Tin Cook:
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!! This is EXTREMELY helpful to me. My one fear now is that the event is on a Sunday evening, and being a Kosher caterer, we are unable to cook on Shabbos (Friday sundown to Saturday sundown) -- do you think the fish would be okay if we made it on Friday during the day? I can't STAND reheated fish, but figure that since we're serving the salmon cold, it should do fine in the fridge for two days, but since I have never poached a whole fish before, I don't know this FOR SURE.
We have a clause in our contracts that specifies a final head count must be given two weeks before the event, after which time the head count can go up, but not down. And I DID learn the hard way about the importance of a deposit -- I'm glad to hear you say 50%, because that's what we ask for, and I was concerned that it might be on the high side.
Out of curiousity, do you have a standard contract that you would be willing to share with me? I am a "recovering attorney," and my husband (Sarada's business manager par excelence) is a working attorney, but neither of us had ever worked on a catering contract before I opened up my business, and there's been a lot of "learning on the job." In fact, if you pm me, I'll trade you the Sarada Signature Salmon recipe for a sample contract -- your gf will be putty in your hands after you make it for her, I promise!
Thanks again, friend!
Best,
Dawn