When it comes to business meetings we all know that those around lunchtime are the worst. You’re fighting for attention, people are hungry and the fear of wet, sloppy sandwiches doesn’t appeal. Well, fear not because we at The Yorkshire Catering Company have some solutions.
You don’t need to spend vast sums of money and no, your kitchen doesn’t need a refit what you need are some solid business caterers to help you out and give you the best advice for when it comes to those lunchtime meetings which need a bit of help from those in the know.
Select a reliable caterer
It goes without saying that the first thing you should do is to select a reliable caterer. You could hold the meetings from a pub, or restaurant but what if your meeting is to last an hour and you need to go through presentations or reports and you need something that you could stop for a moment and enjoy? The other negative aspect about these kinds of meetings is alcohol. Whilst we can all enjoy a glass of wine or beer, sometimes, when discussing business you want to keep a clear head and this where bringing in a caterer is a huge benefit.
Reliable caterers can not only prepare food in advance, they can also be made aware of any dietary requirements and order in any special foods within good notice periods. Reliable business meetings caterers also understand one crucial aspect, business. Hungry professionals make for rash decisions and mistakes which you want to avoid. Nutritious meals and a variety of foods provided by caterers will certainly help when it comes to stopping this from happening.
Choose an appropriate menu
Not all business meetings are the same and like we said, you need to think of not only good food, but nutritious meals as well. What does this mean? Sandwiches are great but look at the kind of bread you want/use, wholegrain and sourdough avoid blood sugar spikes and are healthy alternatives to more standard selections. Think about fillings and also think about non sandwich alternatives.
Salads are a great start and reliable caterers can even provide plates and cutlery if you don’t have your own. Things like a warm salad are really good and provide variety. Cheese boards are a great way to also provide a memorable business meeting dining experience in the office as well.
Prepare your space
Whether you are onsite or possibly moving to a larger premises for the day, getting the meeting space ready for food is a consideration. Make sure you have cutlery, glasses and napkins for the meeting as well as, and importantly, space. The last thing you want is people not having enough space to eat at the table whilst you may be going through reports. If you will be making a presentation from the front of the room and people are broken up onto small tables, arrange them so that all of the attendees are facing that direction rather than having to turn their chairs away from the table and food.
Finally, if you’re having a buffet style event set up the food on the opposite side of the presentation so that no one gets interrupted whilst the presentation is taking place.
These are just some of the things you can do to ensure that you successfully cater business meetings for all occasions. Be sure to keep an eye out on our blog and social media over the next coming weeks for more great tips.
