Event Planning Melbourne
Full event planning support alongside your catering — venue sourcing, run sheets and on-the-day coordination handled by one team.
Catering-Led Event Coordination Across Melbourne
We are caterers who coordinate, not a planning agency that outsources food. That shapes what we are good at: everything that touches the kitchen, the timing and the service flow of your event. In practice that means a timed run sheet, coordination with your venue and suppliers, a staffing plan sized to your guest count, and one named event lead who runs the day. If you need full creative styling and supplier sourcing from scratch, we will tell you honestly where our limits are. If you also need a venue, three of them are ours — which removes a layer of coordination entirely.- Timed run sheets
- Venue and supplier liaison
- Staffing and service-flow planning
- Site visits for large or unusual venues
- Multi-day and multi-event celebrations
- One named event lead on the day
Three Melbourne Venues Of Our Own — Or We Come To Yours
Tandoori Flames is a catering company first. We own and operate three event venues across Melbourne, and we also cater your event at any venue, marquee, hall, park or private home you choose.Ultima Function Centre
Keilor East — eight event spaces and capacity to 800 guests. Catered in-house by our own team. Visit site →Fleur Weddings & Events
Fawkner — a glamorous single-room reception for up to 400 guests. Catered in-house by our own team. Visit site →Amora
Melbourne — our third event space, for clients who want a hotel-grade setting. Catered in-house by our own team.What We Coordinate
A starting point, not a fixed list. Every menu is built around your guest list, your budget and the dietary needs in the room.
Planning
Menu design, Service style, Run sheet, Staffing plan, Floor plan, Budget shaping
Liaison
Venue coordinator, Photographer timing, MC and DJ cues, Celebrant timing, Hire suppliers, Cake and dessert
On The Day
Early setup, Timed service, Dietary management, Guest flow, Pack-down and clean, Contingency calls
Cultural
Ceremony timings, Ritual requirements, Halal arrangements, Separate serving, Multi-event menus, Family liaisonMelbourne-Wide, From Our South Kingsville Kitchen
Our production kitchen is in South Kingsville and our vans go everywhere — the inner west, the CBD, the bayside suburbs, the north and the outer west. Any delivery charge is quoted up front, never added later.
South Kingsville · Williamstown · Newport · Yarraville · Altona North · Point Cook · Hoppers Crossing · Tarneit · West Footscray
Event planning in Melbourne runs into local rules fast. Park and foreshore events in Williamstown and Point Cook need council permits, with Hobsons Bay and Wyndham each setting their own conditions on vehicle access, marquees, generators and amplified sound. Warehouse and industrial-conversion spaces in Footscray, Yarraville and Sunshine often have no kitchen, limited power and residential neighbours who trigger noise curfews. Our own venues in Keilor East, Fawkner and the city centre carry known access and compliance conditions, which removes a whole layer of guesswork. February and March plus October and November are the busiest windows, and Saturdays in those months commit a long way out.
Event Planning In Melbourne — Your Questions Answered
On the day our planner runs the run sheet and manages everyone working the event. That means meeting suppliers at bump-in, directing where things go, checking the room against the layout, cueing speeches and services with the MC, handling problems before guests notice, and overseeing bump-out and handing the venue back at the end.
Yes. We book and coordinate decor, furniture, florals, staging, lighting and AV as part of planning, including getting each supplier in and out at the right time. You approve what is booked and the costs before anything is confirmed. If you have suppliers already engaged, we brief them into the plan instead of starting again.
Usually three to five, spread across the lead time rather than bunched together. An early meeting sets direction and budget. A middle one locks the venue, layout and suppliers. A late one confirms numbers, dietary requirements and the final run sheet. Short calls and emails fill the gaps, and we add a site walk-through where the venue is new to you.
Yes. We plan events at external venues across Melbourne as well as at our own spaces. What changes is the groundwork: we need the venue’s supplier rules, bump-in and bump-out windows, kitchen access terms, noise limits and insurance requirements early. Some venues restrict external coordination, so we confirm that before any supplier gets booked.
Four to six hours bump-in for a styled 300-guest event, and two to three hours bump-out. Venues that quote a two-hour setup window are describing room access, not what installation takes. Negotiate access the afternoon before where possible. Bump-out is the stage most often underestimated, and it is when tired crews and tight deadlines collide.
In a managed event, we do, but only if it is on the list. Welcome signage, seating charts, guest books, gift tables, place cards and favours fall between suppliers and get forgotten. We run through these explicitly in planning and assign each one to a person and a time. Unassigned items are the ones that go missing.
Event planning in Melbourne when you want the whole thing handled
Some clients want a caterer. Others want someone to take the event off their desk entirely. The second one is event planning: a single team working the venue, the timeline, the suppliers, the layout and the food so you are not holding twelve phone numbers and a spreadsheet. We do this across Melbourne for weddings, corporate functions, milestone celebrations and cultural events where there are rituals, multiple services and a long day to coordinate.
