Catering presentations

For the Knot event, Selden created a next-level breadstick bar. Hand-rolled breadsticks were served with flavored dips like spiced butternut squash, curried cream, and ricotta and fava bean, along with carrot and ginger and truffled wild mushroom soups. "You'd never guess it's a less expensive option because of the abundance of food on the table," the chef says.

At a party celebrating the Toms for Target partnership in Los Angeles last year, colorful nonalcoholic drinks were presented in glass decanters.

"Budgets for signature drinks are on the rise again. We are getting a lot of requests for welcome beverages for corporate events, especially with the huge cocktail craze," says Steve Sanchez, chief marketing officer at Camp Hill, Pennsylvania-based catering and events company JDK Group.

At BizBash's IdeaFest Chicago last year, Jewell Events Catering founder George Jewell brought 200 mini pumpkins from his own Michigan farm to create a special catering station where guests could get theirs filled with chipotle mashed potatoes with braised short ribs, kale salad, or pumpkin-spice mousse.