What is a Funeral

Posted on August 26, 2011 by martin

A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honour. These customs vary widely between cultures, and between religious affiliations within cultures. The word funeral comes from the Latin funus, which had a variety of meanings, including the corpse and the funerary rites themselves. Funerary art is art produced in connection with burials, including many kinds of tombs, and objects specially made for burial with a corpse.

Traditional funerals

In Europe in most cultural groups and religions, the funeral rituals can be divided into three parts: visitation, funeral, and the burial service. This is an outline of my research and where food and sharing is involved I have indicated this. I have also looked at a Humanist Funeral and  Civil Funeral

 

Visitation

 At the visitation (also called a “viewing”, “wake” or “calling hours”) the body of the deceased person (or descendent) is placed on display in the coffin (also called a casket). The viewing often takes place on one or two evenings before the funeral and usually by arrangement with the Funeral Director. The body is traditionally dressed in the deceased’s best clothes. In recent times there has been more variation in what the decreased is dressed in – some people choose to be dressed in clothing more reflective of how they dressed in life. The body will often be adorned with common jewellery, such as watches, necklaces, brooches, etc. The jewellery may be taken off and given to the family of the deceased or remain in the coffin after burial but generally removed for cremation. The body may or may not be embalmed, depending upon such factors as the amount of time since the death has occurred, religious practices, or requirements of the place of burial but in general embalming is preferable.

The most commonly prescribed aspects of this gathering are that the attendees sign a book kept by the deceased’s survivors to record who attended. In addition, a family may choose to display photographs taken of the deceased person during his/her life (often, formal portraits with other family members and candid pictures to show “happy times”), prized possessions and other items representing his/her hobbies and/or accomplishments. A more recent trend is to create a DVD with pictures and video of the deceased, accompanied by music.

The viewing is either “open coffin”, in which the embalmed body of the deceased has been clothed and treated with cosmetics for display; or “closed coffin”, in which the coffin is closed. The coffin may be closed if the body was too badly damaged because of an accident or fire or other trauma, deformed from illness or if someone in the group is emotionally unable to cope with viewing the corpse. In cases such as these, a picture of the deceased, usually a formal photo, could be placed on top of the coffin.

The deceased’s closest friends and relatives who are unable to attend frequently send flowers to the Funeral Directors or donations are given to a charity instead. The viewing typically takes place at a funeral directors premises, which will have gathering rooms and viewing chapels where the viewing can be conducted, although the viewing may also take place at a church, but this is less common. In earlier history, it was also common practice that the body was taken to the deceased’s home or that of a relative for viewing. This practice continues in many areas of Ireland and Scotland. The viewing may end with a prayer service; in a Roman Catholic funeral, this may include a rosary.

A visitation is often held the evening before the day of the funeral. However, when the deceased person is elderly the visitation may be held immediately preceding the funeral. This allows elderly friends of the deceased a chance to view the body and attend the funeral in one trip, since it may be difficult for them to arrange travel; this step may also be taken if the deceased has few survivors or the survivors want a funeral with only a small number of guests.

The wake often associated with viewing or laying of the body in a church particularly Roman Catholic religions and this forms a integral part of the funeral ritual. The Coffin is received into the church the night before and there is a specific service usually in the evening where people who are unable to attend the main funeral the following day would attend. This would traditionally have taken place in the home and is associated with celebrating and sharing life over food and drink. In the Irish traditionally it would accompanied by late night singing and some “craic”. In modern days there would still be a meal and celebrations after the laying in the church reception ceremony.

For public figures or dignitaries there can be a lying in state where the public would come to view the coffin and there is usually some kind of special or symbolic guard around the body. These are all symbolic of the idea of a Wake.

The Funeral

A funeral or a memorial service, is often officiated by clergy from the descendent’s, or bereaved, church or religion. A non-religious funeral often called a humanist or civil funeral is officiated by a family member, friend or funeral celebrant. A funeral may take place at either a place of worship or church, crematorium or graveyard chapel. A funeral is held according to the family’s or person authorised to organise the funeral wishes, which may be a few days after the time of death, allowing family members to attend the service or some weeks dependant on availability of bookings at a crematorium..

 

Tradition in some cultures time is allowed for the attendees usually family of the memorial service to have one last opportunity to view the deceased and say good-bye; the immediate family (siblings (and their spouses); followed by the deceased’s spouse, parents and children) are sometimes the very last to view their loved one before the coffin is closed. This opportunity can take place immediately before the service begins, or not so usually at the very end of the service.

 

The deceased is usually transported from the funeral directors to a church or place of service in a hearse, a specialized vehicle designed to carry coffined remains. The deceased is often transported in a procession (also called a funeral cortege), with the hearse, funeral service vehicles, and private automobiles travelling in a procession to the church or other location where the services will be held. In a number of jurisdictions, special laws cover funeral processions – such as requiring other vehicles to give right-of-way to a funeral procession. Funeral processions can have families, mourners walking part if the route and sometimes communities line the streets to honour the deceased and show respect and where appropriate could join the walking procession.  After the funeral service, if the deceased is to be buried the funeral procession will proceed to a cemetery if not already there. If the deceased is to be cremated the funeral procession may then proceed to the crematorium.

Funeral services commonly include prayers; readings from a sacred text; hymns (sung either by the attendees or a hired vocalist); and words of comfort by the clergy. Frequently, a relative or close friend will be asked to give a eulogy, which details happy memories and accomplishments.  Sometimes the delivering of the eulogy is done by the clergy. Clergy are often asked to deliver eulogies for people they have never met. Church bells may also be tolled both before and after the service.

In some religious denominations, for example, Roman Catholic and Anglican eulogies from loved ones are somewhat discouraged during this service, in order to preserve respect for traditions, but they are encouraged to be involved in the service and a short invite or explanation of arrangements may be made before leaving for the committal.  A eulogy can also be given by a member of the clergy . This tradition is giving way at less strict or non-religious, green or humanist services where songs, poems, letters and eulogies read by family members or friends and officiated by celebrants.

During the funeral and at the burial service, the coffin may be covered with a large arrangement of flowers, called a coffin spray. If the deceased served in a branch of the Armed forces, the coffin may be covered with a national flag or symbols of their life. Funeral customs vary greatly from country to country, a funeral director will be able to give advice on the local custom and on your beliefs.

A burial service,

Conducted at the side of the grave, tomb, mausoleum or crematorium, at which the body of the deceased is buried or cremated at the conclusion. The actual cremation takes place at a separate time and some religions require to be at the actual cremations. Mostly the service is concluded at the crematorium when the coffin is removed from site, either with a curtain, or some kind of automated device to move the coffin into the floor, podium or a wall space. Increasingly these devices are being abandoned and the family will just leave the coffin and mourners will leave the family alone to say a final goodbye in private. It is becoming increasingly common for the cremation or burial will take place preceding a memorial or funeral service elsewhere.

Sometimes, the burial service will immediately follow the funeral, in which case a funeral procession travels from the site of the memorial service to the burial site.  This may include all the mourners or just the immediate family or loved ones. Other times, the burial service takes place at a later time, when the final resting place is ready.

If the deceased served in a branch of the Armed forces, military rites are often accorded at the burial service.

In many religious traditions, pallbearers, usually but not always males who are close, sometimes immediate relatives and cousins, nephews or grandchildren or friends of the deceased, will carry the coffin from funeral home or church) to the hearse, and from the hearse to the site of the burial or cremation service. The pallbearers often sit in a special reserved section during the memorial service.

According to most religions, coffins are kept closed during the burial ceremony. In Eastern Orthodox funerals, the coffins are reopened just before burial to allow loved ones to look at the deceased one last time and give their final farewells. Greek funerals are an exception as the coffin is open during the whole procedure unless the state of the body does not allow it.