Because we cater and we own venues, we start from an unusual position. We know what a room can physically take, how long a bump-in actually needs, where a bar queue will block a dance floor, and how long three hundred people take to get through a buffet. Planning that comes from running events rather than drawing floor plans. If you already have a venue booked elsewhere, we plan into it and work with the house rules.
Tandoori Flames MelbourneTalk To A Human
Call 0401 338 005 any day between 9am and 8pm, or send the form and we will come back within 24 hours.
Get An Itemised QuoteWhat full event planning covers
Timeline and run sheet
We write the document everyone works from — supplier arrival times, guest arrival, speeches, cake, first dance, service windows, bump-out. Each supplier gets the version they need. On the day one of our team holds the master copy and keeps the sequence moving.
Supplier booking and coordination
Decor, furniture hire, florals, AV and entertainment all need to arrive in the right order through the right door. We book, brief and chase them so you are not fielding calls the week of the event. If you already have suppliers you love, we fold them into the plan rather than replacing them.
Someone on site all day
Someone from our team is on site from bump-in to bump-out. That person deals with the venue, the suppliers, the late delivery and the change of plan, so the people whose event it is can actually be at it. You get one phone number on the day, not a group chat.
How food fits a fully planned event
On a planned event the menu is written against the timeline, so each service lands in its own window rather than competing with the formalities.
Arrival Hour
Pani Puri, Dahi Puri, Papdi Chaat, Chicken Kasturi Boti, Veg Spring Rolls
Live Station During Mingling
Tandoori Lamb Chops, Lamb Chapli Kebab, Paneer Tikka, Chicken Noodles, Veg Fried Rice
Main Service After Speeches
Shahi Murg, Lamb Shank, Kaju Curry, Saag Paneer, Baigan Bharta
Late Dessert Service
Matka Kulfi, Paan Kulfi, Gulab Jamun, Chocolate Naan, Ice Cream Platter
A starting point, not a fixed list. Swap any dish at no extra charge — the menu is built around your guest list, your budget and the dietary needs in the room.
How the planning process actually runs
The first meeting is about scope. What the event is, roughly how many guests, the date, the budget range and how much you want to hand over. From there we put a plan together: venue options if you need one, a draft layout, a supplier list and a menu direction. Planning meetings are usually spaced across the lead time rather than crammed in — one early to set direction, one to lock suppliers and layout, one close to the date to confirm numbers, dietary notes and the final run sheet.
Four to six weeks out we move into confirmation mode. Supplier bookings are reconfirmed in writing, the layout is drawn to scale against the room, the timeline goes to the venue and the MC, and we do a walk-through of the site if you have not already. In the final week we hold final numbers, finish seating, and brief the crew. On the day we are on site early and stay until the venue is handed back. You get a single point of contact for the entire run.
What Full Event Management Covers Versus Catering Only
The line between catering and event management is where most planning gaps appear, so it helps to see which role owns each task.
| Task | Catering-only booking | Full event management | Who chases it otherwise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Menu, kitchen and floor service | Included | Included | Caterer |
| Run sheet across all suppliers | Catering timings only | Whole-event timeline | You, usually by text on the day |
| Furniture, linen and styling | Service ware only | Sourced and installed | You, across two or three hire firms |
| Audio, lighting and stage | Not included | Briefed and scheduled | You and the venue |
| Bump-in and bump-out sequence | Catering vehicles only | All suppliers, in order | Nobody, until something clashes |
| On-the-day decisions | Food and service calls | Single point of contact | The host, mid-event |
Planning Errors That Only Show Up On The Day
No single point of contact
When five suppliers each hold a piece of the timeline, the host becomes the switchboard and spends the event on the phone. Name one person who owns the run sheet and has authority to make calls on timing. Give every supplier that name and number in writing a week out, and make sure the venue has it too.
Building the timeline backwards
Most timelines get written forward from the guest arrival time, which hides the bump-in problem. Work backwards from the hard stops instead: when the venue must be clear, when noise limits start, when staff hours end. Then forward-plan arrivals. The two have to meet, and when they do not, the squeeze always lands on setup.
Ignoring supplier arrival order
Styling cannot install over a floor the furniture company has not finished. Audio needs the stage before the kitchen takes the loading door. Without a sequenced bump-in, three vans arrive together and one waits an hour. Set arrival slots, confirm vehicle sizes, and check whether the site has one loading point or several.
Leaving permits and compliance late
Council permits for park events, noise exemptions, road closures, temporary structures and liquor arrangements all run on their own timelines, some measured in weeks. Hobsons Bay, Wyndham and Moonee Valley each have different processes. Start the paperwork as soon as the date and site are set, and keep copies accessible on the day.
Get An Itemised Quote Within 24 Hours
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