Black berries, raspberries and strawberries are acceptable as are vegetables grown above ground like cauliflower, cabbage, avocado, spinach and kale. For the protein portion, beef, pork, fish or seafood are good options but avoid processed meats like sausages and cold cuts. Condiments like ketchup, BBQ sauce, jams and jellies should be avoided but mayonnaise, cream cheese, guacamole and butter is welcomed because of the high fat content. Here is a great visual guide to what can be eaten on this diet

Professional caterers are starting to indicate menu items for all these needs on their menus like this:

(G) throughout the menu are typically gluten free
(K) throughout the menu are typically Keto Friendly

Or, they might have a separate special menu they can give you to address these needs.

Dairy Free / Lactose Intolerant Catering Menus

Menus using milk, butter and other dairy related ingredient have to be modified since these people can’t digest the sugar in milk which is called lactose.  Silk Milk, Soy Milk and Lactose Free Milk are all common substitutes for traditional dairy milk.  Dairy free menu would use no dairy at all and substitute plant-based alternatives instead.

What’s green and white and read all over? These fun St. Patrick’s Day Office Party ideas

Even if St. Patrick’s Day is on a weekend, you can still have fun at the office beforehand.

Prepare the office:

Green is the theme so, invite your team to wear green – the one with the most green can win a “pot of gold” filled with chocolate coins. Those can be found at most local grocery stores or party supply stores.

Put some Irish Coffee Creamer near the coffee pot and some whipped cream and green sprinkles for a mock Irish Coffee.

Post signs around the office with Irish trivia.

Are there female leprechauns?

Answer – An ancient book called “A History Of Irish Fairies” reveals that there is no evidence of there being a female leprechaun — ever. (Answer provided by Huffington post)

               What happens if you catch a Leprechaun?

Answer – He  will have to tell you where the gold is hidden because he is compelled to tell the truth by fairy law (Answer provided by wikihow)

               How many leaves do shamrocks have?

Answer – The three leaves of a shamrock are also said to stand for faith, hope and love. A fourth leaf is where we get the luck from. The four-leafed clover, or “lucky clover”, is an uncommon variation of the three-leafed clover, and widely considered to be a symbol of good luck. (Answer provided by Tenon Tours)

Cut shamrocks out of green construction paper and hang up around the office. Templates are here.

Make paper chains of green and gold paper and hang anywhere in the office.

Make a Pot of Gold using a simple clear vase, filled with gold coins and put in a place everyone will see it. Then, create a drawing to win the pot by having your staff fill out an entry “clover” with their answer of how many coins are in there and the one who gets closest wins the pot! Or, create individual treats for everyone to enjoy.

And now it’s time to work on the office St. Patrick’s Day Lunch

Corn beef and cabbage immediately comes to mind; however, the scent of cooked cabbage filling the office may not be so desirable so, the next best thing for a group would be Shepherd’s Pie which is made with ground beef, mashed potatoes and veggies.  That, served with some Irish Biscuits, an all green salad and of course dessert could be Apple Crumble.

If beef doesn’t suit your group, you can offer Irish Chicken Breast which is grilled chicken breast simmered with sautéed mushrooms, roma tomatoes and scallions

Irish Mashed Potatoes which are Ultra-creamy and buttery mashed potatoes

Pot o’ Gold Fruit Tray

Perfect for dessert! The picture says it all!
Sliced strawberries, orange sections, green and black grapes complete with a marshmallow cloud and a pot o’ gold!  You can use green grapes, kiwi, honeydew for an all-green fruit tray if you’d prefer that. Add some fruit dip that’s died green and you’ll complete the treat. (Photo by patch.com)

Good Luck Fruit and Veggie Tray

Make a party tray with green grapes, kiwi, cucumbers, celery, broccoli and Green Goddess Dressing

Shamrock Pinwheels

Spinach tortillas rolled up with veggie cream cheese and then cut in party size bites. Or add ham and cheese if you want something heartier.

For more creative St. Patrick’s Day menu ideas – check these out!

Hat, clover and pot o’ gold by: https://pixabay.com/users/terovesalainen-809550/