With the arrival of the month of May comes an important holiday for foodies: Mother’s Day. For restaurants and home cooks alike, Mother’s Day is a big deal--one of the ways that we all seem to agree is best for showing we care about our mothers is to take some of the burden of cooking off of them. Whether the decision is to take Mom out to brunch or a fancy dinner, or to cook up something at home and take care of the clean-up afterwards, restaurant supply stores have great options for making a special Mother’s Day event happen.
For restaurants, Mother’s Day can represent a big bump in business, since so many people opt to take their Moms out for a good meal to celebrate the day. Brunches are particularly popular, since it’s a way to start the celebration early in the day, and still incorporate a fancy cocktail to make things feel special. On the other end of the business day, dinner is also popular--since it’s sometimes easier for people to gather in the evening, and since Mother’s Day is on a Sunday. Of course, this means that restaurants and catering companies alike should be prepared for the spike in business; a prix fixe menu would be an excellent thing to plan for the day, to make an option available for those looking to celebrate on a budget as well as to cut down on kitchen chaos. Good options for a Mother’s Day prix fixe menu include seasonal fruits and veggies in an appetizer, something luxurious for the main, and a decadent dessert: so think of salads and seasonal soups to start patrons off, and a special pasta dish or cream-sauced main course. Of course, there aren’t a whole lot of women who don’t appreciate a delicious chocolate dessert, but just in case of allergies, consider an option with fresh spring berries as well.
For the stay-at-home celebrants, it’s easy to plan a beautiful Mother’s Day celebration with a little bit of advance thought and--in some cases--a few smart restaurant supply store purchases. Breakfast in bed is always a popular option; an easy way to accomplish a low-stress breakfast would be to settle on a somewhat elegant casserole, like a French toast bake, or hashbrown casserole. Of course, if you really want to shoot for the stars, there’s nothing like a well-made eggs benedict, orange juice, coffee, and fruit. With the right equipment, it’s easy to make something like this not only happen but come across with a level of ease and beauty that will make it a true success.
The important things to keep in mind, no matter what kind of celebration you’re working on planning for Mother’s Day, are to keep things relatively simple: stick with tried-and-true recipes and concepts that don’t require a huge amount of fussing, and plan to prepare in advance, even for surprises. For restaurants, making sure to place a slightly larger order than usual is a good move: while it’s hard to predict the extent to which traffic will increase on the day itself, there’s almost certainly going to be a boost to numbers, and it would not reflect well on the restaurant to run out. Incorporating a fixed-price menu into the lineup for the event would be a good idea because it’s easier to plan for a ballpark estimate of specific dishes that will be made, and keep cost-per-plate at a set budget; it also means that there’s less risk of a bump in traffic to the restaurant resulting in running out of staples. For those celebrants staying at home to pay tribute to Mom, it’s a good idea to do a dry run at least a few days before you plan the big meal, to make sure you can keep things clean and get things done in the time frame you’re planning on.
Mother’s Day comes every year, but it’s an important day for all of us to recognize the women in our lives that help to keep us fed--body and soul. Whatever form of celebration you are working on for the mothers in your life or clientele, put a little bit of thought into the planning, and make sure you have the right supplies and tools, and you can make something really special.
