The timing of feeding a large group?
I am on a volunteer committee and we plan a big banquet for our community members, ~350 people. Feeding this many people is a huge lift. Last year we relied on volunteers to serve. This year we hired a small catering group.
The good news is that we have never run out of food. The bad news is that it takes nearly 2 hours to get everyone through the single buffet line. For the two years that I’ve been involve, timing has been a problem. It means people are either waiting a long time to eat or eating first and waiting a long time for everyone else to get their meals before speeches and awards can start.
This program runs every year and will probably always be between 350-400 folks. How would you speed this process up? The facility we use could probably support a second buffet line. I’ve also thought about family style dining with large platters on each table. Or perhaps nixing a formal dinner and opting for passed hors d’oeuvres?
Thanks for the input!