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 Make up for last year’s tie with a Father’s Day Banquet at Buca!
Father’s Day is right around the corner, which raises the question “What do you get the man who has everything?” Two things sure to please any father are a great meal and a great memory. So why not bring him to Buca for the best family holiday dinner he’s ever had?
Buca is one of the most fun dinner ideas ever for Dad, Mom and the whole family.
A top-notch party place, Buca’s made for group dining that’s festive and fun. The food is sensational and served family style for passing and sharing, perfect for a father’s special event. And since it is his day, it might be fun to let him order banquet food for the entire group dinner. Buca’s delicious dishes are served in “smalls,” which feed 2 to 4 and “larges,” which feed 4 to 6. So, in addition to being the guest of honor, Dad can become his own event organizer by choosing what everybody shares and enjoys!
And Dad will find plenty to select from on Buca’s family style Italian menu.
Buca offers amazing appetizers, scrumptious salads, penultimate pastas, magnificent main dishes and decadent desserts – all of them prepared fresh in Buca’s kitchen from the finest ingredients. Perfectly seasoned and beautifully presented, Buca’s offerings make great food for a party, so Dad won’t be disappointed.
Buca’s ambience is fertile ground for party ideas.
Buca is a party place extraordinaire. The décor includes comfortable furnishings, thousands of vintage photos interspersed with kitchy touches, like old advertising displays, Roman reproduction statuary and golden cherubs. The Pope Room is irreverent but hilarious – it includes a bust of Pope Benedict on a lazy susan in the middle of a monumental round table.
Most of the vintage photos are fun too, featuring Italian-American mid-century life at its best. Dad will get a kick out of pics of Sophia Loren, Gina Lollabrigida and other screen sirens, as well as photos of babies covered in spaghetti, mamas wielding wooden spoons like scepters, Italian boxers and even a godfather or two.
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 Nurse Appreciation Week starts May 6 and ends May 12, on Florence Nightingale’s birthday. It’s a great time of year to show the hands-on healers in your life you care with a special event, such as a fun group dinner or banquet party.
We’re taking the nurses who care for my mother out to for a little theme party!
Since they’ve done such a good job keeping Mom’s heart going, the theme is “Amore,” because we absolutely love them all. And honestly, one of the things they give my mother is love, which everybody knows is the best medicine. I’d give them a royal reception if I could, but I’m sure they’ll enjoy the restaurant with private room we’re taking them to.
Mom’s going to our little theme party too, of course, and she’s thrilled.
She loves Buca di Beppo as much as we do. We go there a lot for holiday celebrations, birthdays and even for just dinner with the family. The food is wonderful, the Italian menu large and diverse, and Buca always feels like a party place – it’s just plain fun.
The restaurant is a clever maze of private and semi-private dining rooms, each one unique.
There’s even a table in the kitchen! We never get tired of the décor, which starts with literally thousands of vintage photos of life in the mid-20th century then finishes up with original accents, like a bust of the Pope. I’m pretty sure there are even some shots of nurses from 50 years ago, white hats, capes and all, making it the perfect party venue for our group.
Plus Buca’s staff is sure to help us make this a special event for Heather, Lydia and Amy.
The service is as good as the food at Buca, friendly, warm and always there when you need it. In fact, the staff at Buca has some of the same nurturing qualities as our favorite nurses, so Mom’s special team can enjoy special care for a change. To make a reservation at Buca is easy. They have online booking, as well as accepting restaurant reservations by phone. The host or hostess on duty is happy to give you a tour when you come in, taking you through all the interesting dining areas and the kitchen, where the chefs greet you with a smile. And the wait staff is spectacular – they’ve even won awards.
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 You don’t want to be the “type” to miss Administrative Professionals Day. In fact, set aside the entire week of April 22 – 28 for honoring the men and women who make it possible to get things done in the business world.
I supervise the administrative assistants at our company, so I’m organizing some corporate events.
Although they seldom get the credit they deserve, administrative workers are “the pulse of the office.” Who keeps your ideas in order and makes sure they reach the right people? Who keeps your laptop performing tip-top? Who screens your calls, keeps track of your schedule, reserves your meeting spaces and reminds you of birthdays and anniversaries?
Admit it. If it weren’t for your admin, you’d be a lot less effective.