The morticians will typically ensure that all jewellery, including wristwatch, that were displayed at the wake are in the casket before it is buried or entombed. Custom requires that everything goes into the ground; however this is not true for Jewish services. Jewish tradition is that nothing of value is buried with the deceased.

There is an exception, in the case of cremation. Such items tend to melt or suffer damage, so they are usually removed before the body goes into the furnace. Pacemakers are removed prior to cremation – if they were left in they could possibly explode and damage the crematorium.

Funeral Catering

In many traditions, a meal or other gathering often follows the burial or cremation service, sometimes called a repast. This gathering may be held at the deceased’s church hall, community hall, private home or at a hotel or restaurant.

A quality specialist funeral catering company like Brophies can provide all the advice and reassurance you need to make the best informed decision for the deceased loved ones and see the food as much a part of the sharing and celebration of life bringing people together to share happy memories and stories. Catering can be a part of the wake the day before, The day of the funeral or a memorial service some time after the funeral.

Feeding guests after a funeral service

It can be a problematic decision to decide what to serve up your guests at a wake or post funeral / memorial service reception. In some situations the menu you require will be determined by the time of day at which the funeral takes place. For instance with a funeral which takes place at between 9 and 10.30 it would probably be appropriate to offer your guests tea and coffee and mini Danish pastries and Croissants or speciality bisucits.  In the summer if available see if your  caterer (if you have one) can provide scones and cream. We certainly have these available at all times using our own home made scones, local double cream and strawberry and raspberry jam.

With a late morning funeral into lunch followed by a wake the food to be provided
 will now need to include those you would expect from a light lunch. We would seek to provide a selection of sandwiches with some finger foods , small cakes and fruit, catering for both vegetarian and meat eating guests, or fresh soup with bread and cakes or a fork buffets with meats and salads.

What you order will of course also depend on your budget. For the early funeral a prices from £4.95 would probably be reasonable. For the light per lunch buffet you could expect to pay from £6.95.

Brophies are able to deliver and set up your buffet at your chosen venue be that at home, a hall or a pub. Most caterers will like a bit of notice but a few days should be fine.

Etiquette in different countries

Generally speaking, the number of people who are considered obliged to attend each of these three rituals by etiquette decreases at each step:

Distant relatives and acquaintances may be called upon to attend the visitation.

The decedent’s closer relatives and local friends attend the funeral or memorial service, and subsequent burial or cremation (if it is held immediately after the memorial service).

If the burial / cremation is on the day of the funeral, it can be that only the decedent’s closest relatives and friends attend the burial service (although if the burial service immediately follows the funeral, all attendees of the memorial service are asked to attend).

Traditionally etiquette dictated that the bereaved and other attendees at a funeral wear formal clothing, such as a suit and tie for men or a dress for women. The most traditional colour is solid black (with a matching solid black tie for men) preferably without any underlying pinstripes or patterns in the weave. But failing that charcoal gray or dark navy blue may be worn.

Wearing short skirts, low-cut tops, t-shirts with advertising slogans or suggestive images, or, at Western funerals, a large amount of white (other than a button-down shirt or blouse, a military uniform, or in the Swedish tradition, white ties worn by male members of the immediate family) is often seen as disrespectful.[citation needed]

Women who are grieving the deaths of their husbands or close partners sometimes wear a veil to conceal their faces, although this practice is not presently common. Increasingly, the deceased have requested before their death that the attendees of their funeral should wear something of their favourite colour or wear something specific, such as a football shirt.

Depending on the culture dress can vary greatly with a far more relaxed attitude in Europe and the UK with bright colours often incorporated as dictated by the deceased in their last wishes. To celebrate the life of the deceased and the life of all those attending to give thanks for the good things in life to look forward and cherish what you have.

A guest book may be placed in a prominent place during the viewing. It is intended to let the next of kin know who came to the funeral, so that thank-you letters can be mailed.

Private services

On occasion, the family of the deceased may wish to have only a very small service, with just the deceased’s closest family members and friends attending. This type of ceremony means it is closed to the public. One may only go to the funeral if one is invited. In this case, a private funeral service is conducted. Reasons vary but often include the following:

The deceased was an infant (possibly, they may have been stillborn) or very aged, and therefore has few surviving family members or friends.

The deceased may be a crime victim or a convicted criminal who was serving a prison sentence. In this case, the service is made private either to avoid unwanted media coverage (especially with a crime victim); or to avoid unwanted intrusion (especially if the deceased was convicted of murder or sexual assault).

The family does not feel able to endure a traditional service (due to emotional shock) or simply wants a quiet, simple funeral with only the most important people of the deceased’s life in attendance.

The family and/or the deceased, as more frequently pre-planned, prefer simplicity and lower cost to that of traditional arrangements. The choice of cremation as an option to coffined burial is increasing and often includes disposition of the cremated remains at a time privately convenient to the deceased’s family members.

The deceased is of a distinct celebrity status, and holding public ceremony would result in too many guests who are not acquainted with the deceased to participate. On the other hand, if a state funeral is offered and accepted by the deceased’s immediate family, a public funeral would ensue.

In some cases (particularly the last), the family may schedule a public memorial service at a later time.

Memorial services

The memorial service is a service given for the deceased without the body present. This may take place after a burial, cremation or donation of the body to an institution such as a school, cremation (sometimes the remains are present), entombment, or burial at sea. Typically these services take place at the church or other place and may include prayers, poems, or songs to remember the deceased. Pictures of the deceased are usually placed at the altar where the body would normally be.

After the sudden deaths of important public officials, public memorial services have been held by communities, including those without any other connection to the deceased.

Humanist Funerals

Humanist organisations exist world wide to serve the needs of the non-religious, evolving as those needs change.  The British Humanist Association (BHA) developed from the Ethical Union in 1967.  Humanists are non-religious people who live by moral principles based on reason and respect for others, not obedience to dogmatic rules.  They promote happiness and fulfilment in this life because they believe it is the only one we have.

Humanist non-religious funeral ceremonies acknowledge loss and celebrate a life without employing religious rituals. They offer a dignified alternative to the traditional funeral service and are made memorable by being personally tailored to each individual situation, with the wishes of the family taken fully into account.

A typical ceremony will usually include:

  • Favourite or appropriate music (of any kind)
  • A welcome and a brief explanation of the ceremony
  • Poetry or prose readings
  • A ‘tribute’ to the deceased, mainly biographical, often with short contributions from family, friends and colleagues
  • A time of reflection for silent meditation or private prayer
  • The Committal or words of farewell
  • A brief close, which can include thanks and announcements
  • Prior to the funeral, a Humanist officiant will normally visit a family to map-out the ceremony and to form a rounded picture of the subject. At this stage it may also be important for families to freely discuss various options in relation to procedure during the ceremony.
  • Detailed preparation prevents reliance on a standard text or format, and in the days leading up to the ceremony time and care is devoted to writing and compiling a tribute both factually accurate and with the appropriate tone. By this process, each ceremony can be developed afresh with families who welcome the opportunity for choice and personal input. A printed copy of the ceremony is always provided for the family, to send to absent relatives or friends and kept as a memento.
  • Humanist funeral ceremonies may be conducted at crematoria, cemeteries, woodland burial grounds, and other burial grounds (subject to restriction).
  • Memorial ceremonies are more usually conducted elsewhere and after some time has elapsed following the funeral. However in some circumstances, for example where there is no body or a body has been accepted for medical research, a memorial ceremony may take the place of a funeral.
  • All Humanist officiants are non-judgemental, empathic and have wide life-experience; many have professional backgrounds.

