Wednesday, May 9, 2012

It's easy to be green


  With the wedding season around the corner many couples are thinking of ways to have an environmentally sound wedding. There are several things to consider when working towards a “green” celebration. Wedding invitations on recycled paper, locally grown flowers and greens, organic and local food, guests served on compostable paper plates, and flatware made of corn, all are environmentally sensitive. Do we just use proper china and glassware? What considerations do we make regarding the companies we use?  All of these are very valid questions in today’s green environment.
  Currently on the market, are any number of products that go a long way toward helping a wedding produce less waste. There are compostable paper plates, flatware and drink ware made of corn, as well as compostable napkins. Some of these products are even made from a large percentage of post-consumer recycled paper. The use of china, silverware and glassware is the obvious choice in the pursuit of a green wedding. Not only does their use save trees but also the fuel necessary to produce and transport the paper products. Your caterer should have a selection of service ware available for use in addition to a relationship with a vendor that rents service ware.   
  Occasions Catering & Special Events is a catering company that works hard to be a green company from the office to the kitchen to on-site catered events.  They have received a green company designation from Puget Sound Energy and continue to strive to find new ways to protect the environment.
 In the office, that translates into using recycled paper for printing, lighting with low energy bulbs, heating and cooling the building with an efficient system and using several trash bins at each desk. The various bins are used to sort trash into recycling, compost and non-recyclables.
Compost and recycling bins at the Fresh Food in Schools Summit  The kitchen utilizes Le May’s compost program for food waste as well as recycling packaging and paper towels. At each event catered by Occasions, a green compost bin for food waste and compostable paper and corn products are available.                The alley way behind Occasions is lined with a variety of trash containers in which items are sorted for recycling.  A catering company can produce a lot of trash, packaging, plastic bags, cans and bottles, as well paper and food waste. By taking advantage of the recycling and composting   programs available to them, Occasions puts roughly         pounds less garbage in the land fill annually.
While not romantic thoughts, composting and recycling are valid concerns when choosing a company to be part of your wedding celebration.  

Monday, October 24, 2011

Autumn Treats



EASY FALL HORS D’OEUVRES
Every fall, the creative juices start to run at Occasions. It’s time for new recipes, menus, and inspiration. THIS inspiration is our gift to you! Surprise your friends and family with an old idea gone MUCH BETTER. You can size it up or down. It’s inexpensive. It doesn’t take much time. You can innovate to make your prep time even less. It’s delicious with a glass of wine or hot cider.


MUCH BETTER PRETZELS AND DIPS
You will need:
- 1 lb. bag of Rold Gold Pretzels- Tiny Twists (the curled ones that almost look like hearts)
- 3 dips- recipes follow
- 3 mini pumpkins- different sizes. Put one pumpkin at a time in the microwave for 1.5 minutes. The cooking will soften the pumpkin just enough to allow you to cut into the top of the pumpkin without damaging your bodily parts. Remove the lid and seeds, scraping a little of the pumpkin meat out as well. The larger pumpkins will take 3-4 minutes. Cool your pumpkin containers before filling with dips.
- A flat basket to hold the pretzels and dips


We LOVE these dip recipies! You won’t believe how good they taste with the pretzels: (However, for speedy prep time, you can buy pre-made dips or make other types of dips. e.g.: Hot Mustard Dip, Onion Dip (recipe on back of the onion soup box), Artichoke Dip, etc.)


Wine-Cheese Dip:
2 cups sour cream (lite if you want)
2 t. garlic powder
2 t. onion powder
2 t. dried parsley
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1 cup shredded cheese
½ cup white wine (or beer!)
Mix all together and chill.

Cranberry-Honey Dip
1- 16 oz. can cranberry sauce
¼ c. honey
2 t. vinegar
½ t. ground ginger
½ t. stone ground mustard
1/8 t. ground cinnamon
1/8 t. pepper
In saucepan, combine ingredients, whisk over medium heat until smoothish. Chill.

Dijon-Bacon Dip
1 c. mayonnaise
½ c. Dijon
1/3 c. bacon bits or cooked bacon, crumbled (Save a tablespoon for garnish over the dip once it’s in the pumpkin.)
1-2 T. horseradish
Mix all together. Chill.


Put your dips in the cooled pumpkins and surround with the pretzels. Dig in. Yum. Yum. Yum.

Tip: Change the pumpkins to gold bowls and brighten-up your winter holiday party.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

The Legislators are HERE!

Olympia is a buzz with all the Legislators & Lobbyists back in town! Instantly, Olympia is bustling, and our fantastic restuarants are swamped at lunchtime. Also busy is the Occasions kitchen as it prepares for the many receptions and Capitol Campus luncheons.

An annual tradition is the Legislative Welcome Day that the Thurston County Chamber does...everyone gets together to stuff bags with goodies, and then delivers them to the Capitol offices. It's lots of fun for those of us doing the bag stuffing, but is no doubt most fun for the recipients!

Thank you Legislators & Lobbyists for all your hard work!

Friday, December 10, 2010

Christmas at Occasions

Along with 'delicious food graciously presented', we clearly have a poet in our midst with Kathy, our Supervisor to all the Occasions leads & servers. Kathy is a constant and calming presence in any situation, and we love her! Check out her heartfelt holiday poem about our team below...



T'was weeks before Christmas, and all thru the shop, chefs played the old game of 'Chop 'til You Drop'.

