catering

[emilycat]

I must be in a posting mood...two in a row...Wahoo!
Anyway, there is a point to this message.
How do you get into the catering business? I've been thinking a lot about this lately, because although I know which profession I love, cooking and meal planning takes up so much of my spare time. I love cooking, I've always loved serving people (is that wierd?) and I wondered, do you need to go to culinary school to have a good enough reputation to be a caterer? Just pondering.
Em

[chefandi]

Emmilycat- I am getting ready to start culinary school in January(which I am so excited about)! Anyway I think that I would love to be in the catering buisness, although I don't know the answer to your question, I would assume that not all caters went to culinary school.

[Laura B]

emilycat - having worked at Barnes & Noble for several years, I know that there are plenty of books out there to help you with this. Go to the business section of a bookstore and look for the small business or entrepeneur (sp?) section. Or you could search one of the online bookstores. Anyway, I have seen at least five different books on this. Several publishing companies have whole series on how to get started in certain small business enterprises. Most of those series include some kind of catering or food service title. Hope this helps!

Oh, and I am sure that you don't have to go to culinary school to do this. But wouldn't it be a great excuse to go!!!

[This message has been edited by Laura B (edited 11-09-2000).]

[lindrusso]

emilycat,

Perhaps being able to claim that you've been to culinary school might help, but it sure isn't the end all, beat all. This is, of course, just my own, unprofessional opinion.

We used to have a restaurant in town where the cooked bragged about her culinary training in France, etc. I ate there and decided that I could do a better job! Her pasta dish - a chef specialty, mind you - consisted of pasta with some CANNED mushrooms, peppers, onions and a few meager shrimp (but you had to request the shrimp) - topped off with a very uninteresting butter and wine sauce with Italian seasoning (you know, the premixed kind). BOOORRRRING!

Perhaps she forgot to mention that she was a culinary school drop out/flunky???!!!!

So, a degree doesn't necessarily earn you anything. However, if you feel that you need to be more well-rounded or your skills could use work in some areas, then school would be a great option.

I think the most daunting thing for any cooking business is state regulations about the kitchen. I know that many states require an industrial kitchen that must measure up to all sorts of criteria.

Good luck in whatever you decide!

[Kerri]

Good luck in whatever your decide. I know exactly how you feel (love cooking for people and serving them, etc). I wonder if anyone has ever thought about starting a "healthy" restaurant. It is pretty much understood that most restaurants add more fat then needed. Wouldn't be nice to have a cooking light type of restaurant that was more reasonable with the calories and portion sizes? You could go there and have a good time without worry too much about what your eating. It has crossed my mind a few times.

[emilycat]

My mom and dad and all three siblings have actually, for about 3-4 years now, been suggesting that I start a "healthy" resaurant, for all us CL type people, who want something delicious, nutritious and not calorie-packing at the same time! I hope some day I gather up the guts to do it!

[Susann]

Emily-I say go for it-we could use a good, healthful restaurant in our neck of the woods!

[BeckyM]

emilycat,

If you do start your "healthy" restaurant, I think you should consider a branch in Cincinnati! I would definitely come!

[carolyn.1]

This is sooooo interesting! I never would have thought that so many people had the same idea as I do about the "healthy" restaurant. I even have been thinking of a name for it--that is how far my thoughts have gone. My children are grown and moved on now , and I was seriously thinking of persuing this. After talking it over with my husband he casually says "No one eats that stuff".
Carolyn--

[Grace]

Carolyn,

I too, have thought seriously about this for a long time, but sadly, your husband is right. I am a salesperson and have been selling to restaurants for 10 years. I have spoken with many restauranteurs, as well as plenty of restaurant consultants with whom I am good friends, and they all say that not enough people want healthy stuff to sustain a restaurant. Just look at McDonalds - they dropped their Healthy McGrill or whatever it was called because no one wanted it. But maybe times continue to change and more and more people will? I sure hope so - it will make our lives easier when it comes to finding healthy alternatives!! Great idea to me, though! If you open one, I'LL come and eat there!!!

Grace

[kwormann]

A definite neeed for healthy FAST FOOD! Boca burgers, baked fries, hummus, carrot sticks

Actually, there is a chain in FLA that has one..maybe if enough people request, they will move to the rest of the US

[pvavricka]

Emily, that sounds wonderful. I'm sure it would go over big here in Napa. (Just as long as you serve wine!!).

