Professional Buffet Setting Nowadays buffets are the most common used style of serving breakfast, lunch and dinner in many hotels. It is therefore of ever-increasing importance to present a creative and well-displayed setting of quality foods while keeping your food cost within the set budget.
Departments & Topics Related to Buffet Setting are: Buffet Decoration Materials Buffet Presentation Items, Bowls & Dishes Kitchen Equipment Safe Foods and Holding Temperature Control Knowledge of Foods and Cooking Methods (Service and Kitchen Employees) Guest Statistics Menu Items Sales Forecasting Standardized Recipes Food costing
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Course Objectives: In this course, you should learn: The Definition of a Buffet Different Types of Buffet Presentations Themes that can be used for Buffets Factors that determine the Type of Buffet Presentation Factors that determine your Buffet Layout and Setting Identify Foods and Cooking Techniques appropriate for Buffets Temperature Control & Food Safety of Items on Buffet How to Save Cost on your Buffet How to implement a Better Portion Control on the Buffet Live Cooking Stations at your Buffet that work Guest Statistics and Menu Planning (Menu Cycles) Importance of Standardized Recipes Food Cost Allocation per Guest / Budget Setting per Meal Criteria for Buffet Menu Development Presentation of Food Items, Dishes and Bowls How to Present more Attractive and Creative Buffets
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Introduction What is a buffet? Buffets are meals generally presented to the guests on a display table. They offer the guests the advantage of a free choice in composing their own meal. However, the way the food is prepared and presented by a professional chef and waiter could influence and guide the senses of your guests in selecting certain food items.
First Impression The first impression is a lasting one (staff, display, maintenance etc). Little things make a difference and mean a lot to our guests. The presentation and image of the buffet will influence the guest’s opinion about the kitchen in cleanliness and professionalism.
Personal Appearance Working in service or kitchen is a demanding job. It requires a lot of physical labor, which can cause the service or kitchen staff look sweaty and sometimes even tatty during the shift. If any employee looks messy, the supervisor should have that person immediately changed into a clean uniform.
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Types of Buffets Meal Period Buffet – Focused on a Particular Meal Period (Time)
Breakfast Lunch Dinner Mid-Morning Break Mid-Afternoon Break Afternoon Tea Happy Hour Late Night
Brunch Buffet – A variety of breakfast and lunch foods Finger or Fork Buffet – Stand up or sit down service, usually at receptions Occasion Buffet – Celebrates an occasion such as wedding Regional and Ethnic Buffet – Driven by a particular area or nationality (should be as authentic as possible) Event Oriented Buffet – Celebrates an occasion created by the client or host Seasonal Buffet – Focus on seasonal produce and / or activities, holidays and calendar events
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Theme Buffets Friday Football Brunch Jazz Brunch Western BBQ Costume Ball
Holiday Buffets New Year’s Eve Valentine’s Day Christmas Iftar Mother’s Day St. Patrick’s Day Thanksgiving
Regional Themes Nubian Alexandrian Fish Market
Occasion and Event-Oriented Buffets Wedding Engagement Grand Opening Event Fundraiser Awards Banquet World Cup Euro Cup
Buffet Theme Stations or Concepts Breakfast Theme Stations Fruit & Yogurt Bar Dairy Bar Crepe Station Hot Cake Station Grill Station (sausages – beef bacon – minute steaks) Omelet Station Eggs Made to Order Healthful Selection (low fat, whole grain, fresh juices) Waffle or Pancake Station Bread and Pastry Corner Oriental or Egyptian Corner Fruit and Vegetable Juice Bar Tea Station 5
Brunch - Lunch and Dinner Theme Stations Salad Bar with large condiment selection Caesar Salad Station Parmesan Station Caprese Salad Station Sandwich Bar Cheese Station Build Your Own Burger Pizza Bar (choose your own toppings) Fresh Pasta Station Taco Bar Soup Station Stir Fry Station Tempura or Shabu-Shabu Fondues Sushi Station Carving Station Seafood Bar Grill Station Shawerma Station (Fish – Lamb – Beef) Fried Vegetables Station Grilled Vegetables Station Roesti Station Spatzli Station
Early Bird Buffets Stations (Kids Buffets) Milkshake Bar Chocolate Lover’s Station Crepe Station Fried Fruits with condiments Station Ice Cream with condiments Station Fresh Fruit Bar with condiments Station Tea Station
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Factors that Determine the Type of Buffet Many parameters have to be taken into consideration to present a successful buffet like; guest's appreciation, as well as cost and quality control. The type and style of the buffet is directly linked to various practical, commercial, and professional factors, which have a direct impact on the final buffet presentation and the conception of the guest. A buffet should be a profitable commercial operation, efficient and well prepared to meet the financial requirements and quality control, as well as answer to guest's needs. Not an easy challenge.
