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!

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

http://www.occasions-catering.com/

Sponsored by The Phoenix Inn

www.phoenixinn.com

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...

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.

Occasions keepin' their brides & vendors happy!!!

This comment was sent from a photographer who worked with us on a recent event -
the Hess/Christensen Wedding on 8/29/10 at Laurel Creek Manor...thank you Darel!

"Your staff did an excellent job...well planned, executed and presented.
Photographing weddings with such obvious professionalism is extra
pleasureable. Until next time..."
Owner & Senior Photographer
Darel Roa Photography - since 1974
Serving the South Sound from Edgewood, WA

Anytime Punch

We hope you're enjoying summer!



Occasions is busy trying to keep our brides & grooms cool & happy during this busy and HOT wedding season! We're doing that by giving them LOTS of our refreshing punch...here's our recipe to use when you need an easy new beverage to cool off with. ENJOY!

'Anytime Punch'

1 lg. can pineapple juice

1 can cream of coconut

1 lg. bottle of 7-Up

Ice

Combine pineapple juice, cream of coconut,

7-Up and ice in container. Serve in

fun summer glasses garnished with

mint leaves or fruit of your choice.

(for an adult beverage, may add rum.)

What one happy mother of the bride had to say...

"Thank you so much for the excellent meal and service. Everyone had a wonderful time and all were impressed with the food. Your staff was efficient, while hardly seen, and were friendly and helpful. We all felt like royalty for a day! As mother of the bride, I was able to relax and enjoy the event knowing everything was completely taken care of."

Sincerely,

Margot & Randy Brand

Happy 4th of July!

Are you entertaining a 4th of July crowd, but are overwhelmed with the idea of pulling it all together? No worries. It doesn't have to be fancy or expensive to be fun! Here are some tips...

1. Use colored paper plates/napkins/cups to bring out a color theme.

2. Visit your local discount store & get some of those little flags we all like to wave at parades.

3. Fill clear jam jars or votive cups (also found at a discount store) with sand, put flags inside, and cluster together as little centerpieces.

4. Change up your burgers & dogs by offering different types of condiments...how about Tex/Mex stuff like salsa & quacamole, or Hawaiian ingredients like pineapple slices and a sweeter sauce?

5. Who doesn't LOVE old fashioned sugar cookies??? Something as simple as star cut-outs with red/white/blue sprinkles make all the difference on a pretty platter.

6. Not into cutting cookies out? We hear 'ya...how about simple cupcakes made festive with patriotic food picks?

7. For a more elegant dessert like in the picture shown, a simple vanilla pudding, cheesecake mix or ice cream with berries poured over the top makes a show stopper your guests will think you worked on for hours!

Those are just a few ideas to get you thinking, but the possibilities are ENDLESS! The most important part of any holiday is enjoying it with your family & friends...

Have a "Safe & Happy 4th of July Celebration!!!"


FOOD Quote:

Good food ends with good talk. ~ Geoffrey Neighbor

'Green' News & Corn Tidbits!

All of our 'dumpster diving' has paid off! Occasions Catering was recently recognized as a top honoree for 2009 with the Green Business Distinction from the Thurston County Chamber. Woohoo!

When you plan your summer picnic with us, the grilled corncob won't be your only corn source...did you know our eco-friendly flatware is made of, you guessed it, CORN??? We'll make sure we've got plenty of the cob kind tho' so you don't have to nosh on your fork.

FOOD Quote:

Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie. ~Jim Davis