Are you planning a B'nai Mitzvah and wondering what route to go down for your catering? If you want to do things a little differently and ensure your food stands out, here are some creative catering ideas that could be a perfect choice.
Street Food Stalls
You don't need to go to a sit-down restaurant to get a taste of incredible authentic food prepared by experts these days. So many companies have now gone down the 'street food stall' route, meaning they're mobile and easy to hire out for events. Street food stalls give a relaxed feel to your event while providing your guests with delicious food cooked by the best. You could hire a single company/ stall or go with a mixture of different things, which would work well for larger B'nai Mitzvahs.
One example is Aqua e Grano, which creates artisanal wood-fired pizzas, all using the best ingredients and cooked to order. Check out their catering menu! Other examples could be Thai, Indian or Chinese. Baked potatoes and falafel stalls are another option- and don't overlook stalls that provide sweet treats! Many companies offer cakes, churros, crepes, and other desserts, coffee, and hot chocolate. Most vendors will cater to the Jewish community by abiding by kashrut if you ask. Alternatively, you could see if there are any food vendors to hire near you who are specifically kosher. Whether your guest list is tiny or enormous, using street food stalls is a great way to feed your friends and family and know it's something they'll genuinely enjoy, so something to look into for your B'nai mitzvah catering.
Charcuterie Platters
Charcuterie platters have gained hugely in popularity in recent years; these stunning, Pinterest-worthy, Instagrammable grazing boards are now often utilized at all kinds of events. Whether you want to provide guests with nibbles or a full-on feast, this is something worth considering. Since traditional charcuterie boards feature lots of pork-based products such as salami and ham, this might be an option you've overlooked for your bar mitzvah catering.
However, you can make plenty of great swaps to ensure your version is kosher-friendly. For meats, go with beef salami, turkey, or chicken sausage; you can even find things like delicious smoked lamb prosciutto these days. Pair with your favorite kosher cheeses, and have fun adding all kinds of accompaniments. Olives, cucumber batons, figs, apricots, pomegranates, grapes, and persimmon all work well. Add crackers, pretzels, breadsticks, then various nuts, honey, hummus, and chutneys. Sprigs of herbs make fantastic garnishes to make your arrangement extra special.
You can get so creative with these kinds of plates; check out Youtube tutorials for fun flourishes such as making roses out of your meat slices and arranging and presenting things for the best finish. One of the best things about a charcuterie board is that there's no cooking involved, but if you go about it in the right way, it looks impressive and is a surefire way to wow your guests.
Afternoon Tea
This old English tradition has returned in a big way in recent years and is now a fun way to cater for any event. Guests are served a mixture of dainty finger sandwiches, bite-sized sweet treats, and scones with jam and cream; all washed down with plenty of tea- although you can also provide coffee and even sparkling wine and champagne!
There are plenty of kosher sandwich options you could go with, from corned beef or sliced beef with mustard, chicken or turkey with sauerkraut, and tuna with chopped dill pickles and egg mayo. You could keep it simple and go with a few classics or push the boat out and have lots for your guests to choose from. To add some flair to the scones element of your afternoon tea, you could add chocolate-dipped strawberries and homemade jam. The cream isn't always kosher. However, sweet cream derived from milk is, and so is fine for your bat mitzvah catering.
While there's a reasonable amount of prep involved in afternoon tea, you could have a caterer do some or all of it for you. For example, you might not want the fuss of prepping and making masses of sandwiches. Alternatively, you could purchase scones and cakes ready-made from the grocery store as an easy way to put the sweet course together. Like with the charcuterie board, a lot of the wow factor comes in the visual element of things, so have a look online for the best ways to present your afternoon tea.
Potluck Buffet
A potluck-style buffet is a fun way to get everyone involved in your B'nai mitzvah catering. If everyone creates one dish and brings it with them, you end up with a range of delicious tasty options that everyone gets to sample. Suppose you're worried about ending up with repeats or lots of one type of item. In that case, you could assign things like 'appetizers,' 'main dishes,' and 'desserts' to different people, or have everyone run their proposed idea by you before they start it so you can check it's not already being done by someone else.
If you're on a tighter budget, then a potluck-style buffet allows you to keep costs down without being a huge cost to everyone else. Most people are more than happy to prepare and share their signature dish, so if you're reluctant to go down this route, don't be! You can swap recipes and enjoy each other's cooking too, what's not to love? If any non- Jewish friends or family are attending, just let them know what ingredients to leave out or substitute and how they can ensure the dish is prepared to kosher rules. This could be an excellent learning opportunity for others to learn more about the Jewish religion and the foods eaten.
Conclusion
Are you considering catering ideas for an upcoming B'nai mitzvah party? If so, contact us at Aqua e Grano to discuss Bar or Bat Mitzvah catering options!
We've catered many B'nai Mitzvahs and look forward to helping cater yours!