They are accredited by the British Humanist Association, 1 Gower Street , London WC1E 6HD  Tel: 0207 079 3580 Fax: 020 7079 3588  Website www.humanism.org.uk  Email info@humanism.org.uk

CIVIL FUNERALS

Civil Funerals have been available in most of the UK for many years now, delivered by a professional Civil Funeral Celebrant, who will be a member of the Institute of Civil Funerals. Full list of members available at www.iocf.org.uk/reg_members

A Civil Funeral is defined as:  A funeral, which is driven by the wishes, beliefs and values of the deceased and their family, not by the beliefs or ideology of the person conducting the funeral.’

This means that the professional Celebrant is happy to include religious material as well as carrying out non-religious ceremonies. In this way Civil Funerals are somewhat different to humanist ceremonies, where religion will not be included. The Celebrant will spend time talking with family members and friends and will then write and deliver a full ceremony that will reflect the wishes of the family and those of the deceased. The Celebrant also discusses and arranges participation in the ceremony of any family or friends, music and readings.

What makes a Civil Funeral different?

The quality procedures in place to measure training of Celebrants and client satisfaction are second to none. Every ceremony script is checked and controlled by follow-up client questionnaires to maintain the highest possible quality. The Celebrant will ask a family member to check the text before the day so no minor details can be wrong and afterwards a full ceremony text is provided to the family.

Who are Civil Funeral Celebrants?

The person conducting the Ceremony will be a trained professional Celebrant. Often semi-retired professional people, Celebrants have empathy and gentleness, good delivery and writing skills and a real interest in improving funerals in the UK. Funeral Celebrants will have passed an externally accredited training course and will be a member of the Institute of Civil Funerals, providing them with a name badge they will wear whenever they visit homes or conduct a ceremony.

It is very important to make sure any Funeral Celebrant IS a member of the Institute of Civil Funerals; this is a guarantee of quality and professionalism.

Help with a Funeral why not allow Brophies to take the worry out of the catering

 

Martin will talk you through the decisons you need to make,  drawing on my confidant local knowledge and broard  experience.

He will send you a clear written plan with costs before-hand, outlining the agreed payment arrangements. Martin will stay in touch with you to confirm the final numbers and provide an invoice for your records.

At Brophies we make your finger or fork buffet fresh on the day. Presented on black obliong platters, covered, garnished and delivered ready to serve at an agreed time. We will also arrange to collect the platters as they are on free loan.

We can hire extra crockery and cutlery, as well as arranging staff to help with making drinks and to ensure your family and friends are comfortable.

Menus are suggestions and we are happy to work with you to create your own bespoke menu. The menus are priced per person.

“thank you very much for the lovely refreshments you did for my Mum’s funeral, everyone loved them and they disappeared fast. I am so glad someone recommended you…”  MK St Albans

“thank you to you for the afternoon tea, the food was exactly as we required it and your advice and guidance was gratefully received. All in all, an extremely professional job; thank you….”   SJ Tonbridge

“I have no qualms in recommending Brophies the caterer. They recently provided the catering for my father’s funeral, Martin was courteous, sensitive, and professional throughout. He gave us the confidence that, at what is a very busy time, this was one task we didn’t have to worry about. Of course Brophies delivered, in every way. The food was fantastic, and Martin’s menu suggestions made the spread of food something really special. Many thanks...” EH  St Albans

 

“Really professional job from start to finish. Excellent food and plenty of it. ”  MS  St Albans

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Filming in the St Albans, Hertfordshire District

Posted on August 22, 2011 by martin

St Albans welcomes film makers to our city and district. You will find a wide range of historic locations and beautiful countryside settings on offer. We have experience assisting with filming projects, and in the past we have provided locations for ITV News, Channel 4 and the BBC, as well as independent film and television companies. We also support student film makers and not for profit organisations. Catering can be supplied by local caterers Brophies 

If you wish to make arrangements to film in the District please contact us via email: communications@stalbans.gov.uk or by telephone: 01727 819316. they can discuss your needs, give advice and information and inform relevant departments and external partners, ensure you have the relevant public liability insurance details where necessary; and see that any special licenses and permission from property owners, including the District Council, are obtained. A location charge may apply as well as an admin fee for granting the licence.

The St Albans City & District Council Property and Asset Management team will liaise with the parking team should a film crew require parking bays to be reserved for a film crew’s vehicles, either on street or in Council owned car parks.

Confirmation of filming proposal.
Once we have discussed your filming proposal, we will ask you to confirm the details i.e. date/s, times, location/s, main contact name and mobile number on the day/s of filming (in case of queries), the nature and content of the film, what it will be used for etc in an email to us.

If it is likely to have an impact on local shops or residents, we will ask you to send a letter to all people in the immediate vicinity of the filming location to inform them of your intentions and giving them your contact details. We will ask you to send us a copy of this letter.

Catering

Brophies the caterer based here in the city for over 20 years offer a range of services in particular delivering breakfast, lunch or supper meals delivered ready to serve to Film or Photo shoot locations on 01727 846261

Hertfordshire Highways 
If you wish to film on the public highway, you must get permission from Herts Highways at Hertfordshire County Council. They can also advise you if there are roadwork’s planned in the vicinity where the filming is likely to take place. We can forward your confirmation email to them. However if you have any queries their contact details are: kevin.williams@hertshighways.org.uk ordanny.kyan@hertshighways.org.uk, with a copy to networkmanagement.midwest@hertshighways.org.uk or telephone: 01727 816056.

Other issues to consider: 
We have a vibrant market every Wednesday and Saturday in the city centre, and a farmers’ market on the second Sunday of every month. This may be of interest if you want shots of this in your film, but it may also affect parking, the number of people around St Peter’s Street and the views of the shops etc.

 

Filming with animals, birds etc. 
If anyone is filming with animals or birds, we can inform and consult the Council’s Animal Warden. For example when a film crew filmed at the duck pond in Verulamium Park, they brought their own ducks with them. In this instance, in case anyone reported that someone was removing ducks from the park, we alerted the Park Rangers and the Animal Warden so that they could be there when filming took place, to deal with any queries from onlookers.

Police. 
In certain instances (e.g. where replica weapons are involved), we will inform the Police in advance about a filming request, so that they are aware. Our local Police contact is Steve Warman who can be contacted via email:steve.warman@herts.pnn.police.uk or by telephone: 01707 806803.

If the filming is taking place in the city centre we can also send a copy of your confirmation email to the CCTV officers, so they are aware in advance that filming will be taking place.

Film Link

If you are looking for a place to film, or need assistance in organising a shoot, you could contact Film Link.

Film Link is an introductory and film-facilitation agency that promotes locations, crew and facilities companies registered on their database to film-makers.

Owned by Exemplas, part of the University of Hertfordshire group of companies, Film Link is supported by Hertfordshire County Council, Elstree Studios, Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden and local authorities in Hertfordshire – all of which are especially film-friendly.

To contact Film Link - visit their website: or send an email: locations@film-link.co.uk or telephone: 0845 641 9892.

Catering enquires to Martin at Brophies the caterer 01727 846261

Thank you to Davina Mansell from the Communication department of St Albans City & District Council in information preparing this blog

 

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Children’s party food

Posted on August 17, 2011 by martin

As the time for you child’s party comes around again, I thought I would explore how to make the best decisions and get the best value for money, with a stress free and enjoyable time for all.

So whether that prospect makes you whoop with delight or wilt with despair, it’s an unavoidable fact that a bunch of over-excited children are shortly going to descend on you, expecting to stuff their faces with all manner of sugar-coated birthday fodder.

