# Update on New Year's Eve Party



## chefalice (Nov 22, 2009)

*Update on New Year's Eve Party* 
Hi All,
I just wanted to update you all on the latest regarding the New Year's Eve party; I met with the hotel owner and G.M.
The menu has changed. No longer a buffet. The hotel is supplying three bar staff, one clean-up guy, four servers for passed hodos and one kitchen assistant. I am bringing one chef and one assistant. The event is from 8:00 PM - 1:00 AM. with a kicking live band. Tickets will be going on sale this week, thus, they are hoping for at least 150. I had them give me a deposit based on 100 guests; I'm not sure they'll sell all 200 tickets at $90.00 each. I gave them a 7 day deadline for final guest count with a little wiggle room of up to 20 for last minutes. Here is the confirmed menu. They are buying desserts and setting up coffe/tea service. There is very little seating' a few 48 inch and a few bar tables.They declined any seafood selections. 've already started my lists and like to think on on top of things. I appreciate your input and suggestions on making everything pop as far as presentation and like to think outside of the box while still maintaining elegance; They definitely want the three stations listed. I want to make sure there isn't much empty space. They are ordering a ton of poinsettias. Thanks everyone!

Passed Hodos
Vietnamese Caramelized Meatballs with Snow Peas on Bamboo Picks
Mini Tostadas with Beef, Queso Fresco and Caramelized Onion
Mango-Curry Chicken Salad Tartlets

Stationary
Trio of Mini Fritattas: Spanish Tortilla; potatoes, onion, thyme and pimenton
Greek w/feta, tomato, Kalamatas and Dill 
Chorizo, Sharp Cheddar, Cilantro and Green Onion

Rosemary Pork Tenderlioin Sliders with Gorgonzola Butter and Balsamic Onion Jam; assembled on small brioche buns

Hummus Station - self-serve (all served with crudite)
Thai Spiced Edamame served with Crispy wonton triangles and rice crackers
Roasted Red Pepper served with Spiced Pita Triangles
Black Bean served with assorted tortilla chips

Crostini Station - self-serve
Mixed Mediterranean Olive and sundried Tomato Tapenade
Walnut & Parmesan Pesto
Pesto Ricotta with Roasted Grape Tomatoes


----------



## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Passed Hodos
Vietnamese Caramelized Meatballs with Snow Peas on Bamboo Picks
Mini Tostadas with Beef, Queso Fresco and Caramelized Onion
Mango-Curry Chicken Salad Tartlets

Stationary
Trio of Mini Fritattas: Spanish Tortilla; potatoes, onion, thyme and pimenton
Greek w/feta, tomato, Kalamatas and Dill 
Chorizo, Sharp Cheddar, Cilantro and Green Onion

Rosemary Pork Tenderlioin Sliders with Gorgonzola Butter and Balsamic Onion Jam; assembled on small brioche buns

Hummus Station - self-serve (all served with crudite)
Thai Spiced Edamame served with Crispy wonton triangles and rice crackers
Roasted Red Pepper served with Spiced Pita Triangles
Black Bean served with assorted tortilla chips

Crostini Station - self-serve
Mixed Mediterranean Olive and sundried Tomato Tapenade
Walnut & Parmesan Pesto
Pesto Ricotta with Roasted Grape Tomatoes

Alice where are you in the process now? If you are still developing the menu let us know.....
I'd increase the selection of passed hodos, 3 isn't enough....people will get bored. Since there is no "dinner" consider having more than a pork slider, possibly tender or brisket or turkey....maybe have options of goo....chutney, caramelized onions, cheeses, Sauces. Since their are few tables consider what it would be like to eat each option standing with a plate and glass of wine.....tostada reads messy, sauced meatballs have the potential of messy...not sure about your balls. I didn't thoroughly read that you were cutting the pesto with ricotta, tapenade on it's own may or may not be liberally scooped...
walnut and parm pesto ditto. Our bruschetta station has cannelini beans, caponata, pesto with chevre, tomatoes in season.....
I'm not seeing mushrooms or shellfish/fish, have they been vetoed?


----------



## chefalice (Nov 22, 2009)

The menu along with the contract was sent but not yet signed. Yes, stuffed mushrooms were vetoed and, as mentioned in last night's post, so was shellfish. I agree with you; there needs to be more food. The tostaditos are sandwiches of tortilla chip rounds; made before, not too messy. I think I will contact them and let them know I'll be adding a few more items. Tis will not bwe a money maker but I do want to please everyone.


----------



## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

I don't see why you can't make $.


----------



## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Even allowing for NYC ingredient prices, I think you can make money too. 

Like her, I'd add a hot main -- probably some sort of chicken in sauce which could be substantially prepared in advance. Something a little less plebian than Chicken Marsala, but along those lines. Or, possibly a very mild Thai style chicken curry. In any case, use thighs because they hold up better, don't dry out and are cheaper; and mask their thighness (thigh-i-tude?) with the sauce.

Basically, it's skin, bone, flatten, season, bread, saute until brown (which will also cook through, remember they're flattened), chill, hold in chaffers and transport. Prepare a butter/wine sauce separately (play on beurre nantais), preferably on site. Heat the chicken briefly -- just enough to take the chill out; cover with the fresh hot sauce, and plenty of fresh herb garnish, on the way into the dining room. Freshly chopped herbs make up for a lot. So does panko, which is cheap but trendy -- cheaper and trendier still if you make your own. Throw in some wild mushrooms and some cooking quality Madeira and you're good to go. I guess with the mushrooms we're looking at a sort of updated Marengo -- which isn't a bad thing at all. Or maybe a chasseur, ditto.

