Q: I have never had a party catered before. Where do I begin?
A: It’s as easy as a phone call to our experienced and personable event planners. The first step is deciding what kind of party you wish to have. Time of day should dictate the menu selection of a breakfast, brunch, luncheon, dinner, or cocktail party. Brunches can be mostly breakfast items early in the day, and incorporate more lunch items into the afternoon hours. Dinner parties are usually preceded by a cocktail hour with stationary and or passed hors d’oeuvres. Cocktail parties can consist of stationary hors d’oeuvres, passed hors d’oeuvres for approximately two hours, or possibly a selection of fork friendly stations.

Q: I need to work with a budget. How do you determine the price?
A: Our event planners and chefs work with you to create a menu and service proposal that adheres to your reasonable budget. The type of menu, location, variety of items, and amount of service staff needed all effect the price.

Q: We are having an outdoor event. Do you provide tents, tables, and chairs?
A: Our vendors include several reliable rental companies. Our event planners coordinate a variety of tent styles and sizes to fit your budget, style, and party size. We advise our clients not to rely on good weather. Plan for the worst and hope for the best. Bad weather doesn’t need to cause a bad party if you are ready for it. The tent companies also provide a variety of lighting, dance floor, and side wall choices. We have a large variety of table sizes and shapes, and numerous chair selections from simple to elegant.

Q: Should we use china and glassware or disposable goods?
A: Our event planners work with you to determine your needs for disposable goods versus china, glass, and linen. This can be determined by budget or the formality of the event. We have several options of high quality disposable ware. China, glassware, utensils, and linen are delivered from party rental specialists, and available from simple to elegant designs.

Q: Do you have environmentally friendly options?
A: Please see our Going Green page for our thoughts on this.

Q: Should I have a buffet, plated, or stations?
A: Buffets are usually the least expensive option, depending on menu selections. They require a smaller staff of chefs and servers as well as less china and silverware. The menu can be planned from a small simple menu to sumptuous feast.

Plated meals require a slightly larger staff and more china to accommodate serving and clearing several courses, as well as washing and storing the china.

A stations menu gives the flexibility to include several food styles, carving stations, cooked to order items, and themed tables. It creates a great social environment, as guests are up interacting as they move through the stations. Each station requires a clean plate per guest, so the rental cost is slightly effected.

Q: I saw some menu samples in your folder. Can I change the items?
A: We are happy to custom write any menu to accommodate our client’s needs. The menu samples are only a few suggestions. We are even happy to use your families heirloom recipes.

Q: How many hors d’oeuvres selections should I have?
A: You can select passed hors d’oeuvres, stationary, or both. For passed selections for a cocktail hour, we suggest 4 to 6. For a 2 hour cocktail party, we like to see 6 to 8 selections so it doesn’t become monotonous. We recommend choosing a balanced selection of seafood, beef, poultry and vegetarian items to accommodate all tastes.

Q: Do you provide tastings?
A: For weddings and larger events, we do schedule tastings after a basic menu is established. Your event planner can assist you in scheduling a no obligation sampling of your menu.

Q: When do I give a deposit?
A: After we have agreed upon a menu and services, we require a non-refundable deposit of $100.00- $500.00 to secure the date. This is determined by the size and price of the event.

Weddings require 50% payment of the bill based on the guest count 30 days before the event. Full payment is due on all events prior to the start of the party.

Q: How many chefs and waitstaff will be at my event?
A: We tailor our service level to your needs. For example, we have clients that pick up food in our Billerica commissary. We also deliver and set up your buffets, then return later to pick up our equipment. Smaller house parties can usually be handled by a chef and one to two waitstaff depending on the guest count and menu selection. Formal events require a larger staff to provide the high service level that we are known for.

Q: Do you have a facility to hold our party in?
A: Two Chefs is an off premise caterer. In addition to house parties, we are associated with and can recommend numerous venues from Boston, New Hampshire and Southern Maine for unique events. They include auditoriums, historic properties, museums, golf courses, theaters, farms, social clubs, estates, mansions, Temples, Churches, and art associations.

Q: Do you serve liquor?
A: We do not hold a liquor license. We work with Backstage Concessions, Andover Liquors, Gordon’s and Boston’s Best Bartending to take care of your bartending needs. Our event planners will work with you to help you decide which is best for your specific event.

Q: How many people should I order for?
A: We require a final guest count one week in advance. We will do our best to accommodate any last minute increases, but cannot reduce the billed quantity within one week of an event. We always bring an ample amount of food for the guest count.

Q: Are there any fees added to the invoice?
A: Massachusetts meal tax of 5% is added to the food portion of the invoice. Full service events are charged 15% for staff gratuity. These charges are on the initial proposal. There won’t be any surprises with us.

Q: How far do you travel?
A: We work on Cape Cod, central and eastern Massachusetts, New Hampshire and southern Maine. Travel time outside a standard 30 mile radius is included in the proposal.

Q: What is your cancellation policy?
A: Deposits are non-refundable. Events cancelling in 2 to 4 weeks are responsible for 50% of the full price. Events cancelling in less than 2 weeks are responsible for the full event price.

Q: How long do you stay after the party?
A: If we are required to stay after the agreed upon end time, a time and one half rate for the remaining staff will be added to the bill.

Q: What was your largest event?
A: We have catered a brunch buffet for 3000, corporate cookout for 1200, and black tie formal dinners for 500.