Notes from the window

The kind of thing that gets a dessert caterer found by somebody planning a party six months out.

Notes from the service window: how much ice cream a hundred and fifty guests actually get through, why a hand-dipped counter moves a line faster than people expect, what a dessert hour looks like at a reception, and how the board is planned around a season that runs metro Detroit in the summer and the Tampa area over the winter. Written for the person doing the planning — the parent booking a graduation open house, the couple choosing dessert after the venue is settled, the festival organiser filling a food lineup, and the lifestyle director building next month's calendar.