Big knives or small - just tools of the trade, as they perfectly diced each specialty made.

The cookbook they no longer need to employ, as they stirred up their tidings of comfort and joy!

The dishwasher ran with an outrageous hum, like the drummer boy's beat - a - rum-a-tum-tum!

In the office the phones rang a tempo of cheer, while the staff wondered how we will get through this year.

As 'How many vegans?' - 'Your guest count went where?' - 'Yes we deliver!' echoed in the air.

Some dates for the parties were booked in advance, but last minute callers were taking a chance - that we might have the time and servers enough, to grant them our help when their schedules got tough.

We said yes to their wishes and yes to their menu, and even provided a most festive venue - for the Heritage Room, just painted anew, silently awaited its Christmas debut.

The stagers were busy "twice checking" each list, carefully packing so nothing got missed; all linens and fabrics, the flatware and dishes, selected according to each client's wishes.

The servers were scheduled for every event, and loading the vans to the jobs they all went - to bring food to the hungry and smiles to the guests, who tasted each flavor and knew they were blessed -

For of all the caterers in the Northwest, Occasions was known as the best of the best!

With festivities over, the service crew flew - with their hands full of glasses and silverware too.

They swept all the floors, stacked the chairs chimney high, then turned to the lead who smiled with a sigh, "The crates are all packed, every saucer and cup. The lights are all out. Get the van started up!"

And the servers all sang as they drove out of sight "HEALTHY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD BITE!"

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERY ONE!

Monday, November 22, 2010

Breakfast with Santa

OCCASIONS CATERING & SPECIAL EVENTS
presents:

"BREAKFAST WITH SANTA"

Saturday, December 11, 2010




Join Santa from 9:00AM to 11:30AM for a fun morning with holiday activites, prizes and a delicious family friendly holiday buffet.


Ticket Prices:$10.00 Adults, $7.00 Child 4-12, and under 3 FREE.


Tickets may be purchased by calling Occasions at: 1.877.943.9494


A portion of the proceeds will go to the Boys & Girls Club of Thurston County.
Funds raised wil help support close to 2,000 low income and at-risk youth which
the clubs serve through their afterschool programs at four clubs in
Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater and Rochester.

Thank you to our participating vendors who are donating their time and resources
to make this a successful event:
Holiday Music by Music De-Lite
Photos with Santa by Dinea de Photo
(Pictures with Santa can be purchased deparately)
AA Party Rentals

Address to the Heritage Room: 604 Water Street Olympia, WA
Located on the corner of Water St. & Legion Way

Boys & Girls Club Thurston County - 360.956.0755/www.bgctc.org

Hosted by Occasions Catering & Special Events

Sponsored by The Phoenix Inn
www.phoenixinn.com
















Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Busy Busy Busy!!!

Our first Occasional Tasting event of the season was amazing with nearly 70 guests in attendance! We appreciate so much the vendors who shared the evening with us...'thank you' Robert from Music De-Lite, Colleen from Lynch Creek Floral, Dinea from Dinea de Phot0, and Suzi from Black Tie Espresso. Thank you also to the vendors who shared product but were not personally there...AA Party Rentals, Trendy Events and Celebrity Cake Studio.

We're onto the next thing...Breakfast with Santa on Saturday, December 11 at our venue the Heritage Room! For more info please visit our website @ http://www.occasions-catering.com/

A couple comments from happy clients:
Staff was very attentive and well organized. Food was FABULOUS! Everyone
complimented the choice and how good it was. Common comment was 'that was the best
wedding I have ever attended, it went so smooth, was fun and relaxing. ~ Mary Looker,
Mother of the Bride

Ashley, you and your team did a great job with our event. I was amazed at how quickly &
efficiently everything came together. The food was excellent with RAVE reviews for
the appetizers - especially the Salmon Torte, Chicken Skewers and even the sweet rolls that
accompanied the Hawaiian Sandwiches. Strawberry Lemonade was a BIG hit! Thanks
again for making this a memorable event. ~ Jane, Mother of the Bride

I wanted to take a moment and sincerely thank you for an excellent job. You truly are a gem
in the industry, as such prompt, customized service and genuine people are hard to find.
We fully plan to use you in the future. The food was delicious, the service spot on, and I can
tell you as well as your employees truly care about what you do. Thank you again.
~ Alexis Stanton, Olympic Pipeline Company

We just wanted to let you know that our wedding was amazing. The Occasions staff for the
event was great. Everyone was so attentive & professional. We couldn't have asked for
anything more. Please pass on our gratitude to everyone that participated in our day.
Thanks again! ~ Dave & Heidi Hoadly, Bride & Groom

We love supporting local businesses, and are enjoying the wonderful ciders that Lattin's on Rich Rd. in Lacey put out each fall. We use them in our fruit smoothies, and have lots of flavors to pick from this time of year. Blackberry was a hit at last week's Thurston County Chamber Business Showcase!

Stay tuned for more exciting news...

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Fall has arrived at Occasions!!!

Our 'Occasional Tasting' event menu is ready for the kitchen!

The summer has been CRAAAAAAAZY, but we are so excited for our first 'Occasional Tasting' event on September 28th!!! Putting the menu together was a blast, and we can't wait to show it off.

Please check out our website http://www.occasions-catering.com/ for more info about it.