How to get the best outdoor catering service in UAE, Dubai?

Planning a wedding, marriage anniversary or birthday party? Arranging for these events may sound fun but it is complicated and time-intensive. You also need to calculate the number of guests coming to your event and the amount of food to be prepared for those guests. 

For a good event, you need delicious food and for tasty food, you need a good caterer. But before you begin the search for a good caterer, you need to consider what type of catering service is perfect for your event, especially outdoor events.

For outdoor events, you also have to ensure that the food remains in good condition, despite any weather conditions. To select the best outdoor catering in Dubai, you need to ask yourself the following questions: 

• What type of venue is the event hosted in?
• How formal is the event?
• What type of seating arrangement is at the venue?
• How many guests will visit the venue?
• What sort of food do your guests prefer?
• Do guests have any specific dietary requirements?  

Once you figure out the answers to all these questions, you can begin looking for the right outdoor catering service provider for your event. 

How to select an outdoor catering service?

For selecting an outdoor catering service, you need to do some initial research. Here are some qualities that you need to look for in a good caterer. 

1. Communication

Whether you are looking for Indian food catering in Dubai or continental food caterers, you must ensure that the service providers respond to your emails and calls promptly. If there are problems while communicating with them upfront, then you’re likely to face issues down the line. 

2. See if the caterer is organized

Aside from communication skills, you also must consider whether your selected caterer is organized or not. Consider a catering company if they offer you a proposal on time. Otherwise, it’s not a good idea to work with someone who won’t be able to meet your requirements on time. 

3. Right experience

Like many event planners for a specific event, even caterers must have the right specialization and experience. For instance, if you’re arranging a Punjabi wedding or function, you need experienced Punjabi food outdoor catering service providers for the event. Therefore, your selected caterers must have the right experience in the type of event you’re organizing. 

4. Flexible dietary requirements

Another thing to consider is the flexible dietary needs. You must be aware of how flexible your caterer is in terms of a specific menu and offering particular food. Check whether they can meet all your dietary needs like gluten-free and allergy-free meals. If a caterer is not able to fulfil your specific food requirements, you should look for some other catering service.

5. Do check their online customer reviews

Personal recommendations and online customer reviews tell whether or not a catering service can carry out a specific job. Do proper research on the catering service before hiring them so that you won’t have to regret your decision later on. 

After following these tips, you can easily shortlist some companies offering good outdoor catering services. Now, you have to decide which one is the best catering service provider out of your shortlisted candidates.

How to hire an outdoor catering company?

Here are some important tips to consider when hiring or selecting the best service providers:-

1. Proper certifications

When hiring an outdoor caterer, you must ensure checking their certifications. They must comply with proper UAE food standards or other necessary food requirements set by your particular event or insurance policy provider.

2. Look for past event photos

Ask the caterers to show some past event photos of their work and services. This will give you a glimpse of the type of services they offer and what type of arrangements they provide to customers. 

3. Know more about their food preparation

Ask your outdoor catering service provider how and where they usually prepare food – at their off-site or the venue. This will give you an idea of whether you have to arrange for extra space at the venue for cooking or not.

However, certain food items can easily be prepared off-site but some dishes need to be cooking at the venue itself so that they are served fresh. Therefore, the arrangements must be done based on all these requirements. 

4. Don’t miss out tastings

Seeing the pictures won’t tell you about the taste of the food. However, a good caterer will always give you the proper time to evaluate the food before you make the hiring decision. They offer you proper tasting for inspecting whether you like their food or not. This way you can get an idea about how a catering service prepares and serves their food. 

5. See whether you need more furniture and tableware

Some venues don’t offer the right furniture and tableware for events. But some outdoor catering companies do include these services as well for a specific price. If you need extra furniture and tableware for your event, you need to look for a company that offers the same. 

6. Check the available staff

Checking the number of staff members available with the catering company will ensure whether those staff members are enough for your event or not. You usually need one server at every two tables or fewer servers if you are hosting a buffet. But having appropriate staff on-site is important to meet the needs of your guests at the event. 

It’s best to look at the number of guests coming to your event and the number of staff a catering company has. This will give you an idea about whether or not a catering company will be able to manage your big event.

7. Cover all contract details

You must ensure that you cover all contract details when reviewing a catering contract. Check if the contract has included tax, listed all deliverables or other important points. Also, check the caterer’s cancellation policy before signing a contract so that you remain prepared for the worst-case scenario. 

It’s important to be picky when selecting the best outdoor catering service provider for your specific event. After all, it’s all about providing the best experience to your guests. Isn’t it?