Penny

[emilycat]

I think people actually do to have access to delicious, healthy food...I just think you have to put the restaurant in the right place. Hickville, Georgia isn't gonna float, but look at Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca. It's such a booming success! We need more of them in other parts of the country...maybe we should be the ones to do it. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[lindrusso]

emilycat and carolyn,

I think it really depends on where you live. I SERIOUSLY doubt that a healthy food restaurant would go over well here in Indiana, but in places like CA (I mention CA because the airport in LA had a Sushi bar - you wouldn't find that in the Midwest!!), people are more open to new food ideas. I have also found that areas near large universities also tend to be more open-minded due to the student population. Austin, Texas has a very colorful make-up and you can find many wonderful, healthy places to eat.

I think you also have to think about what people are looking for when they go out to eat. My husband and I don't go out very often, so when we do, I'm don't really care if it's healthy or not - I just want good food! On the other hand, those who work tend to eat out more often - in this case, someone who eats out almost every day may well be THRILLED to have some healthy choices. So maybe a healthy lunch place would go over well???

As for the Moosewood Restaurant, may I just point out that being a vegetarian does not mean that you automatically eat healthy!! If you're a lacto-ovo vegetarian, there's nothing holding you back from eating cheesey, creamy, fried foods, not to mention cookies, cake, candy - you get the picture. I just wanted to point out that healthy eating involves more than not eating meat. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif I know first-hand because all the weight I want to lose now I gained when I didn't eat meat!! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/eek.gif

Just had to add my two cents....again...

[Laura]

Emily-

Although I have never been a "professional caterer", I have catered a few dinners and a showers. My sister and I started out by auctioning off a dinner for 4 for our children's school's fundraiser. It was a small town so other people found out about us and asked to cater some parties and showers. The one thing I discovered is that it is definately a team effort and you need to have one general and those who work in the trenches getting everything ready. My sister and I also had different ideas about how things should be done (she wanted to julienne vegetables in the food processor, I insisted we do them by hand, she acquiesed but I did all the cutting)

It was a lot of fun, but I don't think it is a career for me. I would get WAY too stressed. I enjoy doing it for friends when they ask.

[noni liedtke]

I just wrote a long long letter about catering and it has disappeared. If it pops up, please post it. thanks Noni

[BethR]

emilycat, another great resource if you're considering starting a catering business is SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives). You can find them at www.score.org. (http://www.score.org.) Score is "dedicated to aiding in the formation, growth, and success of small business nationwide." They're associated with the Small Business Administration, and provide counseling to entrepreneurs. I used them when I considered buying a struggling prenatal aerobics business (which, after talking with SCORE and my then next-door neighbors, who run their own tax accounting business, I decided not to do). Best of luck to you, whatever you decide to do!
Beth

[emilycat]

lindrusso,
I definitely agree! Eating vegetarian certainly doesn't always equate to healthful eating; I didn't mean to imply that...I haven't been to Moosewood, and the Moosewood Low-fat Favorites cookbook I have always refers to all the low-fat, healthful options at the resaurant, so I was under the impression that it was. Maybe it's not...

[lindrusso]

emilycat -

I have Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant and many are, in fact healthy recipes. However, while I was looking up a biryani recipe, I came across a blintz recipe that called for 1 pound of cheese, pound of regular ricotta, 4 eggs and 1/4 cup butter - ack! I guess I was just wondering if their popularity was built on healthy or less healthy dishes??!! Wish I could go and find out in person!!

How do you like the low-fat Moosewood? I've been trying to go back to eating more meatless meals, but many of my vegetarian cookbooks are not low-fat (like the Moosewood and Green's restaurant cookbooks). I'd appreciate any feedback. It might also help me attain those HLSG goals http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif .

[emilycat]

lindrusso,
I really love the Lowfat Moosewood Favorites book...I don't know if you've looked at the Cookbook recommendations thread yet, but I listed it as one of my top cookbooks. There are a lot of various ethnic recipes, which is one of the things I really like about it. I love Middle Eastern, Asian, Indian, Italian foods, etc., and so that's one reason I love this book. It's also chock-full of all kinds of different recipes. There are fish recipes in it, so it's not strictly vegetarian. You should at least pick up a copy and flip through it to see what you think http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif I also have the Moosewood Resaurant Cooks at Home and the Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special, and they're both based around healthy cooking techniques, also. They both list nutritional info. for each recipe, too. I love the series.
By the way....I had the same reaction to your list of ingredients for the recipe you were looking for...ackk! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/eek.gif
Em