Our Mission:
Let Us Make Being a Host as Easy as Being a Guest.

Full Service Catering For:

Our Competitive Edge:
We will work closely with you to develop a menu to fit your budget...and let you take the credit!

Our Awards:
Last Years "Outstanding Catering Service" by Mississauga News Readers

THE TALES OF A GOOD CATERER

Nestled in the heart of Mississauga and catering to the Greater Toronto Area for over 20 years, it’s no surprise the delectable food creations of A Catered Affair have customers running back for another taste again and again and again.

Established in 1987 by husband and wife Bill and Ritva Quinlan, with a concentration on North American and European cuisine, the business caters most often to corporate meetings and business luncheons throughout the week, while weekends are filled with formal dishes for weddings, banquets, anniversaries and house parties.

What makes a good caterer? “I think attention to detail, being on time, quality of food … it’s a lot of different things,” Bill answers. Compared with other catering services, he notes his business crafts food that is easier to prepare and uphold. “Some (catering businesses) get too fancy and they can’t keep it up, they can’t keep their reputations up.”

With an importance placed on meeting the expectations of their clients, they feel a certain standard exists that will always be strived for, even when given short notice for an event.

“It’s just amazing, how we can have all of the sudden… 500 people, 3 days notice,” Ritva laughs as she remembers catering a function for the Police Academy’s Derry Road opening. Preferring a minimum of two to three months notice prior to a major function, the couple recalls events for which their business stepped in for rescue at the last moment.

“The situation was, they called us on a Friday... says we’re getting married next Saturday,” Bill remembers, referring to a wedding they had catered years ago. “We said, ‘How many people?’ We thought it was 20, 30 – it was 250 guests!” The previous caterers for the wedding had backed out at the last moment, but the Bill and Ritva were able to put everything together, organize staff, and pull it off. “…They just phoned me yesterday and they’re going to do this big party in about three weeks, and (their wedding) was 20 years ago, so they remembered us.”

Of course, there have been clients that have made different mistakes when planning a catered event. “Quite often, if they don’t take our recommendation, they would maybe order too much, or too little.” Ritva and Bill also call to mind occasions when clients have forgotten to count all attending guests for their event, or estimations of attendees have been tremendously miscalculated. “It’s something we can’t control, so we try to get the best guess possible, and then work towards that,” Bill shrugs. “There’s so many things we know because of the experience. We’ve had 20 years of experience and food quantity ... if they listen to us, they’ll do well. We’ve never really had a problem over the years – even three, four, five hundred people, we’ve never run out of food.”

Besides catering the event, Bill and Ritva also meet with their clients to offer recommendations for menu selections, discussion of food specifications and quantity, and provide staff for serving and cleaning up. “We just try to be honest with them, tell them what our strengths are.”

How can you be sure you’re hiring the right caterer for your event? “Well I think, first of all they should talk to their friends,” Bill answers. “A lot of people have never dealt with a caterer so the best thing is to find someone who you know has had a caterer and get their recommendations.”

“We’ve catered to a lot of famous people, even,” Ritva continues. From contemporary rock bands, to world icons such as Tina Turner, or the cast and crew of hit movies like Chicago, Ritva and Bill are filled with tales of their catered affairs. “We had a surprise wedding; we had an 80 year old man’s graduation party…” Other catered occasions include a candlelit wedding, a medieval themed wedding where guests had to come dressed in authentic costumes, a party thrown for the doctors and nurses at The Sick Kids Hospital by the joyful parents after their child survived cancer, and many more.

For events occurring during the Fall, A Catered Affair’s menu will reflect roasted vegetables, harvested foods, stews, braised beefs and pot roasts instead of grilled preparation that is common during the summertime. “It usually reflects harvest and whatever is in season,” Ritva explains. In choosing a location for your event, she recommends the comfort of your own home, but would say to avoid the outdoors as the weather often fluctuates during the Fall.

In the end, a good job is seen by how clean the plates are after the guests have finished. “It’s a sense of relief, but no matter how long we’ve been doing (catering), and I know that it will be fine, I’m still waiting to see ‘were they happy?’ And if I’m at the function, I look at the plates, and I’m hoping that they will come back like… almost like they licked the plate!” Ritva amuses, always striving to make sure everyone is satisfied.

With mouth watering cuisine and an unmatched quality of service through experience, Bill and Ritva have made good friends, loyal customers, and a business that has customers everywhere craving for more.