Courtesy photo / Snappy Chef staff members Lexie Mirenda (right) and Michael Glunt serve an off-premise holiday meal at a manufacturing plant in Altoona.

Restaurant traffic may be down, but business catering is a bright spot this holiday season.

Holiday office parties are on the upswing, with 43% of companies planning to increase their budgets this year, according to ezCater’s Workplace Holiday Party Trends report.

Local caterers are expecting a good holiday season.

“All of our regular customers are back from last year and we have added many new ones this year,” said Victoria Mirenda, general manager of The Casino at Lakemont Park and Snappy Chef Catering.

“We’ve seen some companies come back year after year. I have two companies with 250-300 people I have not seen before,” said Chef Doug Simon, owner of The Casino at Lakemont Park.

Stacey German, owner of Catered Affairs, Altoona, said she is seeing a slight increase in business, and Kit Henshaw, general manager of Harrison’s Catering and the Mt. Nittany Outlook Event Center, Centre Hall, said their “Thanksgiving-To-Go” orders had already exceeded last year’s number with two weeks to go.

Buffets remain the meal of choice for catered events. German said the option is more cost effective and easier to organize for a variety of events on the customer’s end.

“This is a very buffet-oriented town, people like the variety. We design our menus to satisfy the meat eaters, the vegetarians and all of those in between. We also have a few sit-down dinners as well. The majority are buffet style with chef-carved roast beef, grilled chicken, mashed potatoes and pasta,” Simon said.

The number of buffets had been reduced during and shortly after the COVID pandemic.

“Buffet never left, even through the pandemic. Buffet allows guests to choose what they want and how much without the host choosing a specific meal for them or the amount of allergies people are dealing with now,” Mirenda said.

“We never stopped with buffets. We did and do offer lots of hand sanitizer and process planning — but we do not have anyone voicing much concern as of about a year ago,” Henshaw said.

Simon said The Casino hosts events of all sizes.

“We can make room for whatever size. The industry has shifted toward more catering to off-premise events. We are always looking for any opportunities. It doesn’t have to be expensive. The holidays are an opportunity to look your employees in the eye and thank them for the good job that they have done,” Simon said.

German said she is not catering to as many large groups as before, typically about 100-125 people.

The catering industry is facing its challenges such as the rising cost of food and a labor shortage facing the industry, Mirenda said.

“Our biggest challenge is the cost of supplies versus pricing for our clients. Our goal is always to stay very affordable and unfortunately with the cost of everything being so high, that increases our prices,” German said.

Even though the catering industry has changed over the years, it is still an industry built on people, Mirenda said.

“The relationships you create for that one-on-one customer service experience and who you trust with your event, sometimes the biggest day of your life event, still holds top billing,” Mirenda said.

Caterers said it is not too late to make plans for that holiday gathering. Henshaw said most caterers will try to make an event work, even if the peak times and days are already taken.

“Prime time may not be available but most caterers are going to take the call and see what they can do to help, so email or call with guest count, venue, and what you are looking for,” Henshaw said.

Mirror Staff Writer Walt Frank is at 814-946-7467.