Just a random question... How does the venue know who will choose what at the dinner?

Spanish Eyes · 04-09-2016 06:25PM #1

I've often wondered this, someone might know the answer.

Say 100 guests. Choice of beef or salmon (for example).

How does the venue know how much of each to prepare?

Thanks!!

Mrs OBumble · 04-09-2016 07:05PM

They have facial recognition software over the entrance door. When you walk in, they figure out who you are, look up their system for what you had last time you visited any hotel in their chain, and use an advanced algorithm to and logistic regression to model what you are likely to pick this time.

Or maybe they just know that on average for menu X, 40% (or whatever) pick the A, 59% pick B and 1% want veggo / gluten free / organic whatever..

jon1981 · 04-09-2016 07:48PM

I guess this is where experience comes in. Sure restaurants all over the world have to figure this out every day of the week, a wedding is no different.

GingerLily · 04-09-2016 10:56PM

They don't always, I was at a wedding where we were the last table served and they ran our of all the prepared fish, they had to make mine up from scratch, took 30 minutes extra (45 minutes after the top table was served). I was not a happy bunny

Bacchus · 04-09-2016 11:29PM

As said above, hotels are well used to catering for weddings. They'll know the typical pattern and will leave a margin for error too. It's also factored into their cost. There's a number of ways hotels lay out their costs to the couple but IIRC it's usually that they charge the higher main price for both options and then add a few euro on top just for having a choice. That's there to cover their overhead in having to stock 60 of each option for 100 people (for example).

Gatica · 05-09-2016 09:18AM

As mentioned that's the reason for charging for the extra options. It covers them for the loss of the extra "overlapping" portions. They need to make sure to have enough whichever way or swings, and there's bound to be waste.

endacl · 05-09-2016 09:25AM

I often thought that if those extra portions are being paid for, they should be cooked and offered as second helpings to anyone that wants one. Better than going in the bin as overstock...

clint_silver · 05-09-2016 09:36AM

endacl wrote: »

I often thought that if those extra portions are being paid for, they should be cooked and offered as second helpings to anyone that wants one. Better than going in the bin as overstock...

Hence waiter service coming round asking if anyone wants more. Cant ever remember being at a wedding where this didnt happen.

Milly33 · 05-09-2016 11:09AM

They just know or have a fair idea.. They will probably have some much stashed away just incase and then if they run out they just run out. I have been to a few weddings where they have said sorry the beef is all gone etc.

Spanish Eyes · 05-09-2016 05:01PM

Thanks for the replies.

Am going to a BIG wedding soon and there are three choices of food, but guests just decide on the day apparently, so I just wondered how they cope!

Professional chefs and catering experience obviously...

When I attended a wedding in the UK a couple of years ago, the menu was included with the invite, and if you were going, you were asked to tick your choice and include with the RSVP. No waste there!

endacl · 05-09-2016 05:25PM

clint_silver wrote: »

Hence waiter service coming round asking if anyone wants more. Cant ever remember being at a wedding where this didnt happen.

They never get as far as my table.

:mad:

Bacchus · 05-09-2016 09:11PM

endacl wrote: »

I often thought that if those extra portions are being paid for, they should be cooked and offered as second helpings to anyone that wants one. Better than going in the bin as overstock...

That'd only push the price up higher I imagine. You're not really paying for each portion of meat/fish. You're paying for your guests to have that choice. Portions of meat/fish left over are potentially a loss for the hotel or they can sell in the restaurant the following day. That's their risk and I'm sure they have the historical figures to play it smart to reduce their cost as much as possible.

Just a random question... How does the venue know who will choose what at the dinner?

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