Restaurant Pro Tips: Prepping for St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s Day decorating and planning is already underway in many places. Based in Cleveland, Dean’s Supply always has a big demand for helping our restaurateur and catering clients around this time of year. Why? Because we LOVE St. Patty’s Day. Cleveland is known to have one of the biggest celebrations and parades for the day. So, if you’re in the business of serving people up some good food and drinks to go with their good times, you need to make sure you get your business the spirit of the season too. Here are a few tips to delight your customers this St. Patrick’s Day.

Plastic Plates, Cups & Catering Trays

Listen, parties and big celebrations are a lot of fun. They can be loud and rowdy, too. You don’t need to prep your kitchens with dishware and glasses like every day is St. Patrick’s Day. Instead, make an upfront investment in plastic plates, cups, flatware, catering trays, and disposable aluminum pans. With the amount of extra business you will be doing that day, the cost is negligible, and you can give the dishwashers a break and keep business going. This can also help show you set the scene for the celebration with a variety of different colors to choose from including green, gold, black, and white. While you’re at it, get some extra napkins to go with the thematic colors for the day.

Banners, Centerpieces, and More

Whether you are a caterer setting up a party center for a private party or decorating your restaurant for the day, do yourself a favor and look into our St. Patrick’s Day decorations. There are a variety of banners and centerpieces to choose from. You might also want to look at the party kit we have available, which makes your shopping and supplying a bit easier.

Think of creative ways you can use the decorations. They can be set on a bar or table or hanging from the ceiling. Use them to highlight and close off doorways. Decorate windows, rafters, and awnings. Just a cool display could be enough to bring some new customers in.

Staffing and Preparedness

Setting up for St. Patrick’s Day is not all just about getting some great decorations that help people get into the celebrating mood. You need to be sure your business is ready to handle the increased business. Make sure you err on the side of caution and overstaff rather than trying to play it safe and not schedule more people than you need. It is a lot easier to send staff home than trying calling them in on St. Patrick’s Day.

Be sure to double check your stock. You do not want to run out of beer or spirits on the big day. Nothing can kill your St. Patty’s Day event faster than that. We already talked about disposable plates and cups for the day as well, so you won’t be running out of dishes.

You also want to be sure that you have listed some specials for the day. List them on a board or print out some special flyers. Be sure to offer some great grub to go with those drink specials and something special for the designated drivers as well.

Here’s to having a safe, happy, and profitable St. Patrick’s Day.