Key Factors that Determine the Type of Buffet you can Present: 1) Guests 2) Time 3) Location & Ease of Service 4) Production Capacity & Expertise of Staff 5) Production Capacity & Available Equipment & Facilities 6) Quality & Availability of Products 7) Variety and Nutritional Balance 8) Holding Capability - Temperature & Quality Control of Food Items 9) Profitability and Budget per Guest
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1) Guests The type of guests you serve is an important factor when you determine what type of food you should serve on the buffet. Age, religion, and nationality are just some samples that influence the eating habits of people. Are we serving many children or elderly people with special diet requests, vegetarians, Moslems, Jews or Christians? The Germans prefer different food from the Italians, French or Americans. When serving guests from the Middle East region you might consider adding oriental food items on the buffet.
2) Time The time of the day determines first of all if you serve a breakfast, lunch or dinner buffet. The amount of time your guests have to enjoy the buffet is an important factor as well. For instance when you serve a breakfast buffet it would be good to know if your guests have a nice relaxing breakfast before they go down to the beach, or are they having a full sightseeing program ahead of them, or do they need to catch a plane? Also the time of the year influences the selection of food items on the buffet. Festive celebrations like Ramadan, Christmas, and Easter could be the theme of your buffet.
3) Location The location of your buffet has an effect on the possible set-ups. Is the buffet indoors or outdoors? Distance from the buffet to the cooking areas has its effect on transportation and storage. Long and difficult transport to the buffet for the service staff will increase breakage and therefore increase cost. The seating area and the location of the buffet should ensure all the guests an easy access to the buffet.
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4) Production Capacity & Expertise of Staff Your staff capacity in number, knowledge and skills is one of the first factors that determines what type of themes and buffet settings you can accomplish. Maybe investment in training staff in specific cuisines is needed before one can put up a theme buffet related to a specific country or ethnic cuisine. Also consider that more and more semi-finished and finished convenience foods are available on the market. Incorporate them into your buffet dishes will make the whole process of preparation and food costing far more efficient. Often management makes the mistake to think that once the buffet is set-up the work is finished. The staff disappears, just to return at the end of service time to remove the remaining food items and set-up. However, a professional buffet set-up should have efficient, well-groomed, and highly qualified staff present at the buffet to serve and assist the guest in selecting the food items he or she prefers. It adds to the guest's comfort and answers to his or her expectations to be able to ask questions on food items presented. Bottom line, we are presenting and showing off our skills “SHOWTIME” is the word to remember.
5) Production Capacity & Available Equipment and Facilities Adequate equipment and facilities on the buffet will ensure a smooth running of the event.
You need to keep hot food hot on hot plates or dishes, cold food cold on platters, bowls or glasses, and frozen items frozen in a suitable dish before it reaches the buffet and up till the moment the guest selects it. This might require investment in additional facilities and equipment. The ambiance of the buffet and lighting should be according to the theme and display, and as well serve their purpose. When selecting display material, one should take hygiene into consideration to eliminate the chance that non-food items like sand, dust, flowers, little stones or any other inedible items get in close contact with the food or might even fall into the food. Back of the House Support Back of the house equipment require maintenance and inspection for both the operational needs and the employee’s safety. Kitchen equipment that is not inspected and maintained on a regular basis can break down at critical times, affecting preparation and production cycle, quality of products and service delivery to the guest. 9
6) Quality & Availability of Food Items The seasons determine which food items are fresh available or have to be imported against often a higher cost. Taking the seasonal fruits and vegetables into consideration can save the operation quite some money on the purchases while serving the guest fresh food items. Advantage of Seasonal Items on Buffet:  Freshness of food items  Saves cost Especially with ethnic buffets or specialty cuisine buffets (country buffets) one needs to make sure that special food items and or herbs needed to prepare the authentic foods are available.
