Catering Supplies and Services

Marquees are a great way to provide plenty of covered space without breaking the bank. All you need is plenty of land for the marquee or marquees to be pitched on and you can party or celebrate all day long. In fact any event can be hosted in a hire marquee or a series of, but if you really want to give people a real impact, then the new capri marquee has a real wow factor. Unlike the nondescript cuboid marquees we all know too well, capri marquees are sculptural and curvaceous.

The capri marquee is a strong and sturdy construction, even in adverse weather conditions. It borrows design elements from the dome tent design, only on a much larger scale. Constructed from heavy canvas with large arched window and door sections which can be easily added or removed to create one large covered space or a series of smaller ‘rooms’. Almost anything is possible with this highly versatile hire marquee.

Marquee hire prices are much more competitive than the costs of hiring a similar sized function room, and depending on where to pitch your marquees, they’ll more than likely have a much better view too. There’s something about being outdoors yet indoors. Under cover but open air. Marquees give young and old that ‘camping giddiness’ which creates a great atmosphere for any party or event.

By Carl Liver

Most businesses which provide catering services will source their equipment and consumables from a specialist catering equipment suppliers. Although there are plenty of shops on the high street which offer catering supplies at seemingly competitive prices, a bespoke catering equipment store will be able to offer their customers an unparalleled level of service. For example, most customers will be able to set up an account giving them credit on certain items, as well as offering considerable savings on bulk orders.

They also tend to stock all the latest catering equipment such as commercial coffee machines, industrial ovens and the new fangled energy saving induction hobs. The prices for such equipment is also very competitive and if required, finance plans are also available which enable you to pay for the equipment in a number of small, easy payments stretched out over several months or even a few years. Many items are available from a catering suppliers long before they are available on the high street. For example, most of us saw our first domestic microwave oven in the early eighties, but they were available commercially some thirty years earlier in the mid fifties!

Catering equipment suppliers will provide almost everything you need from crockery and cutlery, pots and pans to fridges, Foster refrigeration and freezers, ovens and hobs with brands from Gen ware and MKN. Shopping around for the best price is not only time consuming, it’s also not necessary as a good catering supplier will price match for a regular customer. First of all, they’d much rather you shop from them rather than elsewhere, and secondly, they know you’ve got better things to do with your time than checking the prices of the latest counter top induction hob at a number of suppliers, so they aim to be competitive from the outset.

Regardless of whether you run a large restaurant, a small café or a public house, or even a burger van parked on some remote lay by, you’ll be reliant on businesses providing catering supplies. They will supply everything you need from polystyrene burger boxes & flat pack pizza boxes to pint glasses in bulk, combi oven, charcoal grill and as many plates a Greek wedding party can get through. In fact the only thing a specialised catering equipment supplier does not provide is a steady stream of reliable staff.

Running a successful catering company is all about teamwork; and not just within your own business. Good team work also involves your relationship with your customers and your suppliers, be they catering equipment suppliers or food and drink suppliers.

By Carl Liver and Barry Summers