Food means community. Food means happiness. Food means satisfaction. In short, food means hospitality.
If you think about it, have you ever been to an event where there was no food or drink available? Food and beverage (F&B) is normally the biggest expense for any event. No surprises there as guests tend to remember best what was served during an event.
Some people do not expect the food to be served at an event. However, if there isn’t any available, it will be a complete drawback noticed and remarked upon by all attendees
There are times when food and drink act as the reason to bring people together. We invite our friends over for a cup of tea, to meet our partners for lunch or to spend time with a significant other at dinner.
Nowadays, with shrinking budgets but soaring food prices, it can be hard to muster the will to keep refreshments as a key factor when planning an event.
However, do not set aside the smallest portion of your budget for F&B. Then again, this does not mean you do not stick to your budget.
Inventive and creative menus do not have to be expensive. It isn’t always about lobsters and caviar. For example, you could set up DIY sandwich stations or have food stations instead of a served sit-down dinner.
Furthermore, health and wellness will continue to be a trend in the future. Consumers are becoming more health-conscious and aware of food sensitivities towards gluten and dairy, to name some. Unfortunately, not all people can eat what they want. Try to consider taste preferences for the entire audience. Take these into account when planning for your social event.
If the food can play a part in making attendees happy, or for clients to entertain their top customers, you need to customize the experience to suit those needs.
Work with your caterer to develop a menu that truly meets the need of your event.
Long events will definitely require time allocated for meals. For example, an event that starts early in the morning and ends late in the evening would be considered long. In fact, anything lasting more than 5 hours will need refreshment breaks.
These breaks are useful opportunities for guests to mingle. This does not mean turning your social affair into a feast though.
Use F&B to brand your event. It is a fantastic way to entice your attendees. People can be assured they won’t go hungry at your event and will likely stay longer because a satisfied guest is a happy guest. So, do your best to keep your attendees from suffering from hunger.
Having the perfect ambiance via the decor and service is just as important for guest satisfaction.
The new generation of diners, in this case, your event attendees, are constantly looking for unique and authentic dining experiences. Want to make your event even more successful? Offer your attendees an extraordinary and unforgettable experience that they are not able to find elsewhere.
Having food and beverages is not just about keeping people full, it’s part of the experience.
Since biblical times, people have been opening their homes to guests and breaking bread with them. Eating together leads to shared conversations and bonding over ideas.
Doesn’t this sound like the purpose of modern events and networking dos?
Think about how many times business deals had been struck from attending informal meals or dinners.
It’s much easier to form a connection when you have something in common. In this case, it’s eating. So, make sure you put in a little effort into your menu selection. Put some real thought into that meal and you can make your dining experience do more for your meeting.
To source for any food and beverage related products, attend MIFB 2020! MIFB provides you the extraordinary F&B products you are searching for to serve your customers.