7) Variety and Nutritional Balance Nutritional balance and variety is just as important at buffets as with any meal preparation. When deciding upon the menu for a buffet one should try to integrate a variety of cooking methods in preparing the foods to be served on the buffet, as well as ingredients used. Variety in Cooking Methods There are 14 different cooking methods. When one compiles a menu for a buffet, the different dishes to be prepared should reflect various cooking methods. So if a choice of meat, fish or poultry is given different cooking methods should be used to prepare the meat, fish or poultry. When selecting cooking methods one should bear in mind though to chose foods and cooking methods that hold up well on buffets. For instance, anything prepared in dough and deep-fried will not stay crispy on a buffet. However, one could prepare a proper mise en place, i.e. prepare the item to be fried in the dough, and then execute the deep-frying on the spot at the buffet in front of the guest. Variety in Food Items With salads, vegetable dishes and soups one should take care that a wide variety of vegetables is used. In case of offering two soups, there should be one based on vegetable stock and one on meat or chicken stock for instance. Not two tomato based soups or two cream soups, but maybe one clear consome and one cream. The bread selection should be several rolls and breads from white to brown and whole grain. On the pastry and desserts station variety is also the key, so not only cakes or everything prepared with mousses, but some cakes, fruits, mousses, ice cream and so on. 10
8) Holding Capability - Temperature & Quality Control of Food Items Hygiene is a very sensitive issue in buffet set-ups. As already mentioned before adequate equipment should be available to keep the food items at the right holding temperature on the buffet, either it be indoors or outdoors.
You need to keep hot food hot, cold food cold, and frozen items frozen before it reaches the buffet and up till the moment the guests select it.
Holding Temperatures of Food Items on Buffets: Cold Items: 10C or less Hot Items: 62C or more Frozen Items: -14C (scooping temperature of ice cream)
Indoors you will have a certain temperature control, but outdoors you might have to keep food fresh while it is 40 centigrade, which might mean an adjustment in the food items you want to present, or more investment in adequate equipment to keep the right holding temperature of the food. With portioning and cooking methods one should bear in mind that the buffet should have a good appearance throughout the serving time.
The last guest to arrive at the buffet should be as impressed as the first guest. Foods should never be placed on a buffet for more than one hour. If certain dishes or platters exceed the one hour one should take them of the buffet and replace with fresh items. Little sign cards placed behind the chafing dishes on which the chefs mark the time they placed the item on the buffet can be a great help to quality control. Some food items, as you will see on the next page, can reach the hour mark in a reasonable good condition and others simply need to be prepared in the kitchen at the last minute. Most of the last minute items are better to be prepared at live cooking stations in front of the guests at the buffet. 11
Foods that hold up well on a buffet for up-to 1 hour Casseroles Cold Meat Salads Aspics Raw Vegetable Salads Fresh Fruits Cheese Platters Potato Dishes (Oven Baked ONLY) Relishes Cold Soups Pates, Terrines, Galantines Smoked Foods Whole Fish Carved Showpieces & Garnishes
Foods that DO NOT hold up well on buffets and should be finished at the last minute or prepared in live cooking stations at the buffet in front of the guests Stir Fry Souffles Canapes Bisque Sauces and Gravies Custards Ice Creams Deep-Fried & SautĂŠed Foods Hot Breakfast Items Grilled Steaks Filled Crepes Whipped Cream Decorated Desserts Vegetables
Live cooking stations at the buffet contribute to better portion and quality control. One of the best ways to save cost and make your buffets more appealing to your guests is to implement more live cooking activity. Live cooking stations at the buffet have the advantage that you can control the portions served better, and at the same time avoid food wastage, as raw materials can be stored and used again. 12
Live cooking stations also give you the opportunity to serve the guests more according their wishes, as you can adjust on the spot the portion, frying time or ingredients added etc. It creates more interrelations between chefs and the guests, which can add to the overall customer satisfaction and staff motivation. Most buffets in Egypt have only one live cooking station, which is the egg station at the breakfast buffet. There are many other items and cooking methods that are suitable for live cooking.