So, what to do

 Five key questions about kids’ party food

1. The time of the party
If you’ve been generous enough to have scheduled your party to spread over or run into anything approaching lunchtime or teatime, then you’ll need to put on a decent spread. If you’ve cannily timed your party for the early morning or early afternoon, however, you can probably get away with drinks and a few snacks – but do make sure the kids’ parents know what you’re planning…

2. The age of the kids
The official ratio of healthy party food to sugary/junky rubbish changes exponentially with each year of age. So, while a birthday tea for babies or toddlers (with their hovering mums) should include several nods to the existence of vegetables, there’s absolutely no point whipping up anything too worthy if your party guests are over the age of five…

3. How many children to invite
Generally speaking, the more children you invite, the less complicated your birthday tea needs to be. Burger and chips for five is do-able; burger and chips for twenty-five is absolutely not. A rough rule of thumb is to invite the same number of children as candles on the cake. (Of course if there are 30 kids in the class this can be wishful thinking).

4. Children’s party venues
If you’re having the party at home, you may be able to sit everyone at a table – meaning you can serve the food on (unbreakable) plates and get everyone to pass things round in a (relatively) civilised way. But, if space (and chairs) are limited, you may have to spread a tablecloth on the floor and produce a birthday “picnic” – in which case dividing the food up into individual food boxes (order them from party-goods websites) can save on mess and washing-up, and ensure nobody hogs more than their fair share of Twiglets.

If you’re having the party away from home (in the park, for example, or at a hired venue), food boxes or pizza delivery boxes really are the way to go. Unless, of course, the venue comes with (inevitably chicken-nuggety) party food as part of the deal, in which case you can gratefully abdicate responsibility for everything except, of course, the birthday cake.

5. Your own domestic-goddess factor
Last but certainly not least on your things-to-consider-before-you-start list is how keen you are to don your pinny and get cooking/slicing/baking/icing yourself.

Of course, it really doesn’t matter too much which way you go – as long as, time, energy and general stress-wise, you’re not biting off more than you (and your small guests) can reasonably chew.

This might be the time to consider other options like buying in the food ready to serve form a local quality caterer, like Brophies the caterer

The best party-food choices

Savoury ideas for children’s birthday teas

This is the part of the tea you do to salve your conscience (a little) before the sugar-fest that is to come. And, perhaps more crucially, so that when at going-home time some little treasure tells their open-mouthed mum, “It was great – all we ate was chocolate cake!”, you can swiftly counter with, “No, sweetheart, we had sandwiches and carrots sticks, too, remember?”

 

Sandwich suggestions I found on the web:

 

“Grated mild cheddar and ham. Nothing more than that. I have learned the hard way that it is better to go for the simple basics or risk the whole lot being left to curl up and stiffen forlornly.”

“Doing food in party boxes? You need about five things to put in each box. A small yoghurt and plastic spoon. A cheese string. A homemade sandwich. Some crisps. Grapes or carrot sticks, maybe. A fairy cake. Chocolate fingers. A pretty napkin. Maybe a hat to wear if you want to jazz things up a bit.”

“Small children do like sandwiches cut into shapes with biscuit cutters.”

“Or make stripey finger sarnies. Use one slice of white and one slice of brown, fill, then cut into fingers.”

“Open sandwiches, done like little boats – which is, basically, finger rolls, halved, then spread with things like cream cheese, or egg or Marmite and then a cocktail stick stuck in top with a little flag made out of a sticky note! Obviously, not advised for very small children who might poke their eyes out….”

“Just butter soft rolls, then put ham, slices of cheese, cucumber etc. out in little bowls. Easier than making sandwiches and the children get to pick whatever they like.”

“Fairy bread. White and brown bread slices, spread with butter/marg, with sprinkles on top.”

“At DD’s seventh birthday party, I gave everyone a tortilla wrap each and put a load of different fillings – tuna/mayo, ham, cheese, cucumber, tomatoes, mayonnaise, crisps and ketchup, so nothing fancy – in the middle for them to make up their own wraps. It was a big hit and they all ate well.”

“Tiny pinwheel sandwiches, where you flatten the bread with a rolling pin, remove crusts, apply filling, then roll up tightly and wrap in clingfilm. Stick in the fridge for 30 mins, then cut slices so you get a lovely spiral effect.”

“Cocktail sausages all go very fast. Nigella’s Marmite sandwiches do not.”

“Sausages. Sausages. Sausages.”

“Garlic bread.”

“Many flavours of crisps. They don’t want anything else. They don’t want lovingly made small sandwiches or cunning jelly boats made from oranges. They want crisps.”

“Popcorn. Not for littlies, though – choking hazard and all that.”

“Breadsticks with dips – children seem to like dipping things in goo.”

“Mini pizzas, made on halved muffins.”

“Key thing to remember: it is a party and the occasional bit of junk food is not a crime and won’t ruin them forever. You are not going to please every child, so don’t try to provide 50 types of sandwiches. Stick to normal varieties and they will eat it. ”

“Pizzas they can make themselves. We provided the bases and some passata and lots of different fillings and the children did their own.”

“Cheese cubes. And cherry tomatoes.”

“Nigella’s cheese straws.”

“‘Lunch on a stick’: skewers threaded with a cherry tomato, a slice of cucumber, a cube of cheese, and a rolled piece of ham/turkey.”

“Please don’t forget that some children have gluten/lactose intolerances, so do some stuff they can eat, too – not just all sandwiches, pizza, sausages.”

“Carrot and cucumber sticks. Put them out in big bowls at the beginning of the party – don’t let them near the rest of the food yet – and they will eat the lot. If you put them on the table next to the cakes, they never gets eaten!”

 

Sweet ideas I found on the web

These are, of course, the main object of every small party-goer’s eagerly snatching hand. For the sake of your loose covers and post-party sanity, it makes sense to mix the (finger-smearing) chocolate treats with others of the non-chocolate variety – and (shock!) even a little bit of fruit.

“Sparklers. Plain breadsticks, with the end dipped in melted chocolate and then hundreds and thousands/choccy sprinkles. They look very pretty, the children like them and they’re not overly sweet as the chocolate element is pretty small.”

“I do the Nigella-style number biscuits but make it easier by cutting the biscuit dough into circles, then pressing the number cookie cutter in the middle (enough for an imprint, not to go all the way through). Much quicker and easier to get off baking sheet.”

“Do remember to have some sweet stuff that doesn’t contain egg – it’s a surprisingly common allergy. And, if you know a child with a nut allergy is coming, phone the parents beforehand and check what he/she can have. Better, in my opinion, to cross off the menu anything that might trigger the allergy than have to keep an eye and worry he/she might eat it by accident”

“Party Rings. Yuuuummmmmy.”

“Fruit kebabs - strawberries, grapes and bits of satsuma threaded on to half a wooden skewer. Always get eaten quicker than anything else. They have to be kebabs though’ plain old fruit just not as good.”

”Fairy cakes with a dab of buttercream and a smartie on the top. My sister-in-law made delish buttercream once by putting raspberries in it, making it all pink and yummy.”

Chocolate crispies or Rice Krispies on Mars:  “Make bite-sized ones – they always get scoffed and look pretty piled onto a large serving dish.”

“Strawberries dipped in chocolate - they WHOOSH off the table.”

“Melon balls. I almost got laughed off MN for considering these for DD’s 7th birthday but they were a huge hit. And nice and cooling when they’ve all been running around doing my head in.”

“Mini strawberry tarts. Make mini pastry cases (just like jam tarts) and bake them while empty. Cool them, then fill with either whipped cream, or creme fraiche with a bit of icing sugar beaten in (it’s delicious) and top with a strawberry on each.”

“Little mice made from a strawberry with Milkybar button ears and a jellylace tail.”

“Chocolate fingers. There is no limit to the number of chocolate fingers that can be consumed in any party setting.”

“Annabel Karmel’s chocolate martians - mini rolls stood upright with liquorice allsort faces. A faff to make but worth it.”

“Different coloured jellies in clear plastic drinking cups. Colourful, and no washing up.”

“I had organic squash at my four-year-old’s party.  I was so incredibly hurt when one mother took out an Innocent smoothie from her bag and then looked ‘meaningfully’ at the other mothers. I cried that evening. You feel so judged.”

