Post #363724 by ChefFrank on Wed, Feb 27, 2008 5:10 AM

Thanks for the suggestion!!!

50 people is a small event - I work for a large conference center, and 200 people + is the norm for most events. However, it's usually a filet on a plate with some potatoes and a couple of green beans. I've been trying to sell the concept of "theme nights" for a while, and I finally got the go-ahead to try. Last night was Luau, tonight's theme is "Nawlin's", tomorrow is "Tex-Mex Night." If I was doing this in a private room, I would have pulled out all the stops, dressed staff in aloha shirts, and thrown leis all over the place. Unfortunately, we had to do this in the main restaurant, with a lot of other guests not affiliated with the party, so I couldn't set up a tiki bar. I was lucky to decorate a little with coconuts and pineapples.

The main server for the party happens to be very knowledgeable about the history of Tiki, and is a great bartender. She, unfortunately, came in after the manager already mixed the drinks - she would have preferred to make them to order. Also, the group had another meeting after dinner, so they didn't want to drink.

Well, when I do this next week, we'll be doing it right - we have a thatch-roofed bar in storage someplace on property, so that's going to get dragged out and put to use. I'm also heading out between now and then and getting a couple of neon palm trees to set the mood.