Wrapping up 2024 at JAM

As 2024 draws to a close, we’re reflecting on the incredible year we’ve had at Jeffrey A. Miller Catering. This year, JAM had the pleasure of hosting 730 events across our sixteen exclusive venues and numerous client properties, serving up delicious, hand-crafted cuisine to a total of 100,568 guests. It’s been a year full of memorable moments, mouthwatering meals, and amazing people. Here’s a look back at some of the trends, flavors, company initiatives, and standout moments that made 2024 a truly unforgettable year for us and for the many, many wonderful guests we had the pleasure of serving.

Sustainability Initiatives

JAM has been busy making meaningful strides in sustainability initiatives this year, starting with an investment of nearly $70,000 in more durable, reusable containers. This big move has already cut our reliance on single-use plastic wrap and other disposables by over 50%—a significant reduction in waste that would be otherwise headed for the landfill. To learn more about our investment, click here.

Our composting program continues to grow, and 2024 has been a great year for it in terms of efficiency and effectiveness. We collected and composted 49,187 pounds of trim, plate scrapings, and other food scraps, and we did it with less than 1% accidental contamination. Normally such food wastes head to the landfill, where they potentially produce methane gas, but this year we instead transformed them back into nutrient-dense soil to be used to grow new crops. That’s a win! To learn more about composting, click here.

But maybe our most exciting sustainability contribution this year was that revenue from JAM events in 2024 flowed over $3.3 million back to the non-profit and other organizations who own our event spaces. These vital funds are helping to protect habitats and waterways, support conservation education, preserve historic sites, and promote arts and culture, both in the communities we serve and more broadly. We always say, “We’re proud to do well by doing good,” and we’ll definitely look forward to more of the same in 2025!

The Giving Committee in Action

This year we launched our “JAM Giving Committee” with the goal of making positive impacts across our community. Reflecting our shared values of service, inclusion, and support for those in need, here are a just few of the events and initiatives we’ve undertaken together:

• Volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and Philabundance
• Participated in the Philly Pride March in support of the LGBTQ+ community
• Joined the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Parkway Run & Walk
• Donated 1,800 diapers to the Upper Darby Community Baby Shower
• Sponsored three voter registration drives and provided food to voters in line at eight different polling locations on Election Day 2024
• Organized a donation drive to support the Domestic Abuse Project of Delaware County

Top Plated Entrees

JAM’s plated dinner options—like the five listed below—always surprise and delight with bold, innovative flavors and thoughtful “by hand, with heart” attention to deliciousness.

• Tuscan Stuffed Chicken | spinach & fontina stuffing, tomato coulis
• Ginger Kissed Salmon | black bean beurre blanc
• Braised Beef Short Ribs | guinness braising sauce
• Yuzu Glazed Chicken | miso togarashi sauce
• Mahi Mahi Pignoli | pine nut crust & lime beurre blanc

Top Vegetarian Entrees

Vegetarian options took center stage this year, with bold flavors and creative combinations that delighted not only vegan and vegetarian diners, but also those just looking for something fresh and flavorful but maybe a little different.

• Red Dragon Tofu | red miso glaze, green chili & crushed peanut chutney, brown rice
• Black Bean Cake | three-citrus salsa, garlic-sauteed greens
• Hearts of Palm Cake | curried lentils, tomato & watercress salad, mustard vinaigrette

Top Cocktail Hour Stations

Interactive food stations were a highlight of cocktail hours in 2024, offering guests a fun, flavorful experience to enhance the pre-dinner mingling. Below are some of the favorites.

