San Francisco is home to an abundance of first-rate catering companies that provide culinary experiences that rival those of any top-rated restaurant. Many cities suffer from a deficit of quality caterers that can accommodate a client’s every need, but the Bay Area is known for the exceptional quality of its catering companies that provide everything from customized menus to elaborate serving stations to full-scale event planning.

When choosing a caterer, it’s important for planners to asses their needs. For example, how many guests must food be provided for? What percentage of the total budget can be used on catering? Come up with a list of potential caterers and call each one to see what type of events they have the most experience working on. Planners shouldn’t hesitate to discuss any limitations they have on their part and outlining clear goals and objectives is always a good way to let the prospective company know what’s expected of them. Be sure to find out what equipment they are able to provide and never feel shy about asking for a list of credentials. Most top-tier caterers will have a photo book of some kind to show the visual components of their past events.

Catering has the potential to be the single component of the event planning process that turns out to be a BMP’s greatest ally. The promise of great food can increase meeting attendance, act as the icebreaker for networking functions and can help drive home the meeting’s main points by improving the overall event experience. An attendee doesn’t have to leave engorged with a five-course meal, but a few savory, well-placed eats can leave a positive impression, ensuring that participants will want to be involved with the host company or organization in the future. Savvy planners will want to make sure to use catering as a way to generate goodwill among their audience. Here’s just a few of the city’s many catering possibilities.

The Best of San Francisco Catering
For a catering service provider with a long-standing reputation for customer satisfaction, Taste Catering & Event Planning is the choice for meeting planners who value consistency tapered with innovation. Taste has been servicing the catering needs of San Francisco for nearly 30 years and has developed efficient strategies for producing corporate events both large and small. No two events created by Taste are exactly alike, as every function is structured with the specific needs of each individual client in mind, making every affair a unique and truly inspired one.

Taste’s culinary excellence begins with a sampling of their hors d’oeuvre menu, which includes grilled prawns wrapped in prosciutto, fava bean puree with lemon zest, spring rolls with green papaya and jicama, fried macaroni and cheese squares and ahi tuna tartar on fried wonton wrappers. Taste also offers beautifully arranged serving stations featuring an assortment of appetizing food. The crudo ice bar features halibut with cucumber gelee and candied ginger, Dungeness crab and arctic char. The carving table highlights succulent dishes like Korean cocktail ribs, roasted lamp noisettes and herb roasted fingerling potatoes while the vegetarian table offers delicious sorrel onion tarts, wild mushroom and chard tamales along with red and yellow endive salad. The Taste experience is completed by an assortment of dessert confections ranging from chocolate ganache squares and lemon mascarpone tartlets to orange flan mini-candied apples.
Paula LeDuc Fine Catering is one of the city’s premier catering companies, not just providing a selection of great food and quality service, but creating an amazing all-around experience that will show corporate partners that their business is much appreciated. Paula Le Duc’s extraordinary catering expertise is the go-to resource for planners who have the assignment of impressing a client’s VIP guest list.

Clients of Paula LeDuc Fine Catering can expect only the highest quality of food to be served at their events. Based on a philosophy of the uniting power of food, the team at Paula LeDuc uses organic, local and sustainable produce for their entire menu and partners with producers and farmers in the area to guarantee the freshest ingredients. In addition to culinary excellence, the experienced team members also provide top-rate event planning services. Although the professional team at Paula Le Duc’s can transform any meeting space into a planner’s most innovative vision, the most distinctive bonus is that clients have access to one of the company’s three exclusive venues.

This esteemed catering company holds the exclusive event production rights to the Ferry Building, one of San Francisco’s most famous landmarks. Private events are held on the second floor of this gorgeous 1898 neoclassical building, providing quaint views of the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market below. At the Beaulieu Garden, guests can enjoy the paradise setting of a private estate complete with a sycamore arbor and an endless array of grape vines decorating the landscape. A pool provides the perfect backdrop for a sultry evening affair, one that guests will remember long after the event is over with. Finally, the Annadel Estate Winery located in Sonoma Valley provides a 40-acre vineyard setting for organizing a top-tier corporate event. A winery, stone ruins and terraced gardens transport guests to a more agrarian setting, a refreshing alternative to the modern spaces of the city.

Best Beverage Catering is one of the nation’s premier providers of quality bar services and planners will be pleased to know that one of their three locations happens to be based in San Francisco. The specially trained team of professionals can handle groups of any size and does so with finesse and skill, ensuring that the beverage component of an event is less of a worry and more of an enjoyment.

Beverage packages offered by Best Beverage Catering range from the ultimate top-shelf bar that includes Grey Goose, Crown Royal Whiskey and Hendrick’s Gin to a more modest picnic package that offers Bud, Bud Light and house wines. Specialty menus showcase a variety of zesty cocktails, from flavored martinis to mojitos to energy drink-based concoctions. With a certified on-call staff, planners have an invaluable resource for putting together the perfect corporate event with a world-class bar to add the finishing touch.