Possible live cooking stations for the different buffets Breakfast Buffet: Croissants Baking Station (will give a nice smell in the breakfast room) Freshly Brewed Coffee Corner (will give a nice smell in the breakfast room) Fresh juice station Sausage grilling station Cheese slicing station Pancake station
Lunch Buffet: Sandwich bar, to make sandwiches according to the guest's wishes Salad Bar, to mix salads according to the guest's wishes and add dressing on the spot. (Adding dressing only on items selected by guests means you can preserve remaining salads and vegetables much better).
Dinner Buffet: Fresh pasta station Stir-fry station Deep fry station Grill station
Dessert Buffet: FlambĂŠ or crepe station Ice cream station
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9) Profitability & Budget Per Guest The quality of the buffet should be according to the establishment's standards, in terms of food preparation methods, quantity and portions, quality, and choice of menus. Portion and Cost Control The amount of "not enough" items or "left-over" items will reflect how well the buffet forecast was estimated, but it is almost impossible to expect 100 percent accuracy in estimating the quantity of food to produce. The experience of the chefs and the adjustments from previous events will help to avoid shortage or waste of food items. A well-documented sales history provides the guideline when forecasting sales or popularity of food items on a buffet. Slicing methods of meat and cheese are one way to implement a certain portion control and ensure a good appearance at all times. Not overloading chafing dishes and frequent refilling with freshly cooked items is another way to ensure portion control and good appearance.
To present a well-balanced variety of food items on your buffet, which are preferred by your guests but still within the allocated budget per guest one needs to understand the principles of: A. Guest Statistics and Menu Planning (Menu Cycles) B. Menu Item / Buffet Item Forecasting C. Standardization of Recipes D. Food Cost Allocation / Budget Setting per Meal
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A. Guest Statistics and Menu Planning (Menu Cycles) How many and which food items should I prepare for the buffet? To answer the above-mentioned question operation managers must ask themselves first: “HOW MANY GUESTS WILL I SERVE TODAY? – THIS WEEK? – THIS MONTH?” The answer to these questions is critical, since the guests provide the revenue from which the operator will pay basic operating expenses. Simply put, if too few guests are served, total revenue may be insufficient to cover costs, even if these costs are well managed. Advantages of Precise Sales Forecasts: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Accurate revenue estimates Improved ability to predict expenses Greater ability in scheduling needed workers Greater efficiency in scheduling menu item production schedules Better accuracy in purchasing the correct amount of food for immediate use 6. Improved ability to maintain proper levels of nonperishable food inventories 7. Improved budgeting ability 8. Lower selling prices for guests because of increased operational efficiencies 9. Increased money’s available for current facility maintenance and further growth 10.Increased profit levels and stockholder value An understanding of anticipating sales, in terms of revenue or guest counts, will help you have the right number of workers, with the right amount of products available, at the right time. In this way, you can begin to effectively manage your cost.
