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A Catering Directory Helps You Find Local Caterers
By Daniel Frenchy
Catering is one service where you are likely to prefer a local supplier. Very few persons would want to bring a caterer from some other country and risk a party disaster. Corporate parties might go for specialized and reputed organizations headquartered elsewhere. Even they might often find it necessary to go for local caterers when time is short.
Catering directories generally focus on the final consumers, listing vendors by food categories such as beverages, chocolate fountain, fruit, juice, etc; and by supplier categories like food vendors, caterers, mobile vendors, party organizers, restaurants, party shops, etc. There might also be sections on Health & Safety and Tips.
Another directory might arrange vendors by such categories as caterers, event venues, entertainment, photography, transportation, wedding, event planners, florists, etc.
All are likely to provide the option to narrow down the lists to locations you select, such as a city or area.
Some might collect information such as number of guests, event type, services required (such as food, servers, liquor, chocolate fountain, decorations, tables/chairs, tents, etc), date and time, location and so on, and give you a quote based on your requirements.
Caterers might even help you select a menu depending on your budget per person or an event venue or other related matters. Services offered could include sit-in, food station and buffet type serving options, and also clean-ups, drop offs, beverages only service, etc.
Detailed Directory Categories
A brief look at some detailed directory categories would help you understand what you could expect. A selection is listed below:
- Corporate catering
- Personal Chefs
- Banquet Halls
- Yachts/Boats
- DJs
- Live Music/Bands
- Videographers
- Limousines
- Wedding Planners
- Wedding Financing
- Equipment Hire
Catering Directories Are Not Only for Party Hosts
Another kind of directory focuses on the requirements of caterers by listing suppliers of requirements. The following sample list provides a look at the kind of requirements caterers typically have:
- Refrigeration: Chilled display cabinets, Ice makers,...
- Beverages: Coffee Equipment, Beverage Jugs,...
- Bar supplies: Spirit measures, Bottle openers, Blenders,...
- Cookware: Pots & Pans, Cooks Knives, Chefs Clothing,...
- Tableware: Cutlery, Napkins, Tablemats,...
- Furniture: Bar stools, Tables, Outdoor furniture,...
- Kitchen planning: Assessing requirements, design, advice,...
Regional Directories
You can find services providers near you either through regional directories, such as Chicago Caterer directories, or through national directories that lists caterers by cities and areas. Local can be arranged quickly and is ideal when you are short of time. For domestic parties, local would be the better option in most cases.
A local directory like a Chicago directory might list such local resources as banquet halls, buffet
services, corporate party organizers, and so on.
Conclusion
Catering directories generally focus on the consumers of services, listing different types of caterers by their services or locations. Thus, you could find a wedding organizer in or near your town, or a restaurant that offers Chinese dishes in city you plan to visit.
Other directories focus on the caterers, helping them find cookware, tableware, furniture, refrigeration equipment, and so on. Some might offer kitchen planning and design services and other kinds of consultancy services.
This article looked at the kinds of information you could expect to find in a directory. About the Author:
Daniel French is with businessmagnet, an award winning directory listing over 70,000 businesses offering over 20,000 products and services. The directory indexes listings by company, town, postcode and product, making it very user-friendly.
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