Service
The kitchen has a path, or the guests are the path
Food, drink, and program are not styling. They are a sequence with load-in, staging, and a route that must not be the gathering.
What this is
A bar queue is a room-planning failure. A buffet in the only spine is a circulation failure wearing an apron. Passed service with no staging is hope.
What to ask a venue
Where does the van actually park. Where do plates live. Who owns the kitchen. What is exclusive. How far is the pass from the gathering. Curfew is a design constraint, not a footnote.
A reversible test
Give service a square that is not the party and a route that does not cross the toast. Run a ten-minute mock pass. Guests should not have to become traffic.