 

Drinks

Gone are the days when no birthday tea was complete without gallons of lukewarm squash; dare to bring out such additive-packed stuff now and you’ll cause a full-scale E-number alert among all assembled parents. As for fizzy drinks…

“I just wouldn’t. Some parents do have very strong views about them – and about Coke, in particular – some kids react quite extremely to it.”

Which pretty much restricts your options to water and/or juice…

“Provide a bottle of water each. One with a sports type top. And buy lots of water because little ones get thirsty.” 

“If you go for juice, get those little individual cartons with straws. They’re pricier but they don’t spill (much) when they get knocked over (and they will). Saves a lot of hassle with cups and jugs and serving. But do have some water on hand for kids who aren’t alloweddon’t like juice or you’ll find you’ve some poor, red-faced little child wilting in the corner at the end of the party.” 

For small gatherings of older girls (and impressively wannabe-metrosexual boys), you could venture down the “exotic fruit cocktail” route: take glasses of lemonade (parental-fizzy-drink-permission pending) and pour a little fruit juice in each, then pour about a tablespoon of grenadine syrup down the side of each glass – you’ll be left with drinks that have separated into oh-so-sophisticated coloured layers. Decorate with a cherry on a cocktail stick and a little paper umbrella for extra edge of almost-grown-up cool.

Something for the parents?
If any of your guests are under five, that generally means they come with parents, too. They’ll stand around in clumps looking anxious/falsely chirpy/bored but, above all, awkward. Which means you may feel duty bound to offer them something to eat – or at least, drink – too.

“I wouldn’t expect any food but always grateful for a cup of tea.”

“I have done crisps and dip with wine for adults in the past. Then normally let them at the leftovers when the children are finished. One year, a girl in DD’s class was brought to the party by her gran, who hung about, then after the food went out and I offered the adults some, there was a knock at the door of the hall. It was two friends of the gran’s whom she had phoned to say there was ‘free food’! I was so shocked, I let them in.”

“If you really feel you have to (and people don’t expect it in my experience), pass round some crisps or adult biscuits. Don’t do coffee if there’s no kitchen. I’ve seen some serious over-catering for adults at children’s parties: champagne and bruschetta; those big cup-cakes with loads of frosting; a man with a coffee cart doing lattes. Ridiculous!”

“I would just provide something very simple – dips, crudites and crisps would be perfect. But, then, I would try to ensure that I had enlisted enough helpers that the other parents didn’t feel they had to hang around. I’ve always found that I’m busy enough organising games, setting out the table etc without worrying whether the parents are adequately fed and watered. I’ve had some bad experiences with parents who cling to their child, mooch about and generally get in the way without actually helping! <battle-scarred emoticon>”

 

Do research so you make the best decision for you

 

Researching on the net or at the library can create more questions than answers. Consider getting hold of a good caterer like Brophies the caterer they will give free advice and be clear and help you negotiate the decisions that you need to make.
The birthday cake
They’re only there for the cake. Crisps, chocolate crispies and a passing fondness for the birthday child are all very well but the real birthday-tea raison d’etre is the icing-tastic, candle-topped cake. As, indeed, it is for your child, who, after all, gets to bask in the reflected glory of said candles before blowing them out to wild applause (as long as some other little charmer doesn’t ‘accidentally’ blow them out first).

So, where’s this crowd-puller of a cake coming from? The labour of your own fair hands? Or…  “Aisle 12, Asda, about four shelves down…” 

Your smaller guests probably won’t be much bothered either way but making the cake yourself does at least allow you to customise the decoration to the birthday-child’s latest whim – not to mention burnish your maternal halo to a super-saintly “does her own baking, too” glow.

“Don’t fret about quantities. Rather than cutting wedges, cut the cake into long slices all the way across, then cut them into finger slices and you’ll have masses. When I was teaching, parents would always send in a ‘serves 8′ cake for a whole class of 30 – and it’s easily done.”

Should you opt for the halo-burnishing, bake-your-own route, you need to decide your cake type (stylish pile of cupcakes or traditional big round job?) and your decoration plan (cover randomly expertly with icing and sweets or carve into animal/train/Iggle Piggle shape and then cover randomly expertly with icing and sweets?).

“I think cupcakes work especially well for girls. You can buy loads of lovely sugar flowers online, add a cupcake stand of some sort and a suitable amount of pink icing and you’re away.”

Cupcakes. You can make these using a Classic Sponge recipe, dividing the mixture into individual cake cases and icing (see below) and topping with sweets/sprinkles when cool. Or you could try one of recipes off the net: we especially like liath’s Party Cupcakes with White Chocolate Frosting, Annabel Karmel’s Chocolate Orange Mini Muffins, Lesley Waters’ Poppyseed and Lemon Muffins and, in a not-exactly-cupcakes-but-just-as-nice kind of way, Suzywong’s legendarily gooey Chocolate Brownies. Don’t forget the candles!

Traditional round cake. There are loads of scrummy cakes in our Mumsnet Recipes collection. Our current party favourites include blame the parents’ Chocolate Birthday Cake and liath’s Ricotta Cake. If you’re planning anything even slightly adventurous on the icing front, though, we recommend the simple Classic Sponge or, if you’re going to be carving fancy shapes, stealth quiggle’s slightly firmer Madeira Sponge.

Icing on the top. The simplest icings are either glace icing (sifted icing sugar mixed with a little water till gloopy but not too runny; add a drop of lemon or orange juice, if you like, to make less cloyingly sweet) or buttercream (gradually cream 100g softened butter with 1 tbsp milk and 225g sifted icing sugar until light and fluffy; add a little sifted cocoa powder for chocolate buttercream or a couple of drops of food colouring for coloured icing). Both glace and buttercream are good for cupcakes; buttercream is best for bigger cakes. You can also buy ready-roll fondant icing in various colours for more elaborate decorating challenges or go all out for the cream- and-melted chocolate look:

“My favourite filling for chocolate cake is from a Jamie Oliver recipe. Scatter the top of the bottom layer with raspberries and/or strawberries, then cover with lots of fairly stiff whipped cream and then plop on the top layer. You then melt 100g each of butter, chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids), icing sugar and 3 tbsp milk in a bowl over simmering water. Once it is melted, stir and let it cool. Then drizzle over the cake.”

Decorating children’s birthday cakes. When it comes cake decorating, the world is literally your oyster – well, your pirate ship or Barbie doll, anyway. With a bit of imagination, a steady hand and lots of icing to cover up the joins, you can turn a plain old sponge into pretty much any shape you (or, more likely, your child) fancy. There are lots of super-complicated cake-decorating books you can find in libraries but we think we might like these simple suggestions that other Mumsnetters have (most successfully) brought to the (birthday) table…

Star cake: “Get some ready-roll icing. Cut out star shapes and spread them out on a sheet of paper, then mix some food colouring with a little vodka (don’t worry: the alcohol evaporates). Use a small paintbrush and flick several (food-colouring) colours over the stars. Then stick the stars to the cake with egg white or icing. Easy and effective.”

“Make the sponge bit the day before. If the cake’s too fresh, it’s really hard to spread the icing on properly.”

Snake cake: “Make a ring-shaped cake (like a doughnut with a hole in the middle) and cover it will fondant icing (the sort you roll out). Then, roll out long, thin sausage-shaped snakes of coloured fondant and arrange them so they’re slithering out of the middle of the ring. You could, of course, do the same thing really easily by using those long jelly snakes from the sweet shop.”

Train cake: “This was the simplest cake I’ve ever done. Cover a square cake in green butter icing and use matchstick chocolates to make three train tracks of different lengths, with chocolate fingers broken in half as buffers. Stick on three toy trains and candles.”

