F&B is a key element to any memorable event.

When it comes to events, food and beverage can make or break the experience. Attendees remember the meals, the cocktail receptions and the coffee breaks just as much as the keynote speakers — sometimes more. But creating those moments while staying on budget takes strategy and flexibility. Today’s planners are getting creative and rethinking how attendees can best be fed and hydrated without breaking the bank.

Thoughtfully curated, visually exciting menus can help transform a “good” event to “great” and elevate a “great” event into something truly memorable. F&B is also an effective unifier — just ask anyone who’s made an important connection or started a conversation at an after-hours reception or happy hour that led to a lucrative partnership or project. Conversations undoubtedly flow a little more freely after the day’s business has wrapped. With F&B a critical element of an event’s success, planners continue to look for ways to reduce costs without compromising quality.

Donna M. Centofanti, CHME, special events coordinator with the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors (PSATS), says having great food — and enough of it — is “huge,” adding “That’s often what gets people there. You hear about it if the food isn’t good. It’s definitely a driver for attendees. Networking is huge, and F&B is often a big part of that.”

Where some associations have drastically reduced the amount of food at events, if not eliminated it completely, others are taking a more strategic approach to where and how they spend their F&B budget.

Instead of typical pastries, opt for more protein and fiber rich choices to fuel attendees more quickly and keep them satisfied longer between meals.

The Texas Transit Association (TTA) is the voice of metropolitan, small urban and rural transit agencies and the businesses that support them across Texas. Some of TTA’s peer groups have opted out of serving food at events, but Allen Hunter, TTA’s executive director, explains cutting out F&B completely is not a viable option for them. “We haven’t eliminated food as our members expect it, but one solution for us has been early contracting,” he says. “We try to lock in the contracts early so there are no surprises and we can secure the costs of today.”

Hunter and TTA’s event planning team are also looking at menus more closely to see what could be substituted and where they can maximize their dollars. “Will you have servers passing food around, or will it be a buffet where people can serve themselves? You have to look at the best menu option for the pricing,” he says. He recalled one venue that featured $15 meatballs as a hors d’oeuvres option. “In that case, you may want to have a cheaper option, like maybe a fruit and cheese platter, then serve the higher-priced items to help control some of the costs,” he suggests. TTA has eliminated snack-type food at breaks, Hunter says, citing it was deemed unnecessary as there is so much food available at mealtimes.

Katherine Walls, CMP, event specialist with association management firm Wanner Associates, relies heavily on working with venues to determine what can be added to the contract during the planning stage. “If I know our F&B has a current budget amount of X and I know we’re over the budget, I’ll ask the venue what kind of flexibility they have with the contract. So, if a plated meal is a certain amount, I’ll ask them what’s their flexibility in putting together a custom menu in this price range instead. If the chef is willing to do that, we’ll put that in the contract,” she explains.

“It might change our schedule a little bit if we have to bump it from an actual meal down to heavy hors d’oeuvres, but I personally have no problem asking the venue if the chef will do a custom menu for us,” she says. “What can they put together in our price range that still meets both of our needs? Hotels seem to be very willing to do that for us. Some chefs appreciate the opportunity to deviate away from the standard menu and get creative with locally-sourced ingredients, ethnic dishes or develop something completely exclusive for the group.”

Centofanti worked in the hospitality industry for 17 years prior to moving over to the association world and leverages her industry experience to navigate the F&B side of planning. PSATS has a full events calendar, ranging from webinars and trainings to annual summits for newly-elected officials, as well as its annual conference. Held in the spring, the event draws roughly 3,400 attendees and features over 100 workshops and programs. Due to the scope of the event, Centofanti says they are limited when it comes to venues. “We need something like 1,500 hotel rooms. We need inside and outside space because of vendors bringing in huge equipment. We’re kind of landlocked. We work with something like 15 satellite hotels, and we shuttle everyone to the venue.”

One practice PSATS has discontinued is paying per person; rather, Centofanti explains, they will pay per tray, per dozen or per gallon for their larger events. “In the last two years, we’ve seen our conference costs rise significantly,” she explains. “There are some things we can’t change, so we did have to raise our attendee rate minimally.” This, of course, has had something of a ripple effect on attendance, as PSATS’ members are municipal employees and taxpayers ultimately foot the bill. “We have made some alterations to what we’re offering,” Centofanti says.

Including a buffet, rather than having servers, is one way to cut costs when it comes to F&B.

Planners are also turning to more filling fare. Starters like vegetables and dip or a cheese platter — items richer in fiber and protein — fuel attendees more quickly and will satisfy them longer between meals than those loaded with carbohydrates or sugar. “We’ve gone with that type of concept and will get things that go a lot further,” Centofanti explains. At PSATS’ recent Public Works Expo, comfort food was on the menu, with attendees enjoying a station of tomato soup, grilled cheese and sliders — “heartier stuff that’s going to go far,” Centofanti says.

