How much is hibachi catering per person?

SIFU works out to about $40 per guest at the 20-guest package, and every guest receives chicken, steak, and shrimp rather than a single protein choice. Fuel, travel, setup, a professional hibachi chef, and a dedicated event attendant are all included. Guests added between package tiers are $50 each.

How much does hibachi at home cost in Rhode Island?

SIFU's Signature Hibachi is $800 for up to 20 guests, $1,600 for up to 40, and $2,400 for up to 60, with $50 per additional in-between guest. Every guest gets chicken, steak, and shrimp plus all the traditional sides. Fuel, travel, and setup within our standard service area are included, with no hidden fees. The quote you approve is what you pay.

What is included in SIFU's hibachi catering?

The full hibachi menu for every guest: chicken, steak, and shrimp, plus fried rice, noodles, hibachi vegetables, salad, edamame, and signature sauces. Every event also includes a professional hibachi chef, a dedicated event attendant who handles food distribution and cleanup, and complete setup and breakdown. Premium upgrades such as filet mignon, salmon, scallops, and lobster tail are available.

Can SIFU serve alcohol at my event in Rhode Island?

Yes. SIFU holds a Rhode Island Class P caterer's liquor license, so we can provide and serve alcohol with professional bartenders, craft cocktails, beer, wine, and spirits, with liquor liability covered. Most at-home catering companies cannot legally pour a drink. With SIFU, the food and the bar run on one vendor and one invoice. Bar service is priced as a separate add-on. Contact us for a quote.

Can I add a sushi bar to my hibachi event?

Yes. A chef-crafted sushi bar can be added to any hibachi package, with fresh rolls made on site and sized to your guest count, or booked on its own. Pairing live-fire hibachi with a fresh sushi bar is something most at-home hibachi caterers cannot offer. Contact us for sushi options and pricing.

What is the difference between White Glove Service and White Glove Concierge?

White Glove Service is a $300 add-on that brings additional hospitality staff to any package for a smoother, more hands-off event. White Glove Concierge is a separate premium package starting at $1,600 for up to 20 guests, built around personalized planning, a full sit-down setup with tables, chairs, linens, place settings, and decor, and premium protein upgrades including Wagyu, lobster, and scallops. Because Concierge is tailored to each event, contact us for a personalized quote.

Does SIFU offer drop-off catering without a live chef?

Yes. Drop-off catering is delivered to your event without an on-site chef or live cooking, starting at a $500 minimum. Orders can combine dishes from the SIFU kitchen and our partner kitchens, including Mediterranean and Dominican-Japanese fusion, delivered together as one order. Hibachi is optional rather than required. Contact us for menus and delivery details.

Does SIFU cater weddings, corporate events, and large parties?

Yes. SIFU serves events from 10 to 600 guests, with multiple hibachi stations, dedicated attendants, licensed bar service, and custom event planning for weddings, rehearsal dinners, corporate gatherings, conferences, and large private parties. Contact us for a custom quote and capacity planning.

What areas does SIFU Catering serve?

SIFU is a mobile caterer based at 24 Haven Ave in Cranston, Rhode Island, serving Rhode Island along with nearby southeastern Massachusetts and eastern Connecticut, generally within about 35 miles of Cranston. That covers Providence, Newport, Warwick, Cranston, Barrington, East Greenwich, Seekonk, Attleboro, Fall River, and surrounding towns. We come to your home or venue. Contact us about locations outside that range.

Is there a deposit to book?

For parties under 20 guests there is no deposit, and you pay your chef on the day once the grill is set up. For weddings and larger events, a fully refundable hold secures your date and locks your price. Contact us to confirm current booking terms.

Engagement Party Catering: Hibachi, Sushi & Full Bar

Paul Yu
Aug 4
4 min read

Engagement party catering in Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts: live hibachi from $800 for up to 20 guests (about $40 per guest), a fresh sushi bar quoted to headcount, and a licensed full bar at $800 for up to 20 guests. Capacity 10 to 500. Drop-off catering from $500.

An engagement party is a wedding audience without a wedding budget — both families, friends from three different parts of the couple's life, and nobody sure how formal it's supposed to be. Here's what to book and what it costs.