So, I’m planning a number of team building events for our admins over the course of our special week, all devised to help us get ahead. On Monday we’ll have takeout bistro coffee and pastries in one of the big business meeting rooms while we discuss which of several educational opportunities we’re taking advantage of this year. (We want to keep our skills up!) We’ll brainstorm for work event ideas on Tuesday, have a professional book swap on Thursday, and leave work one hour early to go to happy hour together on Friday.
That leaves Wednesday, April 25, for team bonding at a conference restaurant.
We’ll go to Buca di Beppo, of course. It’s our favorite restaurant for groups. The atmosphere is lively and warm, with thousands of vintage photos that inspire comments, jokes and conversation. Their staff of consumate professionals provide service that’s friendly and efficient, so we’re seated, served and on our way when we need to get back to the office.
Buca serves family style Italian that’s out of this world.
I’ve never known of anyone being disappointed in the food at Buca – just doesn’t happen. That’s why a lot of us recommend it for our bosses, who use Buca as a conference venue, for business meetings, corporate events and team building exercises. Dishes offered are perfect for group meals or intimate gatherings, either one. Everything’s delicious, and it’s served family style in “smalls,” which feed 2 to 3, or in “larges,” which feed 4 to 6. Passing and sharing your food makes a meal much more interesting and encourages give and take, which is always good in business.
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 Looking for a tax break? Order takeout from a delivery restaurant that KNOWS comfort food!
Now that I use spiffy software to do my taxes, it feels like I’m working on them all year long. Oh, I appreciate the fact that keeping track of everything myself helps me budget and save, but still … it keeps taxes on my mind. And this time of year? I eat, sleep and breathe taxes until they’re done.
Ordering dinner catering from Buca’s online menu helps.
Whether we’re still in process or have just finished the return, at a certain point my husband and I hit a wall, and it’s time to order takeout from Buca. I don’t do a lot of party catering, but at least one night a year I have a small, intimate gathering — my husband, two kids and myself. The hubby and I let our overworked minds go blank, kick back and devour Buca’s wonderful Italian takeaway. Unlike preparing a tax return — a task requiring brain power as well as a surprising range of emotion (uncertainty, rage, guilt, hysteria) — ordering food from Buca is easy and makes you feel great.
Just pull up the online menu at Buca to Go.
Select your location from the drop-down list, and you’re automatically swept away to your neighborhood Buca — electronically. Click on a menu item you want, then click Add to Order. Repeat as necessary to add additional items. You’ll even have the opportunity to specify instructions, such as “no olives, please.” When you’re done, just click Checkout, enter your pick up time and guest info, then click Submit Order. It’s i so easy a brain-dead, middle-class American at tax time can do it. The only tough part is choosing from the magnificent array of selections on Buca’s to go menu.
Picking up your takeout order is easy too.
There are special parking places up front at your local Buca, which makes picking up your takeout food a snap. Your order is ready to go at pick-up time. And here’s a tax-season tip: Call just before you arrive at this fabulous catering restaurant, and you can even have dinner delivered to your car.
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 Funny how you remember the party more clearly than the special event the party commemorates. When I graduated from high school, the ceremony went by in a blur, but my parents took me out to a steakhouse for dinner with the family and friends. I remember my father giving me a single, red rose that looked so elegant against the white tablecloth. And I recall gazing reverently at the shiny class ring I wore, the one now residing in the back of my jewelry box.
Times have changed, but special events are still special events!
My daughter is a proud member of the class of 2013, and I’m planning a party for family and friends to celebrate her graduation. I am allowed to get her flowers, but not roses – she says they’re a cliché. As a surprise I’m making her a floral lei, which should be beautiful but non-traditional enough to please. And since she’s not interested in a class ring, we’re opting for a handmade necklace with two charms ― a globe and an airplane signifying the journey she’s beginning.
So where are we having our unconventionally traditional family dinner?
We’re going where they always buy in on the party plan, where the entire staff is dedicated to showing us a good time: Buca di Beppo! For several years it’s been our go-to group restaurant for easy family meals because the food, ambience and service please everyone, no matter which generation they belong to. My parents and in-laws love the entrees, including gourmet Chicken Marsala, Chianti-Braised Short Ribs and Veal Saltimbocca. The Gen X adults, my husband and I, can knosh on appetizers (antipasti) and salads till the cows come home, while the kids absolutely adore the pasta and pizza. Buca’s amazing desserts easily cross generational lines. The’re so fantastic, the desserts actually stop conversation by keeping every mouth full.
And Buca’s family-style Itallian menu encourages sharing.
