I am thrilled to be able to work in many countries around the world (not to mention earning those frequent flyer points!). It never ceases to amaze me how different customs can be among different cultures. For instance, the choice of serving a sit down dinner or buffet style dinner.
I know it seems like a small thing, but this choice can make a big difference to your budget as well as to the mood of your entire event--not to mention making sure your event is culturally appropriate for the country (mostly if you’re planning a destination wedding).
Here’s what’ I’ve discovered:
- Indonesian events: mostly buffet
- South of France: mostly sit down dinners
- Hong Kong: mostly buffets
- Panama, (my country of birth): mostly buffets
- Middle East: mostly buffets
- Italy: sit down dinners
In America it could go either way. I noticed there was a trend in the desire to keep an event more informal and economical (especially last year with our economical drop), so most events were served buffet style. I do, however, think this is slowly changing back to the formality of a sit down dinner.
When serving sit down dinners, I have tried many ways to keep this part of the night interesting. For example:
- Leave a chair open at each table for the host (and/or hostess) to visit with their guests (This works best for smaller events. If the event involves over 200 guests, 20 tables is a lot to visit.)
- Try having guests move to different tables for dessert and coffee to encourage mixing groups.
- I also prefer to assign tables not seats. I find this to be more organic (and less controlling).
What’s you preference? Sit down or buffet? And if sit down, what do you think works best to keep it interesting (especially when some guests are having a hard time connecting with other folks at their table)?
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George Bernard Shaw once said: “You see things and say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were and say, ‘Why not?’” That quote embodies how Preston Bailey approaches every event.
Brit
February 8, 2010
Definitely sit down, but I do love the idea of fun food stations, which is becoming increasingly popular.
Rowaida Flayhan
February 8, 2010
Hi Preston,
Always a pleasure reading your interesting posts. It is true that in the Middle East most prefer Buffet, I guess because of the different varieties of dishes we like to serve. In my home if I have 12 to 14 guest I like to have a seated dinner, but most of the time my dinners are 30 and above, so buffet is wonderful. I am following you on Twitter, I wish you could follow me. Wish you great success always. God bless.
Gayle O'Donnell
February 8, 2010
Thanks so much for the country to country comparison. Found it very interesting since I don’t get out much (of the country that is).
In Seattle I’d say buffet vs. sit-down runs about 60% buffet/40% sit-down. Depends a lot on the venue.
Totally agree with you about not assigning seats at a given table. A friend of mine who does a lot of entertaining chooses to seat her guests at tables with people they don’t know. It forces a lot of people out of their comfort zone, but it also provides the opportunity to meet so many different and interesting people. When I coordinated her wedding it was interesting to watch some of the guests nearly break out in a rash from being uncomfortable with this new way of doing things, but by the end of the evening (and after a few drinks) all had adapted and had a great time.
victoria cruz
February 9, 2010
your view on it doesn’t only serve as pointers on event styling but same time an info regarding other culture, to those that doesn’t travel a lot as you do
Sarah
February 9, 2010
I love the info on what people do around the world-I always find that so interesting! I work as an on site coordinator and we see a good mix though most people opt for the traditional sit down. One thing that I feel a bit differently about is your view on the costs of buffet versus sit down. Where I work the buffet or station reception is always a higher cost than the sit down. We are working with controlled portions for a sit down which means we know exactly what will be serving. With a station reception you can never be quite sure and seeing as you can never run out as a catering company we always need to over prepare which results in a higher cost for the client.
I agree 100% on avoiding assigning seats at tables-completely unnecessary! Thanks for the great post-I love your work!
Cheryl
January 11, 2012
All the Chinese receptions I go to (I myself am Chinese) have sit down dinners where the food is placed on the centre of the table (kind of like ordering at a Chinese restaurant) on the lazy susan. I’m having trouble visualizing a gorgeous centrepiece competing with the logistics of a Chinese sit down dinner since I love tall centrepieces. I guess that the Chinese sit down is much more guest friendly since it combines the pros of a sit down and a buffet style service. In terms of the centrepiece, I suppose it could be hung from above over the table so you could still get the effect without having to remove it when the food arrives. On another note, Chinese sit down dinners have many courses. An appetizer, a few main courses, and a selection of desserts. Also, we don’t do dancefloors over here. We just sit down, eat, listen to speeches and watch some slideshows of the wedding prep or messages from close friends and family.