Whether it’s a holiday party, an office get-together, or simply a reunion with your high-school buds, it’s important to have the right plan and hire the right party rentals to for planning a perfect banquet. Here is what you need to know.
Banquet Planning Tips
What Is The Banquet About?
First and foremost, you need to think about the theme of the banquet and also about the fact why you’re hosting it in the first place. Is it an anniversary? Is it a college reunion? Is it for the company? Is it a farewell party for an employee? Whatever the case may be, you need to get over with this detail first because the entire planning will depend on the type of party or event you’re planning. You can’t expect to host a good banquet if you don’t know what it’s about in the first place.
Pick A Venue
The next thing to do is decide on a venue. This doesn’t have to be on the spot. You just need to look at different places and come up with a rough estimate of how much certain venues cost.
For this, you’ll also need a guest list or at least a rough number of how many people are going to be attending your banquet. Just tour some venues and also note their price ranges. You will have a much easier time setting a budget later.
On top of that, you’re also scouring different places that you can book later down the line, so every speck of work that you’re doing now will pay off in the end if you host parties or events often.
For the venue, you want to look at something glamorous and indoor because usually those things define “banquet”. An indoor event is better as you don’t have to worry if the weather decides to go a little crazy. At least, you and the guests will be safe and sheltered enjoying the party.
Pick A Date
Now is the time to select a few potential dates for the banquet. Again, this doesn’t need to be the be-all and end-all, but you still want to have a few options. In this way, you can discuss the date with the guests as well as the venue management and get everything done in record time.
Actually, having a few options when it comes to dates is essential because you never know if you need to switch the date to another day. You need to be prepared for every kind of change. That’s half the battle when trying to plan the perfect banquet.
Create A Budget
Next is setting the budget. So, by now, you might have toured a bunch of venues and talked to different caterers and vendors so now is the time to handle those spreadsheets. You may have a rough estimate in your mind, but you want to crunch those numbers and make a budget that will be spent on the banquet.
List down all the things you need for a banquet and then write the prices by their side too. Sum it all up and that’s essentially your budget. You can tweak it down the line and add or filter out things as you please.
Think Of The Entertainment
Hosting the perfect banquet is synonymous with entertainment. You don’t want the guests to be bored out of their minds, so you need to amp things up and make the event interesting. If you can, try to get a live jazz band playing in the background. If it’s a high school or college reunion, then have a segment in which you and the guests have a trip down memory lane. In case of an awards ceremony for the employees, make it fun and interesting. Entertainment is undoubtedly the life of any party.
Do Something Exciting
A formal banquet with guests sitting around a table and eating, not talking at all, sounds boring. You want your banquet to be the epitome of entertainment and fun. So, ditch the formalities and make things exciting by networking.
Breaking the ice is extremely important if you don’t want your guests to feel left out. Make it a habit to go over to the guests personally and greet them. Music and dance also make everything a hundred times better, so pull up some beats, dust off your dancing shoes, and show your best moves on the dance floor.
Don’t Forget The Dress Code
For a banquet, since the whole vibe is quite formal, the dress code also needs to be appropriate. If you want to let the guests know about the dress code, then the best way to do so is to mention it on the invitations that you’ll be giving out.
Whether it’s formal black and white, catered to a specific theme, semi-formal, or anything else, let the guests know. This will ensure that everyone understands the dress code and they have enough time to dress to the nines for this extravagant banquet. The guests will appreciate the heads-up.
Food & Drinks
Let’s not forget about the most important thing in all the parties, banquets, and events. The food! You want to think about the menu and refreshments way in advance so that you can tweak it as you go or add new things that come to your mind.
Since this is a banquet, you will need a 3-course meal at the minimum. You can go up if your budget allows it, otherwise it’s more than enough. Remember, if you’re choosing fewer dishes, then make them as enticing and gobble-worthy as you can. Don’t forget about the desserts and refreshments either.
Have A Timeline
The art of hosting a banquet is all in the timeline. You need to have a specific timeline as to how the event is going to unravel from start to finish. When the guests will come, when they will be seated, when certain activities will begin, when the guests will be served refreshments, when they can eat, and when they leave is a few of the important things you need to lay out in an event timeline.
In this way, you’ll have an action plan that’s ready to go and you can use it as a reference to make the event run smoothly till the end.
Greeting The Guests
Basic etiquette is an important yet neglected detail in a lot of events. Since a banquet isn’t very heavy on the execution side, you can spend your time and energy personally greeting the guests making sure that they’re comfortable and occasionally talking to them. This might seem mundane and it might be, but the little things go a long way and you better believe that the guests will remember you as the best host. So, bag that title with the help of etiquettes, and your banquet will be remembered for some time at least.
Conclusion
A banquet is better than a normal meet-up at a restaurant and it’s also not as on the nose as a gala, so it’s perfect to host effortlessly. These tips will make you a pro at banquet hosting. Also, a lot depends on the venue and event rentals Northern VA you choose. So, pick wisely.