In the beginning . . . There was just Dean & Debbie, both loving food, hospitality and just plain making people happy; so they began on a journey to live their dream and “cater” to people’s needs for great food and great service.  With 30+ years combined (at that time, it’s up to 45 now) in the food industry, Dean’s special talent and love for cooking and creating dishes that always get that “Wow!” response and Debbie’s special talent to organize the entire affair while treating everyone with courtesy and love, they officially formed Classic Catering in 2001 with the simple, yet very crucial, motto of great food, great service, every time!

Even though they worked the business only part-time (they had to have day jobs to pay the bills), and had no “real” space to cook in working out of their small home kitchen in Seaside (hope no food inspectors are reading this), they excelled in creating a catering company that was indeed the epitome of great food, great service, every time!  Hence, their reputation began to grow.

The Next Phase . . . While visiting in late 2005, Debbie’s father & stepmother (Jim & Cheryl) had time to kill while waiting for Dean & Debbie to finish up with a catering event. Strolling the streets of the charming town, Pacific Grove, they found themselves smack in front of a “For Sale” sign on a quaint Victorian for which the flyer read “dual residential/commercial zoning.”  PERFECT! Jim & Cheryl loved real estate, renovations AND parties, and “the kids” needed a commercial kitchen . . . so the partnership was formed (not without much drama and a long haul — but I’ll spare you those details).

Once the idea was implemented and necessary permits, etc. were in tow, it took about a year to complete the renovations of what is now a lovely and very special venue that has become a Pacific Grove Tradition, called Gatherings.  When the doors were first opened up in January 2007, we had many wonderful social events at Gatherings from birthday parties to rehearsal dinners.  Then Gatherings evolved and has since been earning a 5-star reputation as a wedding reception facility in the Monterey County area, filling a niche for clients seeking a smaller more intimate wedding location, but who of course still want first class ambiance, first class food, and first class service, just without the first class price!

Phase Two . . . Beach Ceremonies! Everyone loves the beach, and Monterey County has some of the most pristine and gorgeous coastline in the State!  Adding the division, Monterey Beach Weddings, to our spectrum of services made perfect sense. With Pacific Grove’s very famous ocean front location for ceremonies, Lover’s Point, just down the street from Gatherings, what better combination to offer our engaged couples than a million dollar ocean view ceremony with a first class reception at Gatherings packaged together. Voila!

A few years later . . . Four years after opening Gatherings, an opportunity to bring another special events venue to Monterey County appeared.  The Perry House, then owned by the Monterey History & Art Association, was for sale and even though it needed a lot of work the location offered beautiful views of the Bay and a great proximity to downtown Monterey with major hotels and the Convention Center in walking distance.  With Jim & Cheryl always up for a renovation “challenge,” and Debbie & Dean salivating over having another venue where all their “stuff” was already there so they wouldn’t have to load up a truck and shlep things to the event, the now team of four decided to bring The Perry House back to a “new” life, bringing a one of a kind special events venue to the Monterey County area. Our first official event at The Perry House was May 20, 2011, and was a Commencement Speaker Reception for the Monterey Institute of International Studies, and the very next day was the beginning of many beautiful weddings to be held at The Perry House.

So, who then is the Events by Classic Group?   “We” are! With Classic Catering, Gatherings, Monterey Beach Weddings, The Perry House, and did I mention our delicious delivery drop-off service, Classic Express? . . . it was hard to know how to answer the phone, so our “parent company” — theEvents by Classic Group — was born.

In between all this . . . Lest we not forget that the Events by Classic Group is not made up of just the owners — hardly!  Without the phenomenal staff we have been blessed to add to our team over the years, quite frankly, the four of us would probably be in straight-jackets! It “takes a village” to pull this train and stand behind our motto each and every day, and our “village” is made up of some of the best staff on the peninsula who are as dedicated to our customer service philosophies as we are! You can find out more about specific staff members on our Meet The Team page.

The Future? . . . Who knows what the future will bring, but we do know that our goal remains as it has from the very beginning... to give our clients great food, great service, every time! We have since added to that creed to always have fun doing it! We look forward to being of service to you, whether at one of our exclusive venues or at any other fabulous location where you want to be assured that you have the best catering team working your special event.

Cheers! Dean, Debbie, Jim & Cheryl