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Matching Your Festival Catering to the Event

CaigerandCo • Jan 14, 2019

Festivals take all sorts of forms. They’re not just for music, and can also celebrate comedy, literature and other arts, as well as food. Whether a festival is spread across a few fields of centred around a town or city, there’s one thing that’s for certain: festival goers need to be fed. Good food is essential at any festival, and it needs to cater to the types of people who are going to turn up. Some festivals might have a particular audience, while others could have a much more diverse crowd rolling in. Matching the festival catering to the event helps to make sure that everyone goes home happy.

The Importance of Festival Food

Festivals are often out of the way, in more remote locations where it’s not easy to pop to the supermarket or the closest restaurant. Even when a festival is based in a town or city, festival attendees expect there to be something special on offer when it comes to food and drink. Of course, this is especially important for a foodie festival! Festivals aren’t just about the main attraction. They should provide a full experience for everyone attending so that they feel like they’re being look after. You’ll have a lot of hungry and thirsty attendees who you need to feed to keep them happy.

Know Your Audience

When you’re thinking about festival catering, it’s essential to know your audience. Many festivals can draw in diverse crowds, but there are likely some different types of attendee that you can account for to ensure you meet their food and drink needs. It’s vital to understand what sort of people the festival attracts, and what their dietary needs and food preferences look like. Are there likely to be many people looking for vegetarian and vegan food? Perhaps your guests are going to be craving pizza, burgers and other fast food delights. Are they looking for cheap and filling, or something a bit more sophisticated? Perhaps your festival is particularly popular with families.

One Caterer or Lots of Vendors?

One thing you might need to consider is how much choice you want to offer. Some smaller festivals could possibly be catered by one catering service. However, others will definitely need to have a wide range of foods to choose from. Having plenty of food and drink stalls or tents available will ensure that everyone has a number of options to explore. This is particularly important for festivals that take place over multiple days.

Catering for Staff

Another festival catering issue that you might want to think about is your staff. Will you have separate catering for festival workers to keep them well fed? Perhaps each of them will get a meal allowance so that they can explore the food options just as the festival attendees can. You might even consider putting on an event for your staff at the end of the festival so that they can all have a fantastic meal to end the event.

If you’re planning your festival catering and want a sophisticated option, get in touch with Caiger & Co for something different.

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