So the kids get to see Grandpa enjoying pizza, while they try exotic fare like Mussels Marinara and Apple Gorgonzola Salad. Everything on the family style menu comes in “smalls,” which feed two to four people, and “larges,” which feed four to six. We always have fun figuring out what to order and who to share with. And when we’re finished discussing the food, there are always the vintage photos to poiknt out to each other and enjoy.
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 OK, so my Mom is old, but she does have a few good party ideas left.
Prom is coming up, and my friends and I decided to put together our own little pre-party. We wanted to have a group dinner at a banquet hall or someplace like that. We’re all going to be dressed up, of course, so we were picturing something like a wedding reception or dinner at the palace. A big table with high-backed chairs and a pig with an apple in its mouth would have been too, too cool.
Mom said with so many picky eaters, we shouldn’t take things whole hog.
Very funny, Mom. But she was right about the picky eaters. Even at 17 and 18, some of my friends have limited diets, and a lot of them would be totally grossed out by a dead pig. So Mom suggested Italian. After all, even Rosa, a vegetarian who doesn’t really like vegetables, will eat pizza and pasta, both of which make easy food for a party. So we started looking at restaurants for large parties. We found out (from Addison’s mom) that Buca di Beppo is one of the best restaurants for groups because they have a lot of different-sized dining rooms that are private and semi-private.
So then we looked at their family style Italian menu.
There aren’t many words LESS cool than “family style,” but Buca’s menu is great anyway. They have a ton of yummy Italian menu choices, everything from fried calamari and mozzarella cheese sticks to pasta of every description, yummy main courses and AMAZING desserts. OMG the Colossal Brownie Sundae is so cool! It has gooey brownie chunks smothered in vanilla and chocolate ice cream, topped with caramel and chocolate sauces with mounds of whipped cream on top. It’s enough for 3 or 4 people to share, and IT COMES IN A GIANT MARTINI GLASS. Awesomely wicked.
So then we were worried that it wasn’t formal enough for our pre-prom group dinner.
Madisen and I made our moms take us to lunch at Buca. We didn’t even have to ask for a tour – they give you one automatically AND TAKE YOU THROUGH THE KITCHEN, which is NOT what we have in mind for prom night. We explained to the hostess why we were there, and she said to just let them know we’re going to prom when we make a reservation, and they’ll treat us like royalty. Then she showed us a couple of private dining rooms that would be perfect for our dinner party.
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 I make the effort to honor my mom on Mother’s Day. She has always put everything she could into what she’s done for us, and I like to return the favor at least one day a year. As the family event planner, I put together a little dinner party dedicated to proving that we really don’t take Mom for granted.
Event locations are key when it comes to having fun.
I have two siblings and, when we were younger ― in our teens and twenties ― we thought we had to take Mom out to a formal, banquet room-style restaurant. Then we realized we really had a lot more fun, especially Mom, at a more relaxed restaurant for groups. Soon after that, we discovered Buca di Beppo.
Buca is the perfect party place for group dining.
Now that the three of us are married with kids, great meals for a large group are higher on our list of priorities. With Mom, Dad and all their descendants, we’re at least 12 (more when one of the older kids brings a girlfriend or boyfriend.) Ages in our group range from 67 (Dad) to 3 (my adorable nephew, Trent). We’re a noisy, happy bunch who like the occasional family banquet ordered from a family style menu and served in a private or semi-private party room.
The only restaurant with private rooms that meets all our requirements is Buca.
The food is fantastic, perfect for family dinners because there’s something on the menu for absolutely everyone, no matter what their age or how sophisticated their palate. Every dish is made fresh in a spotless kitchen. (I know it’s clean, because I’ve actually eaten in the kitchen before!) And the food is served family style, so we get to pass and share each selection. As the adults take a little of this and a little of that, the kids join in. They’ve learned to eat all kinds of different things thanks to Buca ― a nice perk!
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 Our Easter party place? A basement.
Sounds crazy, but it’s true. Spring has sprung, the air is balmy and the landscape green ― yet my idea of the perfect place for a party, and a very special Easter dinner, is Buca di Beppo, which translates to “Joe’s Basement.” Why? The dinner party food at Buca is wonderful, the atmosphere festive and fun. No matter the time of year, Buca makes a great event location because it’s one of those private room restaurants that allows you to relax and enjoy the conversation of your company, as well as freshly prepared food and friendly, professional service.
