Vibrant Table
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Catering to the Senses

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What to Expect at Your Upcoming Tasting

Filed Under: Biz Buzz, Catering Chronicles, Factual FAQs

tasting policy

What is a client’s favorite part of planning their event? Tastings of course! As part of the event or wedding planning process, clients often want to test the food to ensure it’s to their liking. Though this usually doesn’t require too much convincing of our clients, below we have shared some important details to get you fully prepared for your upcoming tasting with Vibrant Table.

Vibrant Table Catering & Events offers a complimentary tasting for up to 4 guests, for confirmed events valued at $8,000.00 (exclusive of venue rental).

Tastings take place at The Loft at 8th Avenue on Wednesday, starting between 11am – 3pm.

Clients are invited to taste their prospective menu, selecting from up to three hors d’oeuvres, two salads, and two entrées with sides. If dessert will be part of your Vibrant Table menu, you may select up to two for your tasting. For hors d’oeuvres receptions, guests may taste up to 8 items.

If you would like to sample wine, beer, or specialty cocktails, please notify your planner at least one week prior to the tasting; see current drink menus for pricing.

For events totaling less than $8,000.00, or for tastings prior to client confirmation, the price for a tasting is $50.00 – $100.00 per person, based on your menu selections. For events totaling $8,000.00 or more, the tasting fee will be credited to your event invoice when you confirm with Vibrant Table.

Please confirm your tasting with a credit card or check at least one week prior to tasting date. Should you decide to cancel your tasting, notify your planner at least 7 days prior to the scheduled tasting; otherwise, the full tasting fee will be charged.

Think of your tasting as a trial run of what the event will feel like. Your caterer, especially if they are helping with event planning, will want to discuss the specifics of your entire event during the tasting, including the timeline of events. You don’t need to know everything at this time, but this information will help them to put together a list of outstanding items to discuss and decide upon in the future. We know no one will turn down the chance to eat delicious food, so a tasting is the perfect way to mix business with taste bud pleasure. Enjoy!

The dos and don’ts of drink tickets

Filed Under: Alcohol, Catering

Evrim Icoz Photography

Evrim Icoz Photography

Be it a corporate, social or nonprofit event, drink tickets can play a pivotal role. Drink tickets might have a handful of pros and cons, but at the end of the day they can provide an easy assist with creating a smooth and successful party.

What to think about—

  • Will you be offering hosted drink tickets to your guests?
  • If so, how many will drink tickets will each guest receive?
  • Who will get the drink tickets?
  • If you are not offering hosted drink tickets not, how much will guests be expected to pay per ticket? Will the price be different for alcohol, beer & wine?
  • Limit the amount of drink tickets your guests can purchase.
  • Keeping your caterer in the loop. We can help.

The perks –

Drink tickets help limit alcohol consumption.

This helps:

  • Guests, employees, friends, colleagues and family wake up the next day without the feeling of embarrassment, as do you.
  • Avoid driving under the influence. Although, any event where alcohol is served, you as the host, should provide adequate alternative transportation services, like cabs, public transit, or car services (Uber, Lyft).
  • If you provide guests with hosted drink tickets it will control your costs, instead of hosting a full bar where guests can line up and order crazy pricy and complicated drinks with no limit.

What to avoid –

  • Tasting the rainbow. Stick to one or two drink ticket colors. One for alcohol. One for beer & wine. Don’t make it too complicated. You are hosting the event and already have a lot on your plate. Two ticket colors is simple for you, your guests, and the serving and bartending staff to understand.
  • Offering certain guests more drink tickets than others. The last thing you want to do is upset somebody at a celebratory event because you provided favoritism. That being said, you may have a very good reason for giving your CEO or owner an extra ticket, since ya know, he is paying for the whole event.
  • Cash bars. If you are offering drink tickets for your guests to purchase, you are also avoiding any cash handling with the bartenders and serving staff. This is great news, because they can focus on making drinks, and you and your team can handle the cash.

The Loft at 8th Ave.

Filed Under: News, Venues

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VT Group, the company behind two of Portland’s largest and most successful catering businesses, today announced it is fully operational at its new location at 2010 SE 8th Avenue in Portland. The freshly renovated 43,000-square-foot facility is home to Food in Bloom Catering, Vibrant Table Catering & Events, Vibrant Flowers and the administrative portion of f&b cafe. It features a beautifully decorated client reception area and tasting rooms, a state-of-the-art kitchen, a floral and décor design area and ample space to house and stage the equipment allowing Food in Bloom and Vibrant Table to produce the unique culinary experiences for which they are known. There are also several areas throughout the building slated for event space.

[Read more…]

Real Wedding: Castaway in Northwest Portland

Filed Under: Bridal Boutique, Soiree Spotlights

We are going through pictures of the many beautiful summer weddings. There are so many gems! One is Danielle and Paul’s gorgeous wedding at Castaway in Northwest Portland. Guided by the talented Luxe Event Productions, Danielle and Paul clearly had their guests’ comfort in mind when planning their celebration. It has it all — fun games, personality, elegant beauty, touching moments and plenty of eye-candy.
Our hats go off to the many talented vendors that worked to make Danielle and Paul’s nuptials such an amazing affair: LUXE EVENT PRODUCTIONS, Vibrant Flowers, Adam Trujillo Photography, Blush Furniture, West Coast Drape, The Party Place and My Bartender.

