Celebrating Diverse Cuisine

Successful catering relies on setting trends, and that’s exactly what ICA member Lon Lane’s Inspired Occasions from Kansas City, MO, did with their Celebrating Patient Diversity event. For this event, Inspired Occasions went all-out, incorporating dishes, ingredients, and flavors from a wide variety of cultures across South and West Africa, Eastern Asia, South America, and the Middle East.

Read on to gather inspiration, learn about new trends and understand how successful, exciting events can really differentiate your brand.

Jordanian black lentil salad with red and yellow grape tomatoes and fresh arugula; bread sticks, pepper lavosh, and grilled pita

Introduce new dishes, flavors

At this diverse event, guests—and even clients!— weren’t necessarily familiar with all of the dishes on the menu. South African bobotie, lemongrass chicken, Jordanian black lentil salad, and Brazilian arroz con pollo were served amongst other intriguing tastes from those regions.

Takeaway: This provided Inspired Occasions with an incredible opportunity: They provided inexperienced guests with their first taste of several amazing cuisines. This made the Inspired Occasions event, as well as their catering services, memorable in a great way, and it can do the same for you.

Lychee nut and navel orange salad with avocado tossed with a red wine vinaigrette

Creativity is key; innovation makes you unique

Inspired Occasions served some well-known items, like Korean barbecue pulled pork, which is a trendy and popular item that’s on the verge of becoming mainstream. However, when they created these dishes, they used the original recipes and flavors as inspiration, but changed something about every plate to make it their own. That Korean pork, for example, was served on Korean pancakes with kimchee, sprouts, and Korean Worcestershire sauce.

Takeaway: Being a caterer is about differentiating yourself; the goal is to have customers remember you and want your catering, not anyone else’s. Even though international cuisine is a bit different, how you transform it sets you apart.

Tres leches mini cupcakes

Fun presentations welcome guests

International cuisine welcomes itself to whimsical presentations. Inspired Occasions used rice steamers, traditional tagines, wooden serving platters, bento-style boxes, skewers, street food trays, and much more to serve their many different dishes.  

Takeaway: When presenting the tasting and trying of new foods in a fun way, people are more open to the idea. It becomes less about, “Will I like this?” And more, “Why not try it?”—which is the best attitude for diverse events.

Lon Lane’s Inspired Occasions is a proud member of the ICA. To learn more about the ICA visit www.internationalcaterers.org.

Get Fresh October 2015