the Hamptons
Holiday and off-season parties in the Hamptons: Thanksgiving to Memorial Day
Off-season catering in the Hamptons, from Thanksgiving to Memorial Day, is the easiest time to book and the hardest to staff: a third of all catering orders nationally land in the fourth quarter, December 9 is the busiest single day, and East End restaurant revenue falls 50–75% from summer, so many rooms close and a caterer at the house is often the practical choice. Book December dinners 3–4 weeks out and holiday corporate parties at least two weeks out; per-person pricing follows the same $150–400+ Hamptons range, without the July 4 and August surcharges.
Last updated · Reviewed by Sagaponack Catering Co.
The off-season, honestly
Peak season ends on Labor Day (September 7 in 2026) and the day after is called Tumbleweed Tuesday for a reason. The year-round population of the two towns is roughly a third of the peak-summer total, seasonal houses are 47% of the housing in the East Hampton–Southampton study area, and restaurant revenue falls by half to three-quarters over the winter, so kitchens close or cut hours. What remains is a smaller set of year-round restaurants, the caterers who live here, and the houses, which are warm, empty and available. A December dinner for twenty in a Sagaponack house is the easiest booking of the year; the hard part is that the staff who served it in August are gone.
The calendar
Thanksgiving weekend brings the second-home owners back for four days; December is party season in the villages, with 40-plus listed winter events across the East End in 2025–26; New Year's Eve is a restaurant night out here (one Amagansett kitchen ran a five-course prix fixe at $150 a head), which is why a caterer at the house is the alternative. Presidents' Day weekend is the winter's second homecoming, and the spring shoulder starts in May, when a Hamptons rental that goes for $30,000 in August is $5,000. Weddings in January through March want six months of notice rather than a year.
Lead times
Nationally, a third of all catering orders happen in the fourth quarter and December 9 is the single busiest day for large-party catering, so holiday corporate parties want at least two weeks' notice and larger ones more; a December dinner party wants three to four weeks against the usual two to three. In the Hamptons the constraint runs the other way from summer: the date is easy, the staff is the question, and a caterer who keeps a winter crew is worth asking about.
What it costs (2026)
The per-person ranges do not change with the season: $150–400+ for a catered dinner in the Hamptons, $700–4,500 all-in for a private-chef dinner of 4–24, $3–7 a piece for passed food, the 15–25% administrative fee and 8.75% Suffolk sales tax on top. What changes is the surcharge: the Hamptons private-chef guide that names July 4, August weekends and Labor Day as premium dates names none in winter. Winter accommodation runs 20–30% below peak, and the same logic applies to a caterer's calendar.
The menu when the stands are closed
The farm stands close after pumpkins in late October and the first frost lands around November 1 on Long Island. The winter menu is the water and the cellar: oysters from the Peconic leases year-round, striped bass to December 15, lobster reopening November 28, the Peconic Bay scallop season from the first Monday of November to March 31 (with the caveat that the fishery has collapsed since 2019 and the 2025 season opened poor), and Long Island wine from 57 producers, three of them inside the Hamptons AVA. A good winter caterer here cooks braises and roasts, and buys the scallops the week they come in, if they come in.
Weather
October averages 64°F days and 47°F nights at the nearest official station, with 12 mph average winds; the first-frost risk in Bridgehampton begins around October 4. A tented party after mid-October is a heated tent, which means a permit, a generator and a flame certificate for the heaters. Indoors is simpler, and the houses are big.
FAQ
Common questions
How far in advance should I book a Hamptons caterer?
For a summer wedding, 9–12 months for the caterer and 18–24 months for a Saturday at a venue that hosts weddings; the average American engagement is 15 months, and the Hamptons calendar is shorter than that. For a corporate gala or conference, 6–12 months; a retreat, client dinner or holiday party, 4–6 months; 50–100 guests, 4–8 weeks. For a dinner party under twenty, two to three weeks, with 48–72 hours possible for a simple menu and three to four weeks in December or for a Friday. Off-season weddings (January to March) want six months rather than a year. A third of all catering orders nationally land in the fourth quarter, so a December party is a September booking.
Read the full answer →Plated, family-style, buffet or stations: which is right for a Hamptons event?
Plated is the most staff (one server per 10–12 guests, one chef per 40 covers) and the most control, at $70–150 a person nationally; buffet is the least staff (one server per 20–25, one chef per 50) at $40–90; stations run $35–65 at the budget end and $175–350+ for chef-driven live stations, and cost more in chefs than servers; family-style sits between plated and buffet and its national pricing is genuinely inconsistent across sources. In the Hamptons all four land inside the $150–400+ local range for a wedding. The private house decides more than the budget does: a plated dinner for 150 needs a finishing kitchen and a tent for it; a buffet needs the space for the line; stations need the power.
How does Sagaponack Catering Co. work?
You tell us about the event once: what it is, when, roughly how many, where in the Hamptons, and the style if you have a preference. We put you in touch with one caterer who does that kind of event at that size in that town, insured and cooking from a permitted kitchen, and they call you within one business day. From there it is their tasting, their proposal, their contract and their staff. It is free for hosts; participating caterers pay us a referral fee for the introduction. We are not a caterer and we do not sell your details; the one company we send you to is the only one that gets your number. We cover 9 South Fork towns and 6 kinds of events.
Related
Other services
Wedding Catering
Hamptons wedding catering from $150 to $400+ a head, the fee and tax lines that follow, the staffing behind a plated dinner for 150, and the 18-to-24-month calendar for a summer Saturday.
Rehearsal Dinners & Welcome Parties
The Friday of a Hamptons wedding weekend: a seated dinner for 30 at the house, a clambake for 80 or a welcome party for the whole list. Formats, 2026 costs, minimums and the traffic that decides the start time.
Private Dinner Parties
Eight, twelve or twenty-four at the table at the house: private-chef packages from $700 to $4,500 all-in, what a caterer does differently, how much notice each needs, and the August surcharge.
Cocktail Parties & Receptions
Passed hors d’oeuvres at $3–7 a piece, a cocktail hour at about $25 a guest, a full standing reception at $110–130 before drinks, the bar packages, and the staff a party of 80 on a lawn actually needs.
Corporate & Foundation Events
New York City pricing applies out east: $65–275 a person across formats, lunches at $35–75, gala dinners at $95–275, receptions at $110–130 plus the bar. Lead times, the summer calendar, the permits.
Book a caterer for holiday parties
Ninety seconds: the event, the date, the headcount, the town. One insured, permitted Hamptons caterer who does this kind of event calls you within one business day. Free for hosts; nobody else gets your number.
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