Many times organizers will be holding themed events and they expect the chef to be able to adapt the food to the theme. This is where the creativity factor comes in. If you as a chef are not comfortable with this, then you should be somewhat selective when picking banquet chef jobs. In your job interview, you could ask how often, if ever, this type of situation comes up. You may find that the majority of the banquet chef's duties will be weddings. Although this too will require some creativity, it usually remains basic. The banquet establishment will usually have a set menu of four or five options the customer can choose from. This makes food preparation simple for the banquet chef and in many cases boring too. It is common for most chefs to want to be creative.
A Hawaiian theme is a very common and popular theme for a banquet. This means that the banquet chef will have to design a menu that is pertinent to the theme and then set a price per plate of food or per person. Then it will have to be decided if the dinner is going to be a buffet or a sit-down meal. There are pros and cons to each of these choices as far as the preparation and presentation goes.
If it is a buffet, it usually means a larger selection of foods, starting from appetizers, soups, and salads, to the main course, down to the deserts, as well as beverages. The same is expected in a sit-down banquet, but it may not require as many varieties of foods.
When applying for banquet chef jobs you can give yourself a better chance if you are well versed in international cuisine, particularly if the place that you are applying to does a fair amount of themed banquets.
Not only should a banquet chef be well versed in international cuisines, he or she should know about traditional foods of different eras as well. For example, if the theme is the medieval Renaissance period, then you will have to be aware of the popular foods of that time, how they were prepared, and how they were served. It is one of the banquet chef jobs to make the banquet as authentic and as realistic as possible. This is what will help the chef be noticed and build his reputation. If the customers are highly pleased with their themed banquet, no doubt they will make it known to the management and the dinner host may become a permanent customer. This kind of recognition certainly goes a long way. In addition, who knows, maybe even a raise will be forthcoming.
When you are applying for banquet chef jobs, you will also need to know if you will be responsible for the décor of any themed banquets. Most often, there is a separate staff that looks after this. In any case, it will most likely be your job to dress the table accordingly. This means you must research more than just the food.
Convention center jobs are somewhat different. These are usually business-type banquets and these can be equally easily buffet or sit-down meals. You need to be well trained and hopefully somewhat experienced when it comes to seeking out convention center jobs. Normally there won't be themed banquets. Much like the wedding scenario, there is often a set menu for the convention banquets. This makes the banquet chefs jobs much easier. One of the main concerns will be the preparation of large amounts of food that must be served at a designated time, yet remain hot, fresh, and appetizing. This is often one of the biggest challenges that a banquet chef faces in relation to convention center jobs.
If a banquet chef is required to prepare an offsite banquet, it can be a little more stressful. It is normal to become comfortable in your own work environment, and doing a banquet outside of here is sort of like trying to cook in someone else's kitchen. If you do these on a regular basis though, you will quickly adapt to the changes.
