Event Style Options

The Whittemore House offers its clients three styles of package events from which to choose. Packages are offered for four hours. Please review these style options and think carefully about what type of menu best suits your event.

Seated Dinner

Seated Dinners offer the most structure of the three options available. Our Seated Dinner Packages consist of three courses. The first course - an appetizer or salad course, an entrée course and a dessert course which is typically wedding cake and coffee service for a wedding, or a predetermined dessert and coffee for all other special events. Wine is normally offered at the table. Should you wish to offer your guests a choice of entrees, please limit your choices to two selections. Vegetarian options are available. Cocktails usually precede Seated Dinners for 45 minutes to one hour. Hors d'oeuvres may be passed during the cocktail hour for an additional charge. On package Seated Dinners, there is seating for every guest with eight to ten guests to each table. If you wish to have less than ten seated at your table, additional labor charges will incur due to hiring more servers.

Buffet Seated Dinner

Buffet Seated Dinners have structure much like a seated dinner. Buffet Seated Dinners offer as much service staff as a Seated Dinner with additional staff to tend to the buffet. This style offers a variety of foods and more than one entrée, i.e. beef and salmon, as well as many choices for accompaniments to the meal. Vegetarian options can be incorporated into your menu selection. Wine is normally offered at the table, with dessert and coffee following the meal as the usual course of service. There is a place set for each guest with glassware and silverware. Occasionally, silverware may be available on the buffet as opposed to being set at the table. Cocktails are usually offered for 45 minutes to one hour prior to your Buffet opening. Hors d'oeuvres may be passed during the cocktail hour for an additional charge. On package Buffet Seated Dinners, there is seating for every guest with ten guests to each table. If you wish to have less than ten seated at your table, additional labor charges will incur due to hiring more servers.

Buffet Cocktail Reception

Buffet Cocktail Receptions are the least structured of the three options and are a wonderful way to entertain for those who desire a more "party type" atmosphere. This style of event is not meant to provide seating for all of your guests. The Buffet is ready and available to your guests upon arrival and allows your guests to mix and mingle freely and eat when they are ready. It is also the most economical.

The Buffet Cocktail Reception provides your guests with a variety of foods and generally consists of two heavier items such as sandwiches with a balance of hot and cold heavy hors d'oeuvres. They are substantial enough to be dinner but all items are of the finger food variety, with no utensils needed. The buffet menu items are usually available on the buffet for two hours. Hors d'oeuvres are typically not passed on this style of event; however, you may elect to do so for an additional charge. Passing Hors d'oeuvres does not delay the availability of the buffet upon guest arrival. Seating is provided for one half to two thirds of your guests depending on the location. Tables may be reserved for family members as requested but there is no "head table" designated. For those who are interested in seating all of the invited guests, a Seated Dinner of Buffet Seated Dinner would be the better option.

Final Counts

A final guest count is a very important part of your planning process. The guest count is the number of confirmed guests you will be having at your event. It is the number by which the Executive Chef orders the food for your event; the number your planner hires staff from and the number that the warehouse bases all of the necessary equipment to order for your event. It is imperative that we have an accurate guest count seven (7) business days prior to your event. It is at this point that final decisions and orders are placed. You may not subtract from this number. You may add guests within the next 24 hours without penalty, however, anything closer than that will incur extra service charges to accommodate the change. This is due to several factors: the quality of product may no longer be available from the supplier and other arrangements will have to be made, extra staff will need to be hired, and extra rental equipment may need to be procured - usually from an outside source. So please be diligent regarding your final guest count. Make sure you allow enough time for your guests to respond.