Centreville residents Steve and Lisa Frankel know all too well how much work goes into throwing a party, from chilling cocktails to collecting coats to constructing canapés.
A few years ago, the couple found themselves hosting a few too many engagement parties.
They scoured the Internet looking for hired help to tend bar and serve food, but they couldn’t find anyone. So, once the flurry of festivities had passed, and figuring there were other people in the same situation, the Frankels started a Web site database to connect party hosts with cooks, bartenders and waiters in their area.
For a modest fee, party planners can register on Our Silver Platter, then post particulars of their event, including how much they’re willing to pay for hired help, said Steve Frankel, 43. Then cooks, servers and bartenders in the area respond with their availability and pricing, he said. Users can also search for specific hired help by zip code and select them individually.
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Our Silver Platter One month: $24.95 One year: $39.95 4,600 bartenders, servers and cooks 220 registered uers |
With the recession on their minds, more people are hosting parties at home instead of going out to a restaurant, said Lisa, 42. And as the winter approaches, they expect fewer companies to take employees out for expensive four-course holiday dinner parties, she said, opting for in-house shindigs instead.
“Guess what Mr. Vice President? You’re doing it at home this year,” she said. “I think that might be a shock if you weren’t used to it.”
Plus, the popularity of kitchen remodeling and the Food Network have made more people keen to cook their own party food, Steve said. But they just might not want to do all the grunt work themselves. Besides, hiring help isn’t something only reserved for the super rich, he said, many of the bartenders and servers charge $15 to $25 an hour.
The increase in house parties is not just a Centreville trend -- the site serves a national audience and has party professionals listed in every major metropolitan area in the United States.
The biggest challenge of an Internet business is that it never closes; they receive e-mails from people all over the country and as far away as Australia at all hours of the day, Steve said.
“It’s amazing how small the world becomes,” he said.
Meeting – at least virtually – all those different people is what makes the business fun, Lisa said, and while it takes a lot of work to keep the site running, it doesn’t seem like a chore. The whole premise of their business is having a good time, she said, and she’s hoping the site introduces a new crowd to a classic pastime.
“Entertaining at home, it’s something people are getting back into that’s kind of a lost art,” she said.
