Blog posts tagged with 'event venues'

Everyone in the catering industry knows the importance of food and beverage at a wedding. It can make or break a guest’s experience and can be one of the highest costs a bride and groom must pay for. Because of this, wedding reception and wedding cocktail reception menus are an extremely important part of a great wedding. Many a bride is eager to impress guests by ensuring the food is on trend with the hot items in the industry.

To help you more efficiently keep up to date on the wedding reception catering trends for this year, we’ve compiled 20 of the top wedding catering trends below.

Beverage Trends:

1. Beer cocktails are quickly rising in popularity. Already gracing restaurant menus, cocktails with beer including margaritas with beer, the Michelada made with beer, lime juice and hot sauce, beer sangria and much more. And speaking of sangria… Source.

2. High-end shareable punches that incorporate a creative blend of ingredients and top-shelf liquor and presented in large apothecary jars or statement bowls offer guests a creative way to have a signature drink at a wedding. Source.

Cocktail Receptions:

3. It’s raining….oysters? Oysters are showing up everywhere during the first hour of cocktail receptions – such as at a raw bar and passed oyster shooters. Source.

4. Hor d’oeuvres with sweet-spicy sauces and condiments are being highlighted. Source.

5. Vegan and vegetarian dishes continue to rise in popularity and based on personal preference, clients are increasingly featuring these dishes during cocktail hours in ways such as falafel bars, hummus and bruschetta stations. Source.

6. If it’s smoked, pickled, fermented, fire-roasted or preserved it’s going to be popular this year with charcuterie, homemade pates and spreads as well as seafood charcuterie playing heavily in the cocktail hour. Source.

7. Action stations are still a smash hit with the wedding crowd. Memorable stations include bruschetta bars accompanied with hand-carved serrano ham and pulled pork action stations. Source.

8. Complementing the above trend, DIY stations have become a key component to wedding menus including a create-your-own-ceviche bar, build-your-own-taco-bars and caviar bars. Source.

9. Champagne bars with sparkling wines, with a variety of unexpected (and expected) garnishes such as herb sprigs, handmade syrups, fresh berries and candied ginger to customize a drink are gaining momentum. Source.

10. Complementing the wedding décor trend of curated vintage or antique dinnerware, curated hors d’oeuvre with mini cocktails or shots have made their way into the cocktail reception trends. Source.

Appetizers:

11. Upscale ramen noodles gain popularity as appetizers with caterers substituting whole wheat, soba, cellophane and rice noodles. Source.

12. Anything on a stick. Think about it – no need for guests to hold plates and it makes conversations easier to take place. Try prosciutto-wrapped melon, bite size Caprese salads, or spicy chick satay skewers. Source.

Entrees:

13. Seasonal menus that take advantage of locally grown produce remain popular taking advantage of locally grown produce and natural / organic fare. Source.

14. Environmentally sustainable foods will reign supreme during the dinner portion of a wedding. Source.

15. New cuts of meat (such as braised beef cheeks) and non-traditional fish such as mackerel and whiting will replace the more common cuts as the popular protein options for entrees. Source.

Entrée Sides:

16. Root vegetables shine as sides with celery root, parsnips and kohlrabi gaining speed. Source.

17. Move over quinoa as ancient grains such as spelt, forbidden rice and amaranth replace the much hailed superfood. Source.

Dessert:

18. Homemade savory ice creams and shaved ice desserts gain popularity for the much awaited dessert course. Source.

19. Waffle and crepe stations will provide a creative alternative to DIY sundae stations. Source.

20. And finally – although not a new trend but continuing to rise – food trucks arriving anywhere from an hour before the end of the evening to just before guests depart offer all different kinds of gourmet savoury street fare. Source.

When we first introduced our spandex table covers back in January of 2014 we brought in 6ft rectangle spandex, 8ft rectangle spandex, and spandex cocktail table covers that fit 30” round cruiser tables and 32” plastic folding cocktail tables. We knew that spandex table cloths were something of interest to party rental companies, event venues, hotels and golf courses but were unsure of how popular they would be.

The 30” spandex cocktail table covers turned out to be an even bigger hit than we initially thought possibly and with that addition to our inventory, we started getting more requests for other sizes available.

