In short
- Catering: food and drink prepared for an event, even if simply delivered.
- Banqueting: the complete banquet, with kitchen, front-of-house staff, set-up and timing.
- Every banqueting service contains catering. The reverse is not true.
- In Rome many companies do both and present themselves as "catering e banqueting": what counts is what is in the quote.
The two words are often used as synonyms, even on companies' websites. They are not. The difference comes down to one simple question: who lays the tables, who serves and who keeps the party on schedule? If the answer is "the supplier", you are buying a banqueting service.
The definitions, plainly
Catering comes from the English to cater, to supply food. It means preparing and supplying food and drink for an event away from the restaurant. It can be a delivery of platters to an office, a buffet brought to a home and left on the table, or a lunch for a hundred people with a few staff on the buffet.
Banqueting is the English word for organising the banquet. Italian dictionaries define it as a business activity that consists of organising large banquets and formal lunches, looking after every detail. Catering is inside it, but so is everything around the plate: room, tables, staff, timing.
To understand the origin of the word and what the service covers, read what banqueting is.
Who does what: the comparison table
| Item | Catering | Banqueting |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen | Prepared in a central kitchen, sometimes finished on site | Often cucina espressa (dishes finished on site) |
| Delivery | Yes, it is the heart of the service | Yes, but it is only the start |
| Front-of-house staff | None or few (buffet attendants) | Maître d', waiters, bartenders, often a sommelier |
| Set-up | Usually not, or only the buffet table | Tables, linen, crockery, glasses, mise en place |
| Typical format | Platters, buffet, finger food, boxes | Table service, food stations, mixed formats |
| Timing | The client | The banquet manager, with you and the venue |
| Set-up and take-down | Minimal | Included or quoted separately |
| Suited to | Parties at home, offices, rinfreschi | Weddings, gala dinners, conferences |
The table describes typical cases. In practice the two blend: a caterer can add two waiters, a banqueting company can also do a simple delivery.
How Roman companies use the words
Reading the home pages of caterers in Rome to prepare this guide, the expression "catering e banqueting" comes up often. It usually means the company works on two levels:
- catering for small or informal events: coffee breaks, office lunches, parties at home, rinfreschi (light buffets served after a ceremony);
- banqueting for complete receptions: weddings in villas, gala dinners, corporate events with hundreds of guests.
The problem is that the word "banqueting" on its own tells you nothing precise. Some use it to mean they can handle large numbers, others to say they bring linen and mise en place, others again as an elegant label. That is why it pays to look at the facts: how many people work at the event, what they bring, who coordinates.
When you need catering
Catering is enough when the event is simple and you, or the venue, take care of the rest. A few examples:
- Birthday at home in Monteverde with 25 friends: platters of finger food, filled pizza bianca, a cake. You lay the table.
- Working lunch in an office at EUR: individual boxes or a cold buffet delivered at noon.
- Rinfresco after a christening in a parish hall: delivered buffet, one or two staff for a couple of hours.
- Aperitivo on a terrace in Trastevere: finger food and drinks, with a separate bartender if you want cocktails.
For these cases you will find ideas and quantities in the guide to catering at home in Rome and in the one on food quantities per person.
When you need banqueting
Banqueting is needed when the event has several stages, many seated guests or a venue that has to be set up from scratch.
- Wedding in a farmhouse on the Appia Antica with 150 guests: aperitivo in the garden, served dinner, dessert buffet, open bar. You need a field kitchen, front-of-house staff, laid tables and someone to keep time with the photographer and the music.
- Corporate gala dinner in a palazzo in the centre: service synchronised across tables, speeches on stage, toasts.
- Conference in a conference centre: welcome coffee, coffee breaks in shifts, lunch for hundreds of people in an hour.
- Bar mitzvah with a kosher menu and rabbinical supervision: you need kitchen, staff and control of the whole supply chain.
For weddings, read banqueting for weddings in Rome. For companies, corporate banqueting and conferences.
The grey area: catering with service
Between the two extremes there is a very common format: catering with staff. The supplier brings the food and sends one or more waiters, but does not set up the room or coordinate the event. It is a common format for parties of a few dozen people at home or in a garden.
This is where misunderstandings arise. The quote says "service included", but what does that mean? Two waiters for three hours, or a team for the whole evening? Does the caterer bring plates and glasses, or do you have to hire them? Ask in writing. The guide on how many waiters you need helps you judge whether the number proposed is adequate.
What changes in the quote
A catering quote and a banqueting quote compare poorly, because they buy different things. The first is mostly food and delivery. The second adds items that weigh heavily:
- front-of-house staff, by role and by hours;
- hire of linen, crockery, glasses, tables and chairs;
- field kitchen and equipment;
- set-up, take-down, transport;
- event coordination.
The final cost depends on guests, format, menu and venue: there is no fixed price for "banqueting". To read the items one by one, use the guide on how to read a catering quote.
Questions to ask the caterer
- For my event, are you proposing a catering service, with staff, or full banqueting?
- How many people will work at the event, and in which roles?
- Who coordinates the timing on the day, and will they be there from start to finish?
- Do you bring linen, crockery, glasses, tables and chairs? What is left to me?
- Is the food cooked on site or do the dishes arrive ready-made?
- Are set-up and take-down included? Until what time?
- Have you already worked at this venue?
To sum up
Catering brings you the food. Banqueting brings you the banquet: food, room, people and direction. Choose according to the type of event, not the word on the website. To go deeper into service formats, read about the types of banqueting service and, to choose the supplier, how to choose a banqueting company. You can also browse the list of caterers in Rome and, when you have a date and guests, request a quote from several companies.
