| There are a series of fantastic restaurants in the immediate area, including An Lochan, Inver Cottage, the Colintraive Hotel, and The Oyster Catcher all within 20 minutes; we can recommend them all from personal experience. But eating out is not a cheap experience, especially when transport and drinks costs are factored in, and there is obviously not much point in having a fabulous dining room and not using it. Each of the houses at Ormidale is available on a self-catering or fully-catered basis – or something in between.
 Most of the weekend parties we get are for big celebrations - and not everyone (even with a four oven Aga and an additional stove at their disposal) wants to take on the task of cooking for 30 of their nearest and dearest.
We are delighted to have been able to recruit Roger and Bea McKie (formerly of An Lochan and now co-proprietors of Taste Scotland) as the contracted caterers at Ormidale. From a wedding breakfast for 150, through a formal four course dinner for 24, to a serve it yourself home-cooked fish pie, from a buffet, to a picnic, to a barbecue, they can offer up a menu to suit at a budget that works for you.
 They have catered some fabulous feasts at Ormidale, and the feed-back we have had from guests has been unanimous in its enthusiasm. When catering a dinner for you, as a one-off, the taste team will always leave you with some delicious fresh made bread and a vat or two of homemade soup for lunch the next day – along with your left overs. It’s a lovely touch, and effectively means that you’ve got two meals for the price of one!
The default setting for the house is still self-catering but if you prefer, then Roger and Bea can work for you as live-in caterers during some or all of your stay. They can be accommodated either in one of the ensuite bedrooms, in the wee Garden cottage we are renovating in early 2010, or in a local B&B.
The financial arrangements are between yourselves and the caterers, and they will design a menu or series of menus for you that works to your budget. Ingredients costs obviously vary by season and do make it difficult for us to give you a price now for a meal in a few months time. Depending on the style you want to go for and on your budget - on whether you want silver service on the night, on how much of the caterers' time you need, and on what sort of ingredients you specify, you could be talking as little as £9.95 per head for a two course meal from their fresh-cooked serve it yourself “Home Taste” menu exclusive to Ormidale customers – or four or five times that per head if you have a serious langoustine or fois gras habit.
On a live-in basis, you need to budget £175 per day per chef, dropping to £850 for the full week, plus the cost of ingredients. They’ll agree menu plans with you and then cook you breakfast, provide pack / picnic lunch ingredients and feed children and adults separately in the evening for that. If the big house is at full capacity and you don’t want any involvement in the prep or clearing up, then you need two members of staff. If you are talking about a party of under 20 guests, then it may be possible for a single chef to look after your party.
The minimum spend with Taste Scotland at Ormidale is £150.
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Catering