She suggests just following the industry and tracking prices to plan accordingly. “Most hotels look at a 3-5% increase yearly. Just understand what’s high in the market overall, food-wise,” she says. When selecting a menu, choose food items that will better fit your budget.

Associations address the other side of F&B — beverage — differently, too. Centofanti says PSATS does drink tickets. If an attendee uses their drink ticket allotment, it’s a cash bar after that. “A lot of times, we’ll just do beer and wine because alcohol can get expensive. We also have water pitcher stations instead of bottled water to save on those costs,” she explains.

The County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP) stages between 30-40 events annually, each with some F&B component. Lindsay Price, CCAP’s conference and event manager, personally oversees four of the organization’s mid-size events and says food is one of the elements attendees often look forward to. “Sure, we focus on our main goals and objectives for the event, whether it’s education, networking or teambuilding, but I think F&B is more important than people give it credit for,” she says.

Although some costs have unquestionably gone up across the board, the increase has varied, Price says, adding, “Maybe the costs haven’t gone up as dramatically at a smaller hotel than, say, a 4- or 5-star property, so it has really depended on the type of property and the relationships we have with their team.”

For Price, she and her event team colleagues rely on the relationships they’ve built with the venues they use to negotiate prices and develop appetizing menus that won’t break the budget. “Managing the budget is number one for those of us in the events space. So, knowing the people at the venues we use and people at other organizations across Central Pennsylvania, we can go to the team at the venue and say, ‘Here’s our budget. What can you do for me?’ or mention, ‘We know you worked with such-and-such association — can you do the same for me as far as price?’ It helps to know what others are doing,” Price explains.

CCAP has also ramped up its sponsorship package opportunities so members can offset some of the event costs and promote their organizations. They offer various packages at different price points so municipalities with smaller budgets can still get their name in front of attendees. “For instance, we might have a reception sponsor, a break sponsor or a breakfast sponsor, which helps us add nicer options or just more options,” Price says. This also allows CCAP to offer a little something for everyone, balancing the trendy with the tried-and-true without breaking the bank.

“We might secure a sponsor for cocktail hour and try a new specialty cocktail, for instance,” she says. “I’ll overhear attendees chatting and they’ll ask if the other person has tried the specialty cocktail, so it helps to spark a conversation. It’s also a way to help maintain some kind of equilibrium — we’ll give the attendees what they want, but every so often we’ll throw in something interesting to keep them engaged.”

Hunter echoes the importance of having strong sponsorships. Using multiple venues provides unexpected cost savings, as well. “When you’re at a hotel or conference center, your options with catering are pretty limited. We’ll have an event at a different location to both control costs and show off other parts of the community,” he explains. Here, Hunter relies on member transit agencies and CVBs for referrals, calling it “the biggest thing we’ve done,” adding, “By relying on host agencies, they could recommend caterers and tell us who they’ve had a good experience with.”

TTA worked with an outside caterer on a St. Patrick’s Day event at the historic Alamo in San Antonio. “We paid less for a 300-person event at that location than we did for a 200-person event at a hotel,” Hunter explains.

For another event, TTA held a cocktail reception in Quinta Mazatlan, an idyllic greenspace and wildlife sanctuary in McAllen, TX, as part of their annual conference. TTA bought all the alcohol and simply hired bartenders and servers. “It was significantly cheaper than hiring a caterer to do the whole thing and pay all of their fees,” Hunter says. “The benefit was it became a cash bar opportunity versus handing out drink tickets.”

Although TTA still uses hotels and convention centers, Hunter says they try to move certain program components to other locations when possible. Specifically, their annual conference’s Welcome Reception and Big Night Out are held off-site as much as they can. “We do this for a few reasons — it enhances the attendees’ experience because they get to see something different in the host city, it helps us reduce some costs — not always, but sometimes, and finally, if we get lucky the venue will let us bring in the F&B from somewhere else and just charge us for the venue space,” Hunter says.

No-shows are another F&B-related consideration for planners. No client wants to pay for registrants who never show. Hunter admits the numbers can be a guessing game. “If you don’t have good numbers, you have to go back and revise your numbers, so you’ll have to pay a premium. You don’t want to pay for a bunch of food you’re not going to eat, but you don’t want to run out of food. It’s tricky to find that sweet spot of your real number. It’s based on past numbers so it’s always an educated guess — that’s one thing we struggle with the most.” In a best-case scenario, planners add a few extra meals to the final count, but stick to a realistic figure so the client is not paying for an excessive amount of uneaten food — a waste of resources all around.

Whether negotiating costs, leveraging relationships to develop unique menus that don’t break the budget or finding out-of-the-box methods of offering cost-conscious fare that doesn’t skimp on quality, planners are facing the rising F&B issue head-on. As Hunter says, “It’s not going anywhere, and unfortunately, it’s only going to get worse. The question is — how do we respond to it?” | AC&F |