I’m pleased to announce we now have 24 inch spandex cocktail table covers in stock.

Available in black, white and ivory, these spandex cocktail table covers fit cruiser tables that are 42 inches high, have a 4 pronged X base and a 24 inch diameter round tabletop. They’re a fantastic addition to any event space for cocktail receptions and can be dressed up with multi-coloured sashes and bling.

We recently received a shipment featuring a number of new event tablecloths to add to our expanding inventory. Last year we introduced spandex cocktail table covers to our customer base and have continued adding additional colours to that product offering – now totaling 11 colours in stock. Companies who exhibit at trade shows, trade show decorators, corporations, party rental companies, event venues, hotels and golf courses have all taken advantage of the spandex cocktail table covers.

When we began planning for the new products to introduce for 2015 we decided that we wanted to continue expanding our spandex table cover product line. With that in mind, I’m pleased to introduce our new Spandex Table Toppers for wood and plastic cruiser tables.

The Spandex Table Toppers come in 9 different colours (Black, White, Ivory, Forest Green, Navy, Orange, Burgundy, Champagne, and Royal Blue) and are $10.50 each. Designed to fit a cruiser or cocktail table with a tabletop diameter of 30 inches to 32 inches, these spandex cocktail table toppers are perfect to extend the life of your existing spandex cocktail table covers or add a pop of colour to complement an event’s décor. They would also be perfect for corporations attending trade shows to show off their brand colours.

Table skirts are a staple for almost all tradeshows, banquet halls / event venues, hotels, golf courses and party rental companies. They work well for all registration desks, coat checks, exhibitor booths, buffet stations etc. If you’ve already been buying table skirts then this post isn’t really for you – unless you’re not happy with your original supplier. If you’re in the market to purchase table skirts, one of the most common things asked is where to buy table skirts in Canada? This post will round up 5 other suppliers besides National Event Supply, who also sell table skirts in Canada.

1. Textilehouse Canada

Based in Richmond Hill, Ontario, Textilehouse Canada is a supplier of premium chair covers, table overlays, and other event linens in Canada. They also can work on custom-made products upon request.

2. Displays2Go.ca

Based in Rhode Island, Displays 2 go recently created a Canadian website to service Canada. Shipments still come from the US but pricing is all based in Canadian dollars. Displays2go.ca has the largest inventory that I know of tradeshow and display related products.

3. Canadian Hotel Supply

With several American locations, Canadian Hotel Supply is owned by American Hotel Register co, and co-leases warehouse space in Toronto and Vancouver to offer hotels, restaurants and other companies with table linens, table skirts and other foodservice & hospitality supplies.

4. Linen Tablecloth

While they are based in the United States, LinenTablecloth has a Canadian ecommerce site that allows event venues and others purchasing table skirts direct from their website. Shipping is out of Memphis, Tennessee and they will pay brokerage and duties associated with linens crossing the United States/Canada border (often a surprise cost associated with shipping linens from the US).

5. Sysco Guest Supply

Owned by foodservice giant Sysco, Sysco Guest Supply focuses on the hospitality sector only offering guest amenities, textiles and housekeeping products. No pricing or product selection is available online however they mention they have a wide array of colours and sizes of tablecloths and napkins which includes table skirts.

Hopefully one of these companies (if not us!) can help you find the table skirts you need.

For those unfamiliar with our stress test series, we work in an industry that’s in a race to the lowest price possible. When the owners initially bought National Event Supply that was the original strategy taken – however, it became increasingly clear that in order to have the lowest price possible, products have to be specked down in. As a company, we want to be proud of the products we sell and so we decided to focus on quality products at a good price for their value instead of on price itself. But in an industry filled with products that look like our products, but don’t perform like our products how could we show people how strong and durable our products really were? Enter the stress test series.

In the past, we’ve tested a number of our plastic and wood banquet tables including our 60 inch round resin folding table. Because we stock both wood and plastic banquet tables, our most recent stress test is on its wood counterpart – our wood 60 inch round folding table. Take a look below at the results of this stress test video!

If you’re interested in a quote for our 60 inch round resin or wood folding table including shipping to your location: