How to plan an event in Amsterdam: what to decide first

A Culinary Affair is a full-service culinary event agency based in Amsterdam. We organise corporate and private events for approximately 20 to 500 guests in Amsterdam and throughout the Netherlands, with one event coordinator as your central point of contact from the first idea to the last guest. Planning an event can involve dozens of decisions, but you do not need to make all of them before approaching an event agency. With the date, the approximate number of guests, the type and purpose of the event and, if you already have one, the location, we can begin developing the format and production around you.

Which decisions should you make first?

Four pieces of information are enough to start:

• The date – one confirmed date is ideal, but a few options are enough to begin. The date affects venue and supplier availability, staffing, seasonality and event timings, and popular dates, particularly in the Christmas and end-of-year season, can book early.
• The number of guests – an approximate number already helps determine the suitable venues, the event format, staffing, furniture, kitchen production and budget.
• The purpose – a client dinner, a product launch, a networking event, a company anniversary, a store or showroom opening, a team celebration, a Christmas party or kerstborrel, a wedding or a private dinner each calls for something different.
• The location – if you already have a venue, we assess it. If not, venue sourcing can be part of the event planning.

How does the number of guests shape the event?

The guest number does not need to be final, but it changes the format. A dinner for 20 guests can be a single table with shared dishes. A dinner for 150 guests often works best as a seated dinner with a service team planned per table. A reception for 400 guests works best with walking bites served by a large team. Guest lists keep changing during planning. We stay flexible and adapt the production as the event becomes more defined, and we confirm the final number as the event gets closer.

Which event format should you choose?

Instead of starting with what food you would like, start with why you are bringing these people together. The purpose shapes the format, because the right format depends on how you want guests to behave:

• Seated dinner – formal dinners and events with a detailed programme, speeches or presentations.
• Shared dining – a relaxed, social dinner where conversation around the table is central.
• Walking dinner – networking, product launches, Christmas parties and events where guests move through the room.
• Walking bites – receptions, arrivals and events where food supports another programme.

Different formats can also be combined over the course of one evening. Food should not be planned separately from the rest of the event: a speech can influence when a course leaves the kitchen, a product reveal may require service to stop for a moment, and a walking dinner changes the furniture plan. That is why the menu, programme, room plan, staffing and production are developed together. Read more in our guide to seated dinner, shared dining or walking dinner.

What do we check during a site visit?

We look not only at whether a space is beautiful, but whether it works operationally. At a professional venue, many practical requirements are already in place. At a home, office, estate or other non-traditional space, a site visit establishes what our team needs. We check:

• kitchen access, or a workable alternative if there is no professional kitchen
• preparation space and service routes
• delivery access and parking
• power and water
• furniture, and space for a tent if needed
• noise and neighbour considerations
• access for set-up and breakdown

A professional kitchen is not always essential. The purpose of a site visit is to identify limitations early and turn them into practical decisions.

Amsterdam venues we work with

Many clients start with the venue. These are three Amsterdam venues we work at, with very different characters.

Botanische Tuin Zuidas – Van der Boechorststraat 8, Amsterdam

A garden in the middle of Amsterdam's Zuidas business district, where A Culinary Affair has organised many events and is one of the recommended culinary partners. The glass-walled Wintertuin seats up to 60 guests for dinner from May to late October and 40 in winter, or accommodates standing receptions for up to 120 guests in summer and 80 in winter.

Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam – Plantage Middenlaan 2A, Amsterdam

A historic botanical garden in the city centre. We have organised a sustainable walking dinner in its Orangerie.

Huize Zonnewijzer – Valeriusplein, Amsterdam Oud-Zuid

A 1919 Amsterdam School villa, now home to the gallery and studio of artist Micky Hoogendijk, suited to walking dinners and receptions for up to 50 guests, or an intimate seated dinner for up to 12. These are examples rather than a fixed list. We can source other venues throughout Amsterdam and elsewhere in the Netherlands, based on the number of guests, the format and the atmosphere.

What role does the budget play?

Budget belongs in the first conversation, because it shapes the venue, the guest number, the food format, the menu, staffing, drinks, styling, rental materials and technical production. Discussing it early lets us develop a realistic proposal and suggest a venue that fits, instead of designing a concept that later has to be redone.

An example: from brief to corporate event

Imagine a company planning an autumn client dinner for 40 guests. It has the date and an approximate guest number, but no venue. In the first conversation we ask about the guests, the purpose, the atmosphere and the programme. We then suggest locations in Amsterdam and develop a proposal around the chosen venue, covering the format, a seasonal menu, drinks, styling, staffing and production. After approval, we refine the details together. On the day, one event coordinator manages the event from set-up through service to breakdown and clean-up. This is an illustration of how an event comes together, not a specific client.

What does A Culinary Affair take care of?

Every event starts with a conversation and a proposal made for that occasion rather than a standard package. A full-service culinary event agency coordinates the different parts of an event instead of asking you to manage each supplier. Depending on the project, we take care of:

• event planning and management
• venue sourcing and event format
• food prepared by our own chefs, including dietary requirements
• wines, cocktails, aperitifs and alcohol-free drinks
• chefs and service staff
• styling, mood boards, flowers and rental materials
• sound and lighting
• supplier coordination, delivery and logistics
• set-up, production on the day, breakdown and clean-up

So A Culinary Affair is not simply a caterer: our own chefs prepare the food, but we also manage the venue, drinks, staff, styling, rentals, suppliers, logistics and production on the day. For styling and rental materials we work with Héman Horeca Verhuur, for flowers with floral atelier AP Bloem, for sound and lighting with Sound2light and for wines with De Gouden Ton, a partnership of more than ten years. We brief the partners, coordinate delivery and set-up and make sure everything arrives in the right order at the right time, so you do not need to book the caterer, florist, rental company and lighting supplier separately. Styling is planned together with the menu and the venue, so everything guests see, taste and touch belongs to the same evening. We organise client dinners, receptions, product launches, store openings, networking events, company anniversaries, Christmas parties and team celebrations for companies, and weddings, birthdays, anniversaries and dinners at home for private clients. We are based in Amsterdam and work throughout the Netherlands, so the location does not have to be in the city.

What do I need to start planning?

Usually the date, the approximate number of guests, the type of event and the location if you know it. The guest number does not need to be final at the beginning.

Is A Culinary Affair a caterer or an event agency?

A Culinary Affair is a full-service culinary event agency. Our own chefs prepare the food, but we also manage the venue, drinks, staff, styling, rentals, suppliers, logistics and production on the day.

Do I need to book the caterer, florist, rental company and lighting supplier separately?

No. We coordinate these partners within one production, so you have one main point of contact.

Do I need a professional kitchen at the event location?

Not necessarily. At a venue the kitchen is usually in place. At a private location we check kitchen access, preparation space, power, water and deliveries during a site visit and find a workable solution.

Do you organise events outside Amsterdam?

Yes. We are based in Amsterdam and work throughout the Netherlands.

Planning an event in Amsterdam?

You do not need a finished plan before getting in touch. Send us the date, the approximate number of guests, the type of event and the location if you have one. From there, we will develop the venue, format, menu, drinks, styling, staffing and event production around your event.