Dinosaur cake: “I made a normal round sponge, sandwiched with buttercream, then halved it, cut out the middle to make a semicircle shape and stood it on its end to make a sort of archway which I covered in ‘grass’ (dessicated coconut coloured green) and upturned choc buttons to emulate the spiky feel of a dinosaur. I then bought a pack of little toy dinosaurs and positioned them around and about, so it looked like a dinosaur scene and made lots of little buns as boulders.”

Teddybear cake: “I made one 8-inch round chocolate-flavour sponge cake and two cup cakes. I dusted them over with cocoa powder to give them the appearance of ‘fur’ and then put them on a foil-covered tray with the 8-inch round for the face and the cup cakes for the ears. I used Smarties to mark out the facial features, gave him a bow made out of ribbon and fixed it in place with a pin. It looked a treat!”

Picture cake: “Make a square cake and level the top. Spread butter icing all over the cake. Place a laminated photograph of the birthday child on top of the cake in the centre. Stick sweeties of your choice on the remaining butter icing and press on gently.”

Arctic explorer cake: “Cover cake with white ready-roll fondant, with icing sugar sprinkled on it for snow. Sugar cubes piled around for blocks of ice. An igloo made out of a teacup covered with icing and marked into bricks with a small icing entrance funnel thing. Add a Playmobil man with sled.”

Sweetie house cake: “Four loaf cakes stuck together with jam to make a cube. Another loaf cake, sliced diagonally in two to make a sloped roof. Cover in pink butter icing. Use After Eights for square windows and candy strip things for window boxes with little sugar flowers in. Pink wafer biscuits for roof tiles. Jelly beans and dolly mixtures all around the edge.”

Princess castle cake: “Make a square sponge. Place one half on top of the other with jam/buttercream inside. Smother in pink buttercream. Take four empty ice-cream cones, smother in pink buttercream and place, inverted, at four corners of cake. Use imagination and liberal application of sweeties to make doors, windows etc. Cover with edible glitter, or that coloured sugar you can buy for added sparkle.”

“If you feel really brave, let them decorate with sweeties and little tubes of icing. You will look fab and tolerant rather than inept.”

Pirate ship cake: “Chocolate loaf cakes stuck together with choc butter icing, and carved into a boat shape at the bow! Cover with choc icing and chocolate fingers. Make portholes with any large round sweets. Make paper sails on bbq skewers. Top with small piratey Playmobil figures.

Barbie cake: “Two sponges stacked on top of each other, slathered in pink buttercream, then various sprinkles to make look like a Barbie ball gown skirt. Wrap a Barbie in tin foil up to her waist. Jam said Barbie into middle of cake. It was revolting but she loved it.”

One word of warning before you get too carried away, though….

“The thing about doing elaborate cakes – They will come to expect them every year!”  

 

Your at-a-glance birthday-tea planner

 

  • 3 weeks before: book venue or book the caterer
  • 2 weeks before: send out invites; plan menu
  • 1 week before: buy paper plates/food boxes, balloons, candles, table decorations, party-bag presents and non-perishable food; bake cake and freeze it (if you prefer).
  • 3 days before: buy remaining food; bake birthday cake, if you haven’t already; make up party bags; charge camera. Re-confirm the caterer and the final numbers
  • 1 day before: decorate cake; make jelly, fairy cakes, crispie cakes and anything else that can be made ahead.
  • The day itself: make sandwiches, prepare fruit; fill food boxes (if using); blow up balloons; put out extra loo roll; decorate table. And smile (it’ll soon be over)!

 

I would like to say a big thank you to “Mumsnet” for all their help with the research and many of the comments

 

Of course you could just look for a reliable local caterer that can supply what you need, try a net search use your local town and caterer Like Caterer, St Albans, Herts

 

At Brophies the caterer we are always happy to help and provide free experienced advice

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Is food and catering an integral element of your sales strategy?

Posted on August 9, 2011 by martin

If not, why not?

  • Do you stay focused on your sales goals when selling?
  • Do you give out the right message to potential and existing customers?
  • Fresh, tasty, well presented food says a lot about you, your company and how much you value your clients.

For client entertaining getting the balance right is essential, extravagant entertaining and the client may feel uncomfortable and wonder how much extra you will be charging for all the catering on the other hand a few bits put together by the office junior from the local supermarket or garage, can say, I don’t care enough about you to make an effort.

 

When we conducted a recent survey of our clients

• 80% of our clients agreed that poor food at meetings is more memorable than a well presented professional tasty platter.
• 90% had no idea how much it cost them to send their staff out shopping for client lunch items

By engaging a professional caterer you know exactly how much the catering is costing with no hidden staff costs, expenses or time wasted at the supermarket and you have the guarantee of a professional job every time.

At Brophies we offer a simple on-line ordering service, through our easy to use website with photos, ingredients, prices and on-line debit and credit card payment options. We offer clear advice and are transparent about the costs and work with you to ensure that our food hits the right spot and leaves you to meet your sales targets, fully supported by your sales team.

At Brophies we understand that food and catering should complement and enhance your sales pitch; support your marketing strategy in a quiet, non-obtrusive professional manner. Potential clients will assess you not only on the products and service that you offer but also on how you treat them and your attention to detail.

When your support staff have popped out because you choose not to use a local catering company, do you ever ask yourself:
Who is taking your sales calls?
Who is looking for new leads?
Who is looking after your existing clients?
Who is continuing with excellent customer service?
You know your clients will know and we live in a new culture, if you are not there to deal with them, they are straight on to your competitor.

By securing a positive working relationship with a catering company like Brophies the caterers every time.; you build up a rapport and we can work together more efficiency understanding what you need for your clients and how we can deliver that in the most efficient and cost efficient way.

All of the menus we show are examples and are know tried and tested examples of food that works, but we listen to what you need and make changes and can change any menu to suit you. We take seriously any particular dietary requests and by labelling all of our platters you have the reassurance of a quality specialised service at affordable prices every time.

Because we are small and local, all the food we make is created for you on the day it is delivered into you. We work from a well run, hygienic and regularly inspected premises and invest in staff training to deliver to you what you need every time. Our working hours start early and this is why using our website and receiving confirmations and invoices by email gives you the confidence to order with ease. We cater for last minute requests and will always help you out with that late order or over-run meeting.

For free advice or to answer any questions email

Martin now! Brophies the caterers St.Albans, Herts

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How things have changed in over 20 years

Posted on July 29, 2011 by martin

Brophies, the St. Albans catering company was created 22 years ago by business partners Janice and Martin Brophy, who had met at catering college 14 years previously. We both worked in various catering establishments and hotels during the intervening years, but felt that entrepreneurial urge to begin our own business.

We opened our doors 4 weeks before Christmas in 1988 as a one stop luncheon shop, were you could pick up readymade luncheon items, sandwiches, rolls, salads plus snack items or have products made to order while you waited. No doubt the idea and the business was a big hit. Always offering food we would eat ourselves, freshly made, tasty food has always been on our menus.

Over the years the market changed attracting ever more diverse and in some cases less professional entrants thinking that catering is an easy place to make money. Without strict quality control, clever buying, good products, enthusiasm and the ability to be market led it’s a delicate balancing act and one of the highest risk new businesses to begin.

When we began we thought that we were sitting pretty and the customers would flood in wow they did, but the economic events of the country and the local economy have forced us to be market focused. In fact looking back we have changed the style and direction of our business effectively a number of times.

We had to focus our sales on going into businesses and fulfil the growing expectations and demands of a more sophisticated, travelled and more discerning customer. Striving to look for more interesting tastes with new ingredients, while providing a balance with the more traditional selling lines. We helping in the design and development of the first chilled mobile catering van service; identifying that this was the way to maximise this growing market with expanding business parks  in the 90’s

The day of the long business lunch was coming to an end and businesses became more cost verses results focused and began entertaining in house, using food as an incentive to have working lunches and meetings. It was soon clear that the more relaxed environment where good healthy food was provided helped to better meet the company’s aims and objectives, improved productivity and cut back on costly boozy lunches and lost afternoons.