And Buca isn’t really a basement.
It’s an impeccably designed group restaurant consisting of a dozen or more private and semi-private dining rooms. They serve an enormous variety of scrumptious, family style Italian food that makes easy food for a party and/or dinner for a large group. The décor is cozy and a little campy with comfortable seating, colorful accessories and lots (literally thousands) of vintage photos – some of them of families enjoying their Easter dinners!
Talk about fresh! Everything on Buca’s family style menu fits the bill.
Their talented chefs and cook staff prepare each and every dish from scratch with the finest, freshest ingredients. All of Buca’s food is delicately seasoned and beautifully presented in family-sized portions. “Smalls” feed 2 to 4 diners; “larges” feed 4 to 6 – conservatively speaking. (We’re talking about very generous servings designed for satisfying group meals.)
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 Spring! La pasta fresca makes easy food for a party this season.
After you’ve gotten through the brouhaha of THE HOLIDAYS with their group meals, office parties, and various holiday celebrations, Valentine’s and St. Patrick’s days almost seem like an afterthought. (Thank goodness for Leap Day!) But Spring blooms with its own fresh celebrations: Passover (April 6), Easter (April 8) and Mother’s Day (May 13) are standouts, but there are always lots of other spring parties too, such as wedding showers and rehearsal dinners, baby showers, birthdays and First Communions.
Spring’s the time for fresh ideas for a dinner party or luncheon.
Call me a snob, but I prefer to hold my group dinners at a family style restaurant that serves truly fresh food made to order just for us. Buca di Beppo is always a crowd pleaser. It’s a restaurant for groups where the chefs make every dish from the finest, freshest ingredients. You’ll especially notice the difference when you order one of Buca’s incredible salads. (Get a large – everybody will want seconds.) They’re all good, but the Apple Gorgonzola is my favorite. It mixes tart and sweet flavors with creamy gorgonzola cheese for a dish that’ll make your tastebuds swoon!
Buca’s Zuppa di Giorno is a spring holiday party in a bowl!
The soup may be different every day, but Buca’s chefs manage to make each a special event. Their Minestrone is a garden delight, and the Italian Wedding Soup (perfect for bridal showers and as wedding food for other nuptial celebrations) joins together little beef meatballs and chicken broth in the happiest of unions.
Celebrate spring chickens before they hatch with baby shower favorites.
Like Mozzarella Caprese, featuring fresh tomatoes and mozzarella drizzled with olive oil and ― you got it ― FRESH basil. Buca also offers a wonderful Bruschetta made from fresh-baked bread, diced tomatoes and parmesan. Or try their new Shrimp Florentine. It’s a hit with fresh sautéed shrimp, linguine, tomatoes and spinach sprinkled with parmesan.
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 Commemorate the milestone of First Holy Communion with a family banquet.
Holy Eucharist, or Communion, is a sacrament that recreates the most famous dinner party in history. So it makes perfect sense to celebrate the special event of someone’s First Holy Communion with a festive group dinner.
Dinner with the family can bring everyone together in fellowship.
Family dinners are wonderfully special events when everything falls into place. You don’t need to be a party planner to get it right, just take care of a few elements that really matter. Gather people who love each other at a great party place where the atmosphere is warm and welcoming. Feed these people with delicious party foods that can be passed around the table and shared, encouraging good company and conversation.
That’s it! Creative party ideas are welcome, but the basics are food, fellowship and fun.
I’ve found that at Buca di Beppo they always understand the simple requirements for a great dinner party. As a celebration restaurant with party rooms for private and semi-private dining, Buca is designed to accommodate dinner for a group of any shape or size. The atmosphere is friendly and fun, the service fantastic, and the food … well let’s just say that hosts of good and faithful customers sing its heavenly praises!
Planning a party at Buca is easy.
Come up with a ballpark figure for the number of people who will attend, choose the date and make a reservation. It really is just that simple. Buca’s family style Italian menu is chock full of wonderful choices, each prepared to be shared. “Smalls” are dishes with 2 to 3 servings, while “Larges” feed 4 to 6.
For groups of 20 or more, you can choose from several marvelous group menus.
Serve your guests a divine lunch or dinner with appetizers, salads, pasta, pizza, entrees, sides and desserts. Buca prepares food for large groups on a daily basis, so every dish is sure to be meticulously put together with the finest, freshest ingredients, delicately seasoned and beautifully presented in the tradition of truly great family style Italian restaurants.
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