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It seems nobody did things by half at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, and certainly not the Dutch consortium responsible for Holland Heineken House at Darling Harbour’s National Maritime Museum.
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Mode staff at the Holland Heineken House
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Entertaining royally in a huge two-storey marquee catered for in fine style by Spotless boutique caterers The Mode Group, the Dutch put on a show to remember. Athletes, officials and sponsors of The Netherlands Olympic team and visitors were treated to the best of food (and beer) while watching live action on big screens either inside the marquee or outside on the wharf.
Moored alongside was the recreated 17th century Dutch ship Batavia, where guests were pampered below in the Captain’s Cabin (seating 22) or on deck where cocktail parties were held nightly. Every effort was made to present authentic Dutch cuisine. Raw herrings were flown in from Holland for the roll mops and The Mode Group’s menu makers came up with the right recipes for goodies such as bitterballen and croquettes, 65,000 of which were consumed during the Games.
With Olympic events at the Sydney Convention Centre and an entertainment complex swinging till late each evening, Darling Harbour was the place to be. Within the Australian National Maritime Museum precinct The Mode Group also serviced Austrade’s Business Club on Wharf 7, the Japanese Olympic Committee’s “Japan House” hospitality rooms and New Balance’s international guests in the Nortel Networks Gallery.
Austrade won many international business friends with its entertainment on a new 98-metre Incat car and passenger ferry moored at Wharf 7. The Mode Group installed an all-electric kitchen (complete with preparation and wash rooms) on the car deck to service seated guests on the upper levels. All in all, as The Mode Group’s Maritime Museum food and beverage manager Aaron Bond said: “Darling Harbour was unbelievable. I’ve never experienced anything like it with so much liveliness and non-stop activity right throughout the Games.”
Another of The Mode Group’s prestigious venues in full swing for the Olympics was the Sydney Town Hall, where the Olympic Flame was welcomed at a cocktail party for 1100 on September 14. Guests included IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch, NSW Premier Bob Carr, Michael Knight, Kevin Gosper and Lord Mayor Frank Sartor. Similar numbers attended the reception following the athlete’s tickertape parade.
Other functions included a cocktail party for the Athens Organising Committee and dinners for international tennis and wrestling federations. Then came the arrival of the Paralympics Flag and Flame (800 guests) and finally the athletes’ reception to conclude by far the most hectic period on record for our specialist catering team at The Mode Group.
This article has been supplied courtesy of Spotless Services' client newsletter SSL News
See also the article Hospitality for Sydney’s Visitors
Mode Catering is part of Spotless Services
The interior of the Holland Heineken House
The Batavia served as a unique dining facility
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