We threw ourselves into this market, expanding into to the web and selling a delivered, ready to serve business lunch. Saving time and money on the secretaries and assistants dash to the supermarket, putting together a lunch for the boss. We offered a professional fresh service where the actual costs were clear and staff could be left to get on with their own jobs.

Most of our clients now use the internet to browse our products and services, to place orders, make payments or make enquiries. We have worked with various marketing companies to enhance and improve our offer and our service. We invest in training our staff and gained the small company Investors in People accreditation. We are on our third web site and have rebrand a number of times to better reflect who we are and what we do. It’s been an exciting but sometimes painful experience as we are forced to move outside our comfort zone and bring on board a professional marketing company and direct sales organization to consolidate our position as a leader in the local market place as we grow and serge ahead.

The recent recession has affected our local government and NHS work and we have sought to grow our private work with catering for funerals, parties and celebrations. Expanding to a wider market into North London, South Beds, Bucks and Essex as well as Herts. We have been working with charities and non-profits organisations on fundraising and social events and BBQ’s .

One of the key challenges throughout the years has been the changing attitude to the environment and people’s awareness or food safety. These areas have always been a fundamental part of our business and inform the way we run and grow our business. We have worked with a local food safety company who have achieved international fame on TV programmes like BBC Watchdog, on developing and testing food safety programs and been featured in a number of professional films focused on these areas. We have always worked closely with local Environmental Health Office.

We have sought to minimise our impact on the environment with food package, recycling, food miles reduction and always looking for innovative ways to package and distribute our food.

We seek to promote healthy happy customers and staff for many years to come and know that ingenuity and hard work, focusing on the market and the client will lead us to a more successful and financially rewarding future.

Not an unusual journey but it’s been our journey and many friends have been made over the years and we have been blessed with the staff that have supported and worked with us to achieve our goals. Whatever the future holds I hope its bright fresh and tastes real good

Website: Brophies for fresh tasty food delivered to your door

Email: sales@brophies.com

Posted in Arranging a Funeral, Business Catering, Parties & Special Occasions, Weddings and Civil Partnerships | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

How to find the best caterer for you

Posted on July 28, 2011 by martin


How to find the best caterer for you

Do you have an event to plan for?

Thinking of engaging a quality caterer?

What to make the best choice to suit you?

Reading this blog should help you to make an informed decision

OK enough chat let’s get going.

First get yourself a new nice note pad that reflects you and the occasion you need to cater, by keeping all your notes in one place you won’t waste time looking for elusive notes put away somewhere safe, when you need them.

If you work better from your computer, notepad, ipad or whatever, then get a ring binder, the point is to keep all the details in the one folder.

Start by make an outlined of the key details of your event together and even if you don’t know this should help you to make a plan.

Event Name:

•           Contact Name:

•           Contacts details:

•           Event Date:

•           Event Times:

•           Expected numbers:

•           Event location:

•           Location contact details:

•           Additional delivery details ( up 3 flights of stairs – no lift)

•           Budget ( do you know your budget or have an idea of how much you want to spend):

Menu Type

1.         Finger Buffet – food you eat without cutlery

2.         Fork Buffet – food you need cutlery to eat.

3.         Sit-down – self or attended service, either full or part self service

4.         Full sit-down with full service

5.         A combination or variation on the above

The menu:

You may already have an idea of what you like so jot this down along with how many courses what you like and won’t like. This is your event so have exactly what you want – a good caterer will be flexible and listen to you and guide and advise you.

Other services you might want to consider

•           Drinks:

•           Equipment Hire

•           Flowers:

•           Photographer:

•           Room Dressing:

•           Attended service:

•           Cleaning services:

•           Marquee, Tent or Gazebo hire

•           Entertainment

•           Toast master

Make a list of the same key questions you want to ask each caterer and by reading through this blog and previous articles like my 5 point plan will make you feel more informed to be able to ask the best questions so you can make the best decision for you.

So now you have a pretty good idea of what you want it’s time to look at caterers?

How to find one – I would use the Internet, search Google caterer or catering your local town or area (I would avoid listing sites as they are incomplete and you get a better idea by going direct to a caterer)

Make a list of potentials and look through their websites, a website is a shop window into a business and reflect pretty much how helpful and easy to work with a company will be to work with.

Remember you have to like and trust you caterer

If you prefer to use business directories, please do but these days many caterers just go for the free listings and you will have to make your initial assessment and ask more questions on the phone.

So, now we have a list of possible catering companies you can get started with the calls. Give yourself plenty of time and once the key outline of your event has been discussed you can ask any addition questions you may have.

Once each call is over, record your thoughts about each caterer clearly.

  • How satisfied were you with the call?
  • Did they ask all the right questions?
  • Did they answer all your questions?
  • Where they helpful and respectful?
  • Did they make you feel comfortable and important?
  • Were they clear about the next step?

If it helps use scoring systems say 1 to 5 five being the best. This way when you sit down to access or discuss your decision this will help you.

After you have completed the phone interviews, choose the catering company that will best matches you and your occasion.

Accept the caterer’s expertise in choosing the right food options to accommodate your function.

Lastly, rely on them to make your event memorable.

By pre-planning your calls to a food caterer company and writing down the questions you would like to have answered, their answers and your impressions of the caterer; you will find this process efficient and give you confidence that you have selected the best caterer for you.

Here are a handful of sample questions, to think about or to maybe add to the list you already have.

1.     Ask if they’re available on the day of your function. Get this question taken care of very first.

2.     Can they help you on the quantity of food to buy for the amount of guests expected? A professional catering service should be able to determine this very easily. It could be disappointing to fine out you counted incorrectly and were left with a great deal of leftover food. Or even worse, not enough food could be a potential disaster.

3.     Can they provide other services that you might be considering, service, equipment hire, glasses, drinks etc

4.     If you already have a budget ask them if they can work within your budget and give you some exciting menu options choices.

5.     What exactly are their best selling food catering options? This is often helpful to learn which dish is popular with the majority.

7.     Will there be a chance that you can check out another event they’re catering for? A lot of instances this can be set up. It might be up to the people involved, obviously.

8.     Have they got a catering qualification and are they covered by insurance? Professionals will have a food handlers and hygiene certificates and will definitely be insured.

9.     Have they got any personal references regarding their catering services? More often than not caterers are recommended by others, by many have testimonials on their website sites and can out you in touch with recent clients.

10.   Do they use local sourced ingredients and how much of their food comes out of the freezer?

11.   Do they cater for vegetarian and any special dietary requests?

12.   Ask the caterer is there are any questions that you have not covered; that they think could assist you to make an informed decision.

13.   Can they email or send information and details of menus with food options and suggestions with guide prices.

14.   What are you payment terms and cancellation policy?

15.   When do you need to know the numbers?

16.   Are there any questions I should have asked?

 

We have a can do attitude

If you think we can help contact Martin

View our website: Brophies the caterer, St. Albans, Herts

We deliver to Hertfordshire, South Beds, Bucks, Essex and North London.

