It requires some planning and organization to get all the components together for a banquet. From planning and executing the menu to arranging the front-of-house service, there are some steps that you can take to prepare for a banquet.
■Planning
You should arrange the type of party that you would like to have. Do you want a dinner party or a cocktail party? Do you want the dinner to be formal or casual? Will the food be supplied at the table or will you offer a buffet? The answers to these questions will help you decide upon the number of people to invite, and who those people should be. For instance, if the party will be more intimate and there will not be many other people there for them to interact with, you wouldn’t want to invite acquaintances that do not get along well. The answers to these types of questions will also help you determine the menu later. Moreover, because invitations should be mailed approximately three weeks prior to the date of the party, you should write down the names of all invitees in your party journal, leaving a space for their RSVP.
■Date and Location
Break out your calendar to settle a date for your event. Look for possible conflicts. If it’s a three-day holiday, it might be tough to get people out to a Saturday night banquet. If your local school, where most of your congregation had children attending, were having an open house or play that night, it would be unwise to put on a church social.
Determine the geographical area where the banquet is to take place. You may already know of various hotels, country clubs, restaurants or catering halls that can accommodate your group if you live in the area where the event will take place. Be sure to go look at the potential location before you book it if you don’t live in the area. It is suggested that you hire a professional meeting planner if the event is in a distant city and it’s not possible for you to travel there, and the event is a significant one.