Engagement party catering at a glance

Live hibachi: $800 for up to 20 guests · $1,600 up to 40 · $2,400 up to 60 · $50 per additional in-between guest
Per-guest rate: about $40 at every published tier
Proteins included: 3 per guest (chicken, steak, shrimp) — no upgrade charge
Staff included: 1 chef + 1 dedicated attendant per station
Guests per chef: up to 30 · 2 chefs and 2 grills past 40 guests
Full bar: $800 up to 20 guests, Rhode Island Class P caterer's liquor license
Sushi bar: quoted to headcount · standard cart is 50 rolls, feeds about 30 as main food
White Glove Concierge: from $1,100 up to 20 guests — tables, chairs, linens, place settings, decor
Drop-off catering: from $500, no chef on site
Maximum event size: 500 guests
Service charge: none · Automatic gratuity: none · Travel within service area: included

Why hibachi suits an engagement party specifically

The problem with an engagement party is that it's a room of people who mostly don't know each other. Two families meeting, college friends who've never met work friends, and a couple trying to circulate rather than host.

Live cooking gives the room a center of gravity. People who've just been introduced end up standing at the same station reacting to the same thing, which does more for the evening than any seating chart.

It also takes the hosting off the couple. A chef and a dedicated attendant run the food, the service, and the cleanup, so nobody is refilling trays or doing dishes at ten o'clock at their own party.

The three-part setup most couples end up with

Sushi bar during arrivals — a chef rolling on site so guests have something the moment they walk in, while the griddles come up to temperature
Hibachi stations for the main event — 1 station per 30 guests, running simultaneously so the room eats together
Licensed full bar throughout — bartenders, cocktails, beer, wine, spirits, with liquor liability covered

All three run at the same event from one vendor on one invoice. Most mobile hibachi companies sell sushi as a boxed platter, if at all, and almost none can legally serve alcohol.

The bar, in numbers

We hold a Rhode Island Class P caterer's liquor license. That allows us to provide and serve alcohol at a location that isn't our own premises — your backyard, a rented venue, a function hall.

Without that license, a caterer's options are: serve alcohol you purchased and transported yourself, or work alongside a separate bar vendor. For an engagement party of 60 people, that's a second contract and a liability question with no clear answer.

Bar service is $800 for up to 20 guests on the same tier structure as hibachi, priced separately from food so the invoice shows exactly what each piece costs.

Sizing and timing

Under 20 guests: no deposit — you pay your chef on the day once the grill is set up
20 to 40 guests: 1 chef, 1 grill
40+ guests: 2 chefs, 2 grills running simultaneously
60+ guests: custom quote, multiple stations
Booking lead time: 2 to 3 weeks typical · 4 to 8 weeks for summer Saturdays
Chef scheduling: 4 hours between events per chef, so nobody is rushing to another party

Indoors, outdoors, and weather

Engagement parties happen year-round, which rules out most mobile hibachi for roughly half the calendar.

Propane cannot be burned safely in an enclosed space — it produces carbon monoxide — so propane-only operators are outdoor-only. We bring electric griddles and our own battery power for indoor events, which covers function rooms, restaurants' private spaces, barns, and winter dates.

Outdoors we bring a tent for our cooking station. Guest seating and coverage is yours to arrange, unless you book White Glove Concierge, which includes tables, chairs, linens, place settings, and decor.

Dietary restrictions

Gluten-free: entire menu including the noodles
Vegan: cooked separately, tofu as the protein
Shellfish allergy: managed by cook order — all seafood cooked last, shellfish absolutely last
Notice required: at booking, not on the day — cook order is planned during prep

Booking

Text or call with your date, venue, and guest count. We send a flat quote, usually same day — food, staff, setup, cleanup, fuel, and travel within our service area, with nothing added afterward.

Call or text 401-402-9616.

If the wedding is next, the same packages scale — details in hibachi catering for weddings. The licensing behind bar service is explained in can a caterer serve alcohol in Rhode Island.

SIFU Hibachi & Sushi Catering — kitchens in Cranston and Providence, RI. Serving Rhode Island, southeastern Massachusetts, and eastern Connecticut.