Posted in Arranging a Funeral, Business Catering, Parties & Special Occasions, Weddings and Civil Partnerships | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Event Catering Planner – Brophies 5 point plan

Posted on July 28, 2011 by martin

1. Work out your overall budget

Make a list of what you want

Create your budget by listing each item out, line by line

Estimate or guess how much each line will cost and write it in

2. Decide on your venue

Look around and use your imagination to visualize how the room will look on the day

Make use of the web, venue guides and the phone

3. Connect with a reliable caterer

Let your caterer help you to decide what you want

Estimate your numbers and times for delivery

Style of food – finger buffet where people mingle and can stand so you need less formal seating or a fork buffet where you need a table and chair for each guest and full crockery and cutlery

Do you want a full service option or a set-up and leave option

Ask each Caterer to outline ideas of menus and costs

If they are not helpful now then move on, you have to trust and like your caterer

You can pick and choose and as you go along things will become clearer

4. Fill in your budget

Record the results of your enquiries on the budget planner, note options and estimated costs

Eventually you will have a clearer idea of your actual budget and what choices you have in respect of the amount of money you have to spend

5. Be realistic

Remember a reliable caterer will want you to have exactly what you want and will be clear about the costs involved, they will give you enough information so that you can make informed decisions and you feel happy and content about your choices

If it’s too cheap or too expensive ask questions to understand exactly what you are buying

 

Brophies the essential ingredient to perfect catering every time

Brophies the caterer established since 1988 at Lattimore Road, St Albans.

We cover a 20 mile radius of St Albans – Hertfordshire, North London and Bedfordshire.

We can just deliver and set-up or provide service at extra cost

We specialise in chilled finger and fork buffets delivered ready to serve.

Why Choose Brophies

  • Do you prefer a small local caterer that spends time understanding what you want and need.
  • You will want to make an informed choice by talking through options and hearing suggestions, getting free advice and getting useful recommendations.
  • We are upfront with you and are clear about our costs.
  • You are guaranteed quality, using fresh ingredients and local suppliers where possible.
  • Your food will be fresh and tasty because it is prepared fresh on the day of delivery
  • We care about you, give you time and pay attention to special dietary needs.
  • Our trained qualified staff have a “can do” approach and are there to help you
  • You have the reassurance that one of the partners personally supervises every step in the creation of your special event.

What our clients say about us – read more

“Thank you, so much for providing a first rate service for our Celebration Buffet, the food was great and enjoyed by all”          Daniela & Matt – Hertford

“Thanks for your excellent quality”   Jean and Jerry – Hatfield

Brophies is the longest established local reliable caterer

T: 01727 846261

M: 07710353054

E: sales@brophies.com   

W: www.brophies.com

“Get in touch and let me help you plan your perfect event”

Brophies are the essential ingredient to perfect catering every time

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Hello world – My philosophy to food and healthy eating

Posted on July 20, 2011 by admin

My philosophy to food and healthy eating is to enjoy everything in a balanced way.

Food can bring people together families, friends and colleagues in a relaxed convivial atmosphere of mutual enjoyment and satisfaction. But it can be a source of stress and anxiety about doing, saying or eating the wrong thing in the wrong way.

I want fresh food with good flavour that has been appropriately cooked with complimentary ingredients that best match what you want to achieve. I have a problem with over processed, over cooked or over handled food. I was brought up in St Albans, Hertfordshire, my Irish mother was a good basic cook, home baked bread, butter, vegetables and fruit from the garden, apples, gooseberries, blackcurrants, rhubarb, potatoes, carrots, onions; we often went out picking nettles and blackberries from the hedgerows or strawberry and raspberry picking. Bottling, jams, pickled onions everything in its season. Long cook stews utilising the less popular cuts of meat and often no meat at all. The biggest innovation in our house was curry powder introduced in the late sixties, every Saturday we had curried mince and carrots with a large helping of curry powder and lashings of mashed spuds. A big Irish breakfast on a Sundays with Roast leg of lamb and egg salad for tea

Simple lunch with Mum and family - Portugal 2006

The next big influence was a cookery course my mother went on and I was lapping up open Dutch apple tart with chopped nuts and caramel topping along with roulades. I went to catering college in nearby Watford and a whole world of haute cuisine opened up to me like an Aladdin’s cave of taste and visual delights the like I had never seen. I worked in local hotels and restaurants during the holiday’s and weekend work and when I went to finish my hotel and catering management studies in Brighton I had become receptive to the exciting world of food and tastes.

I have been lucky to have travelling widely across the world and spent considerable amounts of time on Italy, Portugal and the North America. It’s true the more you find out the more you realise just how little you know, but there can be little doubt that my heritage, travels and love of food has informed and influenced what I eat and what I want those who allow me to cater for them to experience and enjoy.

All my partners have been great cooks and loved food and cooking. Which has enriched my life, my pallet and my waistline.

I allow my mood to dictate my approach to food, sometimes it’s a simple chuck in what I feel and enjoy the culinary journey at other times I enjoy the discipline of finding a recipe and following it rigidly. For me the whole food experience from thinking about it, dipping in the ideas, thoughts and memoires of attest gone by, to sourcing your ingredients and eating your food should be enjoyable and deeply satisfying.

I never serve any food that I would not enjoy eating myself and this has informed my whole approach to running my own catering company.

Food is fun and easy, if you make a mistake, why fret about it ( apart from burning it I suppose) if it was all good going in then in theory it should be all good coming out. I remember giggling about the various outrageous recipes featured on the Vicar of Dibley, fruit and sardine cake ( I have often wondered if anyone ever tried those weird and wonderful ideas), but I sometimes reflected on my own unusual likes, marmite on fruit cake, jam with cheese.

A snooze after lunch sailing off Province Town, Boston

It was a big of a revolution over 20 years ago to create fresh fruit with cheeses, Chicken curry with fresh mango and chunks of sliced roasted beef and potato salad, sort of a pasty in bread; incorporating, fresh herbs, fresh salads heavily influence by Californian cuisine. But the market and the pallet of the UK public has not stagnated and has been educated by travel, TV food and travel programmes, leading to a more adventurous desire for the tastes, ingredients and  foods of other cuisines, cultures and peoples.

Respect for the professionalism in the catering industry has developed and I have noticed particularly in my home Town St Albans, where we set up and have run Brophies for over 22 years, how the changes in town planning has impacted on the eating habits particularly businesses and employees. The death of the long business lunch , the need for greater productivity and focused in house eating over lunch or during sales meetings. The revolution in awareness in schools meals has not delivered the results we would all have liked, but it’s a great start. And I rise to the challenge of providing food in the workplace, the office, the homes or halls, for meetings, parties, weddings, christenings and funerals. Clients are more discerning and aware about what they eat, secure with the basics but willing to experiment and try out new ideas and tastes.

I believe that when you use good ingredients to make pasta dishes, salads, sandwiches, stews, burgers, grilled vegetables, fruit salads, and even outrageous cakes, they all have a place in our diets. We just need to use our common sense: if you want to curl up and eat macaroni and cheese every once in a while – that’s alright! Just have a sensible portion next to a fresh salad, and don’t eat a big old helping of chocolate cake afterwards, well not every night!

Knowing how to cook means you’ll be able to turn all sorts of fresh ingredients into meals when they’re in season, at their best, and cheapest! Cooking this way will always be cheaper than buying processed food, not to mention better for you. And because you’ll be cooking a variety of lovely things, you’ll naturally start to find a sensible balance. Some days you’ll feel like making something light, and fresh, other days you’ll want something warming and hearty. If you’ve got to snack between meals, try to go for something healthy like fruit, raw vegetables rather than loading up on chocolate or potato crisps. Treats should be treats not part of our everyday diet.

I don’t like to preach about food as we all have to find our own balance between what we eat and exercise. It’s never as easy as some would lead us to believe. We can all find complex reasons for poor eating patterns and if like me you are overweight you know this every day in a hundred ways you are reminded that you are overweight, if it was that easy, we’d all be slim and healthy, but it’s good to be aware about your body and what we eat.

I believe that a ‘healthy’ approach to food, and eating better, to  achieve a sense of balance: lots of the good stuff, loads of variety, and the odd indulgence every now and then. Food is fun, interesting and brings people together just like music and singing another passion of mine , but that for another day. Enjoy your food, enjoy our food and enjoy life. 

Thank you for taking the time to get to know about me and the Brophies approach to food

Martin

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