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B. Menu Item / Buffet Item Forecasting The menu and good sales forecasting determine the success of most foodservice operations. The question is this, “How many servings of each item should we produce so that we do not run out of any one item?” If you were to run out of one of your menu/buffet items guests who wanted that item would undoubtedly become upset. Producing too much of any one item would, on the other hand, cause costs to rise to unacceptable levels. Sample (The given sample is based upon an a la carte sales menu. However the same principles of calculating popularity index and sales forecasting apply to buffet items. The only fact to take into consideration is that at an al carte restaurant the guest will choose one main course of the menu while at the buffet the guest may select more than one main course item from the buffet.) Consider the situation you would encounter if you used sales histories to project 300 guests for lunch today at the restaurant you manage. Your restaurant serves only three main course items: Roast Chicken / Roast Lamb / Roast Beef. Clearly, in this situation, it would be unwise to produce 300 portions of each item. While you would never run out of any one item, that is, each of your 300 estimated guests could order the same item and you would still have enough, you would also have 600 leftovers at the end of your lunch period. What you would like to do, of course, is instruct your staff to make the “right” amount of each menu / buffet item. The right amount would be the number of servings that minimize your chances of running out of an item, while also minimizing your chance of having excessive leftovers. The answer to the questions of how many servings of roast chicken, lamb, and beef you should prepare lies in accurate menu forecasting. Recorded menu/buffet items sales can assist you in making an accurate menu forecasting. On a buffet you establish the weight/liquid measure of each dish, sauces, soups and condiments etc. placed on the buffet, then add all the items which were refilled and finally deduct all the items returned from the buffet after closing.
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Menu Items Sales History Figure Date Menu Item Roast Chicken Roast Lamb Roast Beef Total
Mon
Tues
Wed
Menu Items Sold Thurs
Fri
Total
70
72
61
85
77
365
Week’s Average 73
110
108
144
109
102
573
115
100 280
140 320
95 300
121 315
106 285
562 1,500
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As you can see, an estimate of 300 guests for next Monday makes sense because the weekly sales total last week of 1,500 guests served averages 300 guests per day. (1,500 / 5 days = 300 / day) You also know that on an average day, you sold 73 roast chicken, (365 sold / 5 days = 73 / day) 115 roast lamb, and 112 roast beef. Once you know the average number of people selecting a given menu item, and you know the total number of guests who made the selections, you can compute the “Popularity Index”, which is defined as the percentage of total guests choosing a given menu item from a list of alternatives. Popularity Index = Total Number of Specific Menu Item Sold / Total Number of all Menu Items Sold Given that the list of menu items remains the same, the Popularity Index will guide you to decide how many of each item to prepare. Predicted Number of An Item to be Sold = Number of Guests Expected X Item’s Popularity Index Remember however, that sales histories track only the general trends of an operation. They are not able to estimate precisely the number of guests who may arrive on any given day. Sales histories are only a guide to what might be expected. A variety of factors come together to influence the number of guests you can expect to serve on any specific day, such as holidays, special events and so on. In hotels the reservation list provides the guideline on the number and type of guests to expect at the buffet.
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C. Importance of Standardized Recipes Standardized recipes control the quantity and the quality of what your kitchen will produce. While it is the menu that determines what is to be sold and at what price, the standardized recipe controls both the quantity and the quality of what your kitchen will produce. Simply put, a standardized recipe consists of the procedures to be used in preparing and serving each of your menu items. The standardized recipe ensures that each time a guest orders an item from your menu or selects an item at your buffet, he or she receives exactly what you intended the guest to receive. Critical factors in a standardized recipe such as cooking times and serving size have been tested and retested and should remain constant. The standardized recipe is the key to menu item consistency and, ultimately, operational success. It is always true that guests expect to get what they pay for. The standardized recipe helps you make sure that they do. Inconsistency is the enemy of any quality foodservice operation. Standardized recipes must be appropriate for the operation using them. If they are not, they will simply not be used or followed. If a standardized recipe represents the quality and quantity management wishes its guests to have and if it is followed carefully each time, then guests will indeed receive the value management intended. Despite their tremendous advantages, many managers refuse to take the time to develop standardized recipes. The excuses used are many. Arguments often used against standardized recipes include:
They take too long to use. My people don’t need recipes; they know how we do things here. My chef refuses to reveal his secrets. They take too long to write up. We tried them but lost some, so we stopped using them. They are too hard to read, or many of my people cannot read.
Of the preceding arguments, only the last one, an inability to read has any validity. Standardized recipes have far more advantages than disadvantages.
