Banquet Event Order Calculator

Banquet event order questions, answered

What is a banquet event order?

A banquet event order, usually shortened to BEO, is the working document a venue issues for one function or one day of functions. It carries the client name, the date, the room, the start and end times, the setup style, the menu, the beverage service, the AV, the labor, the guarantee and the price of every line. Once the planner and the venue both sign it, the kitchen cooks from it, the setup crew sets from it, and the billing department invoices against it. If a detail is not on the signed BEO, nobody on the floor will know about it.

What does a BEO include?

Six blocks, in roughly this order. A header block: client, on-site contact, organization, event date, venue, room, guaranteed count and set count. A timed agenda: each function with its room, setup style, headcount and start time. Food: each course or station with per-person pricing. Beverage: how it is billed, on consumption, per drink or per person, plus bar labor. AV, rentals and room rental. Then the money block: category subtotals, service charge, tax, total, deposit schedule and signature lines for both sides.

Who prepares the banquet event order, and when do you get it?

The venue writes it, normally the catering sales manager or the convention services manager, working from your signed contract and your event brief. A first draft usually lands two to four weeks out, then it gets revised until you sign. Read every line against the proposal you accepted rather than against memory. Ask for a fresh BEO after any change, however small: a menu swap agreed on a call that never reaches the document never reaches the kitchen either.

BEO versus contract: which one controls?

The contract is the master agreement. It holds the dates, the space, the deposit schedule, cancellation, attrition, force majeure and the overall commercial terms. The BEO is the operating order for a single function and normally incorporates the contract by reference. Most contracts state that the contract governs where the two conflict, so a rate or a concession that lives only in an email is not something you can enforce. Get it written into the contract, or into a signed BEO that says on its face that it amends the contract.

What is the guarantee, and when is it due?

The guarantee is the final headcount you agree to pay for whether those people show up or not. Most US venues want it 72 business hours ahead, which for a Monday event usually means the Wednesday before. You are billed on the greater of the guarantee and the number actually served, so the safe move is to guarantee a little under your expected attendance and let the over-set absorb walk-ins. Once the deadline passes, most venues will accept an increase and refuse a decrease.

What is the set count, and why is it higher than the guarantee?

The set count is how many places the venue physically sets. It normally runs 3 to 5 percent above the guarantee so late arrivals have a seat and a meal. You are not billed for the over-set unless those covers are served. Plated dinners often carry a smaller over-set than buffets because each extra plate is a real cost, so confirm the percentage in writing rather than assuming five percent.

How do service charge and tax stack on a BEO?

Service charge comes first, as a percentage of a base. At most hotels that base is food and beverage only; at others it covers AV, rentals and room rental too, which moves the number a long way. Tax then applies to its own base, and this is the line planners misread most often: in many states a mandatory service charge is treated as part of the taxable sale, so tax is charged on the service charge as well as on the items. Enter your own local rate, run the total both ways, and ask the venue to print the tax base on the BEO.

Is the service charge the same as a tip?

Usually not. A mandatory service charge is venue revenue. Part of it may reach the banquet staff and part of it covers overhead, and the split is rarely printed. A line labeled gratuity is different: it is intended for the staff and in several states it is not taxable when it is genuinely voluntary. If tipping matters to you, ask the catering manager which line reaches the servers and whether an added gratuity is distributed in full.