Whether you’re hosting a group dinner at a restaurant on-site or working with a chef to craft a customized catering menu for your meeting elsewhere, the experience behind each bite is crucial to ensuring not only a delicious meal but also fond memories attendees can look back on after the event concludes. And with different palates and preferences among each guest, it takes a certain level of creativity to please the masses.
Chefs at hotel restaurants and event venues around California have built a repertoire of skills and knowledge to create successful gastronomic experiences for meeting and event attendees, from small executive dinners to large-scale galas or conventions. For three of them, key components to executing these events include sourcing as much information ahead of time as possible and building a flavorful journey for diners through each dish.
“Having a plan in place is key,” says Francisco Garcia Jr., executive chef at SAP Center in San Jose, home of the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. “Once the formula has been written, it’s time to execute. Stay the course, be consistent, and keep composure. Always be ready to adapt.”
This accumulation of insight took time to mature into a set of skills for serving groups—each chef’s journey had its own defining starting point. “After working in serious fine-dining restaurants, our goal was to open a restaurant built around freedom and flexibility where people could eat what they like and drink what they like, no programmed elements,” shares Nicole Krasinski, pastry chef and co-owner of State Bird Provisions in San Francisco, and the co-owner of The Progress and The Anchovy Bar, both also in San Francisco. “We had been catering parties in San Francisco where the clients requested all passed hors d’oeuvres, but enough to feel like a meal. We modeled State Bird Provisions around these parties, adding in carts as a nod to the efficiency of dim sum service.”
For Garcia in San Jose, his position at SAP Center was first a job to get him through college, but it quickly developed into a passion for the culinary arts. “I had great working relationships with many of the cooks and chefs I worked with, and they took me under their wings, guiding and teaching me,” he says. “There’s a very strong and well-rounded leadership team at the SAP Center, and it is amazing to come to work every day and collaborate with enthusiastic and passionate leaders.”
Down in Montecito, Caruso’s opened at Rosewood Miramar Beach hotel in 2019 through a partnership between Los Angeles developer Rick J. Caruso and Chef Massimo Falsini. “He was the one who brought me here from the Napa Valley and gifted me this incredible canvas where I was able to express myself through my cuisine and my passion for hospitality,” says Falsini. “We began the journey building relationships with our neighboring farmers, fishers, and ranchers, and we place Mother Nature at the center of menu development.”
Prioritize Prep Time
Making attendees feel seen and taken care of through the menu choices can make an event go more smoothly—and this starts with collecting as much information as possible up front about everything from dietary restrictions to beverage preferences and table arrangements. “Prepare it as if it’s for you and yours,” says Garcia. This time spent preparing then allows guests to enjoy their meals at ease, knowing each ingredient was chosen for them and their fellow eventgoers.
“The guests get to sit back and enjoy the evening, not needing to make any decisions besides which of the delicious bottles of wine they would like to drink,” says Krasinski. Providing set menus does just this, but even if planners choose buffet dining, chefs can arrange for each choice to be well-catered to attendee preferences in a way that might encourage them to try a little of everything.
Preparing goes beyond just the food, too. Designing the culinary experience so it flows well based on table setups, number of attendees, and overall vibe of the gathering adds to the ambience of the event.
Bringing Flavors to Life
Chef Falsini and his team connect diners with the flavors of the surrounding natural landscapes through each menu item, focusing on seasonal and local. “We offer a new concept in Caruso’s private dining room called ‘Frontemare,’” says Falsini. “Frontemare is a new way for guests to connect with our community and our ocean through the conviviality of a family-style dinner around a table—listening to the waves crashing and the grilled, fresh seafood sizzling.”
A similar philosophy is followed in Krasinski’s kitchen at State Bird Provisions. “In all our kitchens, we start with what’s in season and build our menus from there,” she says. “I work hard to create desserts that are unique and interesting while also hitting all the right nostalgia buttons. My desserts always include herbs, spices, and texture, with the end goal of making them not too sweet, but definitely soul satisfying.”
A big hit for Krasinski has been seasonal variations of a staple ice cream sandwich, with a recent one being a sweet corn ice cream sandwich with blueberries. “It’s the perfect, not fussy, but certainly elevated bite at the end of the meal, especially for groups.”
Up in San Jose, Garcia notes that California fare with Latin flavors are prevalent in the menus at SAP Center, using diverse ingredients for many palates. “We have had the pleasure of hosting everything from special events for Silicon Valley tech companies to concerts of all demographics—in addition to Sharks games,” he explains. “I really enjoy Southeast Asian flavors with a little Latin fusion; Aji Amarillo with Tamari is always a staple in my profile.”
theanchovybar.com
theprogress-sf.com
rosewoodhotels.com
sapcenter.com
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