• Hanging Pretzels | freshly baked, brushed with warm butter, and rolled in “everything” seasoning, served with brown mustard, beer cheese dip, & cinnamon sugar
• Uncle Toni’s Pasta Bar | campanelle with primavera vegetables & rigatoni with bolognese sauce, sauteed to order and served with shaved parmesan, fresh basil, & mini garlic bread sticks
• Roasted Garden | a cornucopia of grilled, braised, & roasted whole vegetables, variously seasoned, carved to order, and served with an assortment of flavorful sauces & accompaniments
• Paella in the Big Pan | spanish classic dish of bomba rice simmered in our mighty steel paella pan, with grilled chicken, chorizo, clams, mussels, shrimp, squid, chickpeas, red peppers, garlic, & fragrant saffron
• BBQ in a Jar | pulled pork, pulled chicken, or pulled jackfruit (vegan), served in mason jars with freshly baked cornbread, house baked beans, coleslaw, & a trio of regional bbq sauces

Top Wedding Cake Flavor Combinations

Our wedding cakes are always a sweet highlight, each handmade cake as distinctive and delicious as the next. We’ve gone and named a handful the most popular cake-filling-icing combinations of 2024.

• The “Arnold Palmer” | tea-infused pound cake, lemon curd filling, vanilla buttercream icing
• The “French Meadow” | lavender pound cake, honey buttercream filling, vanilla buttercream icing
• The “Bourbon Barrel” | bourbon (that’s right, bourbon!)-laced chocolate cake, salted caramel buttercream filling, salted caramel buttercream icing
• The “Raspberry Lemonade” | lemon pound cake, raspberry jam filling, cream cheese buttercream icing
• The “Chocolatey Chip” | chocolate chip pound cake, chocolate buttercream filling,

Top Dessert Stations

From mini indulgences to interactive dessert bars, our dessert stations provided a sweet ending to many events this year, delighting guests with freshly made treats and irresistible flavors. Top on the popularity scale were:

• Beignet Flambé | beignet-style mini fritters flambéed with butter, brown sugar, and dark rum, served over vanilla ice cream with sauteed bananas, strawberry thyme coulis, lime caramel, & crunchy hazelnut praline
• Mini Cannoli Filled to Order | stuffed with vanilla, chocolate, dulce de leche, lemon, or mocha cream, dipped in chocolate chips, pistachio, or toasted coconut
• Warm Chocolate Chip Cookies | freshly baked and still warm from the oven
• Patisserie Vienna | an elaborate display of elegant mini confections including madeleines, eclairs, barquettes, tartlets, parfaits, puddings, little cakes, crème brûlées, and possets!
• Gelato Cart | eight house-churned flavors, scooped to order into mini mason jars

Top Wedding Trends

JAM couples tended to be on the cutting edge of many of this year’s top wedding trends.

• Interactive Stations – From beignets and bananas foster flambéed in the dining room, to “Uncle Toni” hooking up pans of rigatoni to order, to the ever-popular DIY BBQ in a Jar, these stations delighted and satisfied guests with a perfect combination of fun and flavor!
• Plant-Forward Menus – With so many great vegan and vegetarian options available, more couples than ever embraced the eco-friendly sustainability and personal health benefits of plant-forward dining.
• Secondhand Décor – Many couples appreciated the charms of secondhand décor, often opting to rent instead of buy for one-time use. Many also enjoyed scouring thrift shops and online marketplaces for unique “pre-loved” items perfectly matched to their own personal tastes, adding that much more distinctive flair to their own celebrations.
• Bright & Bold Color Palettes – Bold, contrasting colors were in this year, creating energetic, eye-catching celebrations that really popped, enlivening the mood and keeping the photographers very, very busy trying to take in so many amazing shots!
• Rented Wedding Guest Attire – Ditching the usual one-time-use fashion drama, many couples this year opted for rented wedding party attire—a stylish but definitely more sustainable way to have everyone look amazing on the Big Day.

As 2024 draws to a close, we’d like to take a moment to express our heartfelt gratitude:

To our incredible couples who trusted us to be part of their special day; to all the friends and family who came together in celebration; and to all the event professionals who work so tirelessly behind the scenes to make it all happen — THANK YOU!

And we’re so grateful for our own “JAMily,” whose dedication makes everything possible, and to our loved ones who’ve supported us every step of the way. Here’s to all the unforgettable moments we’ve shared, and to the many more to come in 2025!