The catering timeline: what to book, confirm and deliver, and when

A good catering timeline is mostly about deciding things in the right order. Hosts who struggle are rarely late; they are doing the day-of tasks in week one and the week-one tasks on the day. Here is the schedule I have settled on after years of feeding offices, weddings and backyard parties across north Dallas, written as a checklist you can follow from the first email to the last plate.

The short answer: Book the caterer as soon as the date and rough headcount exist, typically two to four weeks ahead for a party and further out for holidays. Confirm the final headcount and menu about a week before, and confirm the address, delivery window and contact the day before. On the day, have the serving area ready thirty minutes before the food arrives.

That is the skeleton. The sections below put flesh on it: what belongs in each stage, what can wait, and the handful of mistakes that make the last hour frantic.

Stage one: the day you know the date

The moment a date exists, send the request. You do not need a final headcount, a menu or even a firm address. You need a date, a rough number and a time of day. At Maggie’s I read and price every request myself and usually answer the same business day, so the earlier you write, the earlier you have a real number to plan around.

Why so early? Two reasons. First, popular dates fill: Friday lunches, Saturday afternoons, and every weekend in the run-up to Thanksgiving and Christmas. Second, an early quote turns a vague worry into a line in your budget. My article on how far in advance to order catering gives lead times by event size, but if you remember one thing, remember that asking early costs nothing and waiting costs options.

What to send in that first message: the date, the window you want the food to arrive, the rough headcount, the city, and whether it is lunch, dinner or a snack alongside other food. A line about the occasion helps too; an office training day and a quinceañera reception want different menus even at the same headcount.

Stage two: two to three weeks out, choose the menu

With a quote in hand, settle the menu. For most groups this is a short conversation: pork tamales in red salsa, chicken tamales in green salsa, and whether you want rice, beans, chips and salsas alongside, or burritos for an office lunch. The tamale menu shows the delivery prices, and at $5 per tamal the arithmetic is quick: two per person for lunch, three for dinner, one or two if there is other food.

This is also the stage to ask about dietary needs. Our tamales use gluten-free corn masa and chicken breast, which covers a lot of guests, and I will tell you frankly what we can and cannot promise for others. Ask about other fillings now if your order is large; the closer to the date, the fewer options a kitchen has.

Decide the service style, too. Buffet-style needs serving spoons, salsas and crema, which we bring on request. Individually boxed lunches need a name list or at least a count per filling. Neither is hard, but both are easier to plan at week three than at hour three.

The full catering timeline at a glance

Here is the whole schedule in one table. The lead times are what I recommend for a typical party or office event in Richardson, Plano or the surrounding suburbs; holidays and events over a hundred guests should shift everything earlier by a week or two.

If your event is on our holiday tamales calendar, the weeks before Thanksgiving and Christmas fill first, so slide the whole table earlier and treat the first row as urgent.

Stage three: one week out, confirm the numbers

About a week before, send me the final headcount. This is the number that sets the dozens, the sides and the delivery window on the finished quote. A few habits make this stage painless:

1. Count in dozens. Forty guests at lunch is eighty tamales, which is seven dozen with four to spare. Round up, never down.
2. Keep a small buffer. I suggest a dozen extra for every twenty people of uncertainty on your RSVP list. Leftover tamales freeze well; a missing tamal does not.
3. Settle the split. Half chicken and half pork suits most crowds. Lean toward chicken for spice-shy or younger groups.
4. Name the on-site contact. One phone number the driver can call, belonging to someone who will actually be there and not in the middle of a toast.

Any change after this point is still possible in most cases, but the cutoff for your order is on the quote, so read it. If the number is still moving, say so; I would rather plan for a range than be surprised.

Stage four: the day before, confirm the logistics

The day before is not about food. It is about the fifteen minutes between our truck arriving and your guests eating. Reconfirm the address with the suite or building number, the gate code, which door to use, where to park, and the delivery window. If the event is in a business park in Frisco or an apartment clubhouse in Dallas, a driver who has never been there needs those details more than you would think. Our Frisco and Dallas catering pages describe how we handle windows in each area.

The delivery window itself deserves thought. For a lunch that starts at noon, I like to arrive between 11:15 and 11:45 so the pans are on the table, opened and steaming when the first person walks in. For a dinner reception, arrival about thirty minutes before the buffet opens works the same way. My piece on scheduling a catering delivery window goes deeper, including what to do when the ceremony runs long.

Finally, check the serving area. You need a table with a clear surface, room for the pans, plates and napkins at the start of the line, and salsas and toppings at the end. If you plan to hold food for a second wave of guests, have a chafing dish or a large pot ready.

Stage five: delivery day, minute by minute

Here is how the last hour goes when it goes well. Thirty minutes before the window, the serving table is set and the drinks are out. When we arrive, our team brings the food to the table, hot, labeled by filling, with serving spoons, salsas and crema if you asked for them. You check the labels against the order, count the pans, and open them. Within fifteen to twenty minutes, people are eating.

Two small things make a big difference. Put the tamales at the front of the line and the toppings at the end, so the line moves and nobody stands over the salsa deciding. And keep the pans covered between waves; a foil lid holds heat for a surprisingly long time. I wrote a short checklist for the moment the truck pulls up in what to do when catering arrives.

If anything is off, call the kitchen right away. We are a small family operation and I answer the phone during kitchen hours, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 9 AM to 2 PM. Our catering FAQ covers reheating, storage and the other questions that come up once the party is over.

Ready to put your event on the calendar?

Whether it is an office lunch for thirty next Friday or a graduation party for a hundred next month, Maggie’s can walk you through this timeline and hold your date. Send me the date, the rough headcount and the city, and I will reply with a menu and a price the same day so the rest of the schedule falls into place. Start your catering timeline with a quote and I will take it from there.

Frequently asked questions

What is a typical catering timeline for a party?

Book as soon as you have a date, typically two to four weeks ahead for a party and earlier for holidays. Choose the menu two to three weeks out, confirm the final headcount about a week before, reconfirm the address and delivery window the day before, and have the serving table ready thirty minutes before the food arrives. Larger events shift each step earlier.

When should I give my caterer the final headcount?

About a week before the event is comfortable for most caterers and gives the kitchen time to plan batches and delivery routes. Send a rough number with your first request, then a firm number at the one-week mark. Small changes after that are often possible, but the exact cutoff for your order is written on your quote, so read it and call early if the number is still moving.

How early should catering arrive before the event starts?

For hot, ready-to-serve food such as tamales, about thirty minutes before eating begins is ideal. That leaves time to set the pans out, check the labels and open the line without the food sitting so long that it cools. For a noon lunch, ask for a window of roughly 11:15 to 11:45. For a reception, count back thirty minutes from when the buffet opens.

What should I confirm with the caterer the day before?

The delivery address with suite or building number, the gate or door to use, parking, the delivery window, and the name and phone number of the person meeting the driver. Also confirm the headcount one last time and any serving items you need, such as spoons, salsas and crema. These details are what separate a smooth delivery from a driver circling the block.

How far ahead do I need to book holiday tamales?

Further ahead than any other event. The weeks before Thanksgiving and Christmas fill first at our kitchen, and the same is true for most tamale makers in north Texas. Send your request as soon as you know your date and headcount, even if the menu is not settled, and confirm the final number a week or more before delivery.

What if my event runs late and the food is already there?

Keep the pans covered with their foil lids and, if you have one, move them into a chafing dish or a large pot with a little water in the bottom over low heat. Tamales in their husks hold heat well and stay moist for an hour or more this way. Open the pans only when the line is about to start so the steam stays inside.