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Reasons for incorporating a system of standardized recipes include: Accurate purchasing is impossible without the existence and use of standardized recipes. Dietary concerns require some foodservice operators to know exactly the kinds of ingredients and the correct amount of nutrients in each serving of a menu item. Accuracy in menu laws require that foodservice operators be able to tell guests about the type and amount of ingredients in their recipes. Accurate recipe costing and menu pricing is impossible without standardized recipes. Matching food used to cash sales is impossible to do without standardized recipes. New employees cannot be trained without standardized recipes. If the chef quits, for instance, you are stuck! The computerization of a foodservice operation is impossible unless the elements of standardized recipes are in place; thus, the advanced technological tools available to the operation are restricted or even eliminated. Standardized recipes are the cornerstone of any serious effort to produce consistent, high-quality food products at an established cost. Without standardized recipes, cost control efforts become nothing more than raising selling prices, reducing portion sizes, or lessening quality, which is not effective cost management, but rather hardly management at all. Standardized recipes should be printed in the language of the production people, or training needs to be provided for the production people to read them in their current form. Any recipe can be standardized. The process can be quite complicated, especially in areas of baking and sauce production. However, as a general rule, any item that can be produced in quantity can be standardized in recipe form and can be adjusted, up or down, in quantity. A great deal has been written about various techniques used to expand recipes, and computer software designed for that purpose is now on the market. Some work better than others. In all methods some principles must be remembered.
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Principles of Standardized Recipes: The measurement standard must be consistent.(weighing with a pound or ounce scale is the most accurate method of measuring any ingredient.) The food item to be measured must be recipe ready. (It must be cleaned trimmed, cooked, and generally completed, save for its addition to the recipe.) For liquid items, the measurement of volume, a cup, quarters etc, might be the preferred process, however many operators prefer to weigh all ingredients, even liquids, for improved accuracy.
D. Food Cost Allocation per Guest / Budget Setting per Meal If a serious effort has been made in establishing an accurate history of food items consumed (Popularity Index) and standard recipes are in place you can simply calculate an accurate food cost for each buffet or meal period. If your allocation per guest is for example LE 38 per day per person, you may exceed this target a few days per week due to theme events such as BBQ’s and Seafood buffets etc. However, at the end of each week your average food cost per guest should be meeting the target (set budget per guest). Working and following standardized recipes is the essence of a successful buffet in terms of serving quality foods while keeping your food cost within the set budget. To set the budget per meal period is not just done by giving a figure X.- to the chef, but by following the correct method specified above. A general rule is that the breakfast buffet and the dinner buffet together should represent about 80% of the daily allocation.
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Criteria Used for Menu Item Selection Star Quality – Centerpiece Relationship to theme or concept Dramatic quality of action ( live cooking stations) Senses stimulated – Sight, Sound, Smell (live cooking stations) Color relationships and Balance Size, shape and texture of food items and dishes Garnishes (Cold Food = Cold Garnish / Hot Food Hot Garnish) Chef attendance and server involvement Guest involvement (build or cook yourself stations) Front of the house preparation Back of the house capacity and facilities Style of Service Holding Capability Nutritional Balance and Variety of Food Items
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Enhancing Your Buffet Presentation Tallow or Butter Sculptures Ice Carvings Vegetable Carvings Centerpieces Flower Arrangements / Plants Fruits and Vegetables Beverages Lines, napkins, tablecloths, fabrics, skirting Cookware – Copper Pots - Ceramic Mold / Terrines / Hot Rocks Props Backdrops Entertainment / Music Real-Time Preparation – A La Minute Cooking Candles Serving Vessels – Silver plate, stone ware, china ware Display Columns Uniforms or costumes Lattice Work Pit fires (Outdoors) Tourchase Fountains Carts Tents Pavilions Sculpture / Artwork Lighting Risers
Conclusion While the amount of guests served at the buffet is in most hotels far higher than the amount served at the a la carte restaurants, management still seems to concentrate mainly on the customer at the a al carte outlets. This attitude needs drastic adjustments if we want to ensure that all our guests leave the hotel happy and satisfied with their stay. Therefore, let's implement more creativity and activity at the buffets, and make sure qualified staff is present. This way we add to our customer care and save cost at the same time.
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