In short
- The caterer usually brings a standard range of plates, cutlery and glasses.
- You hire separately when you want a particular style or when the caterer doesn't bring tableware (for example with a delivery-only service).
- Quantities depend on the menu: more courses and more wines mean more pieces per guest.
- Read the rules on breakages, missing items and washing carefully: they are almost always the hirer's responsibility.
A glass, a plate, a fork. Multiplied by every guest and every course, they become hundreds of pieces. Someone has to bring them, count them, wash them and take them away. This guide helps you understand what the caterer does, when it makes sense to hire, and what to check.
What the caterer brings
Most caterers who provide service bring:
- plates for each course (dinner, soup, dessert, bread);
- cutlery;
- glasses for water, wine and sparkling wine;
- buffet equipment: chafing dishes, cake stands, trays, tongs and serving cutlery;
- basic bar equipment.
The differences lie in the style. There are simple white ranges, coloured ceramics, stone plates, fine glassware, coloured glasses. Ask to see what is available. At the tasting you can ask to have your dish served in the range you have chosen.
When it makes sense to hire separately
| Situation | Why hire | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
| You want a specific style | The caterer doesn't have that range | Whether the caterer accepts outside tableware and who handles it |
| Delivery-only service | The food arrives without staff or tableware | Delivery, collection, washing |
| Party at home with few guests | You don't have enough matching pieces | Package deals, collection from home |
| Very large event | The caterer doesn't have all the pieces in stock | Whether they handle the hire and pass on the cost |
If you hire and the caterer serves, clarify who lays the tables, who clears them and who washes up during service. Otherwise you risk a pile of dirty plates with nobody to deal with them.
Quantities
Quantities depend on the menu. We don't give a fixed number, but the logic is simple: count every moment a guest uses a new piece.
- Aperitivo: glasses (often more than one each, because people put them down and lose them), small plates, napkins.
- Seated dinner: a set of cutlery and a plate for each course; one glass for water, one for each wine, one for sparkling wine.
- Buffet: plates and cutlery to replace, because many guests go back to the buffet with a fresh plate.
- Dessert and cake: dedicated small plates and forks.
- Coffee and digestifs: espresso cups, teaspoons, small glasses.
Ask the caterer to calculate the number for your menu, with spares. The spares cover breakages and extra guests. To estimate food and drink, read how much food per person.
Chafing dishes and buffet equipment
A chafing dish is a buffet food warmer: a container over a bath of hot water. It can be heated by a flame (gel or liquid fuel) or by an electric element.
Two things to know:
- a flame must be handled with care, especially outdoors in the wind or with children nearby. Some venues don't allow it: ask;
- electric warmers need sockets and enough power. In a garden or a farmhouse this must be planned.
The buffet also needs cake stands, boards, trays, cloches and chilled containers for raw dishes and desserts. The caterer usually brings them. If your buffet has a specific style, discuss it in advance. The guide to event styling with the caterer explains how to build the table and the service areas.
Disposables: when they make sense
For a picnic, a children's party in a garden or an outdoor event without a kitchen or washing-up, disposables can be practical. If you choose them:
- prefer compostable or recyclable materials;
- check how they must be disposed of under Rome's waste sorting rules (AMA's website has the details);
- bear in mind that not all disposable plates can hold hot or heavy food.
For a seated reception, a corporate dinner or a wedding, real tableware is almost always used.
Delivery, washing, collection
Hire proper has precise rules. Ask:
- delivery and collection times, compatible with the venue (in the historic centre they also depend on the ZTL, the restricted traffic zone, and loading times: read the guide to catering in the historic centre);
- who counts the pieces on arrival and on collection;
- how the equipment must be returned: washed, rinsed or dirty, and the cost of each of the three options;
- packaging: crates and containers must be kept for collection, and they take up space.
Breakages and missing items
The hirer almost always pays. Before you sign, check:
- the per-item cost for broken or missing glasses, plates and cutlery;
- whether there is an excess or a percentage of breakages already allowed for;
- whether a security deposit is required;
- who is responsible if the caterer's staff break something.
Count the pieces on delivery and photograph the crates. At the end, have the caterer count before leaving.
Glasses and wine
Glasses deserve a section of their own. A suitable glass helps serve a Lazio wine well, such as a white from the Castelli or a Cesanese red: we cover this in the guide to Lazio wines for events. Ask whether the caterer has different glasses for white, red and sparkling, or uses a single all-purpose glass. With an open bar you also need tumblers and cocktail glasses, and lots of them: guests put their glass down and pick up a new one.
Questions to ask the caterer
- Which tableware, cutlery and glasses are included?
- Can I see the ranges available? Are there alternatives?
- How many pieces do you calculate for my menu? With what spares?
- Do you accept tableware I hire myself? Who handles it during service?
- Do you use flame or electric chafing dishes? Does the venue allow them?
- Who washes and who takes away the equipment?
- Who pays for breakages caused by your staff?
To finish
Tableware and glassware are a small item in the price but a big one in the overall look. Ask for a written list, see the ranges in person and decide who is responsible for each piece. For tables, chairs, lights and other equipment, read event equipment hire; for all the services around the food, the guide to catering add-on services.
If you are organising a party at home or in a garden, see the private party caterers. When you have the guest count and the menu, request a quote and ask for the tableware to be listed separately.
Sources
- AMA Roma, waste sorting: https://www.amaroma.it