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Bride and Groom on Portland Waterfront

 

Real Portland Wedding at Castaway

First of all, Danielle and Paul are a beautiful couple.

Tented Ceremony at Castaway

Besides adding a romantic backdrop to Danielle and Paul’s wedding ceremony, tenting, pipe and drape carve a private space in an urban setting and protect guests from Portland’s fickle weather.

Lighting makes a difference at your wedding

Lighting sets the mood, draws the eye, defines space… and so much more. Here they offer interesting background to a variety of wedding shots.

Danielle and Paul thought of their guests comfort when planning their event. Lots of fun activities to entertain.

Danielle and Paul thought of their guests comfort when planning their event. Lots of fun activities to entertain.

Event furniture lounge seating

And a comfortable lounge area to relax.

Duet plated entree of grilled skirt steak and rosemary-lemon chicken breast with potato confit and grilled asparagus. For vegetarian guests, the newlyweds chose stuffed roasted pepper with caramelized sweet onion quinoa and a balsamic reduction. YUM!

Duet plated entree of grilled skirt steak and rosemary-lemon chicken breast with potato confit and grilled asparagus. For vegetarian guests, the newlyweds chose stuffed roasted pepper with caramelized sweet onion quinoa and a balsamic reduction. YUM!

Smores Bar by Vibrant Table Catering

DIY smores bar!!?? Yes, please! (Ask us about setting up a smores bar at your next event.)

Blue cascading bouquet and wedding centerpiece by Vibrant Flowers

‘Something blue’ gorgeous floral by Vibrant Flowers. (Cascading bouquets are back.)

And a lot of dancing with guests that know how to have fun!

Head table at Castaway

Real Portland Wedding at Castaway

And this is what it’s all about… celebrating the love with family and friends.

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All About Hors D’oeuvres: The Where, Why & How Much

Filed Under: Catering Chronicles, Factual FAQs

Hors d’oeuvres are to dinner what aperitifs are to wine: a little something before the main event; but can’t they be a meal on their own? Deciding if your event may or may not be the perfect Spotlight for hors d’oeuvres only- well we’ve got you covered. Some tips of the trade as to what’s what.
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Hors d’oeuvres: “apart from the main work.”

What’s important to know is: How many hors d’oeuvres will my guests eat? You don’t want to be the hostess sending guests home hungry, but you also do not want too much food. Goldilocks and the Three Bears had it right; it takes some trial and error before you really know the right number of pieces per person for different events. Luckily, we have done the work for you and have come up with best estimates, by event type and time:

  • 2-4 pieces per person, 30-60 minutes before dinner, cocktail hour
  • 5-6 pieces per person, 1.5-2 hour event, preceding dinner time
  • 8-10 pieces per person, 2-4 hours event, heavy hors d’oeuvres
  • 12-15 pieces per person 4+ hour event, dinner replacement

Tips of the trade for hors d’oeuvres events:

  1. Hors d’oeuvre dinners are not always a less expensive dinner option. Although many people hope that ordering hors d’oeuvres will reduce overall cost, this is typically not the case!  Hors d’oeuvre dinners are often more expensive since the menu is more labor intensive.
  2. How can you make an hors d’oeuvre dinner option economical? Mix it up!  Be sure to include some heavier items like salmon sliders or braised lamb meatballs; take advantage of “platters” and avoid lots of handmade smaller pieces; add some other options like quinoa salad, baked brie or a mezza platter.
  3. Perks of an hors d’oeuvres dinner:
    1. Multi- stations- who doesn’t like variety of flavor?
    2. Cocktail atmospheres create a less formal service
    3. Live chef action. Watch chefs prepare your tapas!
    4. “When do you” vs. “When don’t you”:
      1. Venue matters – hors d’oeuvres menus are equipment and kitchen sensitive.  More so than the traditional buffet or plated dinner, hors d’oeuvres may require ovens, fryers and grills.  If your menu needs all three, the cost to rent equipment adds up!  And if an outdoor kitchen must be created for your event, it’s likely you’ll also need a tent, lighting, and then heating and side walls in the cooler months.
      2. If you want to encourage movement at your event, if perhaps there is not enough seating for all, hors d’oeuvres parties are absolutely great for mixers, networking and open houses.
      3. If the budget fits!

Hors d’oeuvre parties can be fun and dynamic – just remember to consider time of day, right amounts, event style, and of course, the kitchen!

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WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Do you have any experiences with hors d’oeuvre events? What have your experiences been? Any tips of your own? At the end of the day, we can only know so much.

PHOTO CREDITS

We are indebted to the photographers who allow us show their work. The white spoons filled with a bite of deliciousness was taken by Sara Gray. The plate of skewers was contributed by Evrim Icoz Photography.

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