And add another hot hors d'ouevre -- I'd go with scallop wonton because it's (a) easy, and (b) fish which you don't have enough of. Will you be able to fry there? If not, you could do shrimp and crab (bind them with a white-wine/fish veloute), puff-pastry turnovers, freeze, then partially defrost and bake on site. 

Another thought is passing savory monkey bread with butter and jam -- that was a huge winner for me and so easy to make. But clients have been known to actually cry. Actual tears. Really. 

Gougere is another thought along the simple, cheap, big bang for the buck track.

Your staffing situation seems to be fairly well resolved. Eight is enough for the gathering, if not a lot. I'd use the fourth cook -- whether it was you or someone else -- as a floater between kitchen and floor. 

Considering how much of the cooking will be done in advance you don't really need four in the back all the time. Also, it gets too hectic in a catering situation where everything hits at once with more than two cooks carrying food for me to plate (platter, chaffer, whatever), sauce, and garnish; and there are only so many people whose mistakes I can correct, while watching out for my own.

Of course, you may run your line differently. Since I was geared more for 8 to 50 than for 50 to 250, I'm sure there are many things I would have done differently if I'd known my @$$ from my elbow when it came to large groups. Wait. Which is which, again?

Food for thought,
BDL


----------



## just jim (Oct 18, 2007)

I think some of you are seeing NYE, recognizing it as New Years Eve, then later thinking she has referenced New York City.


----------



## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

BDL....you missed the memo.

1) no more buffet dinner, only passed and stationary aps
crostini and hummos station.

2) no (few) tables for sitting

3) number is between 100-200

4) it's in PA not NYC

5) aps passed 3.5 hours.....

Alice, what if you passed desserts? It would give you some extra passed, not increase your food costs....give guests more surprises later on....I'd start passing desserts around 11:00-11:30 ish.....switch from savory to sweet.....


----------



## chefalice (Nov 22, 2009)

Hi All,
What are your thoughts about using a variety of serving bowls for hummus and crostini toppings? I normally use black, white or the clear petal bowls, but wanted to do something different in creating different heights and bowls or giant martini glasses to hold the dips. I once made the mistake of putting them in too big a bowl; that was a mistake when fishing out pieces of pita chips, etc. . Any one have any ideas? I'm looking for elegant and eclectic. Any ideas would be appreciated; I looked on this site's photos as well.


----------



## marmalady (Apr 19, 2001)

My experience with giant martini glasses and dips was a disaster, lol! - Just imagine - a whole bunch of rather tipsy people trying to scoop their dip out of those precariously unbalanced martini glasses! Oh, what a mess it was!

Can you achieve your tiered look by using different size crates and things under a beautiful tablecloth? You could even use white tablecloth, clear dishes, then get some snazzy NYE decorations and sparklies and scatter them on the table.


----------



## chefalice (Nov 22, 2009)

Thanks for the advice. Yes, I was planning on creating varying heights on the table. I am looking for ideas for displaying both the crostini and hummus stations. In the past I did matching bowls, however, I wanted to do something different and classy.


----------



## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

A post I wrote in which I compared _myself_ to Emily Latella for my own failure to "read the memo" was misunderstood and taken as an offensive remark to shroomgirl.

It seemed clear to me at the time; but apparently was not. I apologize if what I wrote was ambiguous and for any pain the lack of lucidity might have caused.

BDL


----------



## marmalady (Apr 19, 2001)

White tablecloth, build your height underneath at varying heights; black bowls and platters. Silver 'sparklies' scattered around the tablecloth.


----------



## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

The hotel is providing a ton of poinsettas?
silver and clear glass are shiney and bright..... 

Depends on 
1) what you have or can get.....if you need to rent put in your order NOW....

2) the feel you want to impart.....modern, rustic, fancy, etc

when I first started out I wanted to WOW at a major event, so I had a designer come through and decorate the stations.....she pulled from what I had around my house as well as what she had at her shop.
French Table was an 8' with a pates on antique wood boards, a rooster crowing, a tall double wrought metal/wood crudite holder, periwinkle terrine....etc.

Asian Station had 2, 8' with white paper lights, lots of bamboo, hot pots, leaf shaped platters, chopsticks, New Years money which I later found out was not a good thing....

Mashed Potato Bar had tiny burlap bags with blue/fingerlings coming out with signage attached....old feed bags on the wall....martini glasses with two lines going either side of a U shape.....

Dessert table had feather boas and loads of wispy material...

What I learned from the designer is to look for design in what you already own.....I think there's a photo of the James' Beard Picnic on the photo section, I started pulling gl. jars of morels, antique scales, chalk boards, bringing in height.....lots of fruits/veg that can be later eaten.....

Signage can make a table fun....one year I used pomagranites and stuck the sign in the top...looked good on the table with black cloth....

One of my favorite very large platters was the top of a ceramic bird bath with a 4" tall base.....bought it for $10 (from $120) thinking it was a platter until the cashier said, "oh you're buying the broken bird bath." Went back and bought smaller ones regular price to have accent pieces for dips etc....

Lighting is important....your event is soooo long I'd not use wax votives, there are now battery ones on the market....or twinkle lights are available now.

Anyway, once you've got a setup in mind it helps to set it up at home/work and see what needs to be stablized....what goes where, how it'll all fit .......
duct tape, two sided tape, T pins, masking tape, lots of table clothes, lots of risers.....off site catering is not all about the food....:roll:


----------



## marmalady (Apr 19, 2001)

Love the potato bar setting, shroom!


----------



## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

loads of toppings....sour cream, blue and cheddar cheeses, mushrooms, caramelized onions, morel duxelle, lamb daube, tomatoes, scallions.....so two sides of same goo....server in the middle of the U scooping tatoes.


----------



## rsteve (May 3, 2007)

*Me !!!!!!!!*


----------

