What's the best scenario for free-lunch-at-the-office-day
July 5, 2013 11:34 AM   Subscribe

Does your office provide you with a free lunch with any sort of regularity? If so, how does it happen, either from the perspective as a lunch-eater or as someone who sets it up?

My employer (a smallish business in central New Jersey) provides free lunch to our employees every Wednesday. This typically is for around 30 people. We default to pizza because it is quickly ordered, there's no customization per person, and is on the cheaper side.

However, even though free lunch is great, pizza every week gets a bit tiresome. The only other option we've had any success with is ordering Chinese and limiting food options to just the 'lunch specials' ordered by number, but each person still has to choose rice option, soup option, etc, and it can be a hassle for the orchestrator to handle. This involves walking around to get orders, making sure they're clear, calling it in, handling payment, then sorting and labeling the food when it comes in.

Does your office do a weekly or monthly lunch that's paid for by your employer? If not, could you think of other options that may work? Seamless only lists one restaurant, and it's a chain pizza place, so that's out. I'm trying to give options to the president that would be feasible and easily implemented.
posted by rachaelfaith to Work & Money (28 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: The coordinator would want to look into catering options. Many places do this; sushi trays, sandwich trays, hummus trays, etc. They give you multiple options but it's not fully customizable. Most people end up being happy, just make sure that if you have vegetarians there's always veggie sandwiches or california rolls available.
posted by ancient star at 11:38 AM on July 5, 2013 [3 favorites]


My office (~200 people) does once a week bagel breakfast and once a week lunch. The lunch varies more or less every week. In recent memory, I can recall burgers, sandwiches, Indian, Chinese, BBQ, and a few others. It's mostly from places that don't classically do "delivery", but that's no big deal. People do not get individual orders -- they get a few things in big tubs, catering-style, with additional items on the side (e.g. the most recent burgers, there were hamburgers, cheeseburgers, turkey burgers, and some sort of vegetarian burger things, and then at the end tubs of ketchup, mustard, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, etc. etc). Virtually every restaurant near you will be able to cater a lunch for 30 people without individual ordering.
posted by brainmouse at 11:39 AM on July 5, 2013 [1 favorite]


For a group as large as 30, many restaurants will do things catering-style, which is often cheaper than ordering a bunch of individual meals.

What about sandwiches? You can order a bunch of different kinds and people can pick. I've seen burritos work well for this too.

Along the same lines as the Chinese food, I've ordered Thai food for a large-ish group, and we simply called them up and ordered it catering-style; ie, several trays of different food (for instance, veggie pad thai, chicken pad thai, veggie green curry, a bunch of egg rolls, a tray of rice). This worked well, was easy to order and very popular.
posted by lunasol at 11:39 AM on July 5, 2013


We often have free lunches for training events etc, it's typically catered style (although we have a cafe/catering company onsite that often, but not always handles this). The only thing is to be aware if there are any special dietary requirements e.g. gluten free, veggie etc., otherwise just ask for a variety/selection of dishes and lay it out so people can pick and choose. Not everyone will get their preference, but, hey people usually don't complain if it's a free lunch.
posted by TwoWordReview at 11:42 AM on July 5, 2013


Nthing going with catering orders. That's what our office of 38 does for lunches. That opens up your possibilities pretty wide. Panera, Corner Bakery, and a locally owned wrap place are in heavy rotation along with pizza/subs, and Qdoba (or Chipotle, if that option's closer to you) is ADORED.
posted by kimberussell at 11:45 AM on July 5, 2013


We do a weekly bagel spread for the whole office, and then my department of 15 gets lunch once a month. Everyone just emails in their order to the coordinator and I guess they just call in and read it off.

I worked at an office of 25 where we'd get lunch every few weeks, it was the same deal - we would just pick out our order off the menu and email it to the receptionist, and they would call up and read the whole thing. Sometimes we would get a catering option.
posted by windbox at 12:04 PM on July 5, 2013


Nthing - any type of custom ordered scenario like you would do if you sat down in a restaurant is HELL for the person coordinating, and not much better for the person trying to find their sandwich in a sea of pastrami. I think the tradeoff here is that it might not be exactly what you would have picked, but hey, it's free to you, the employee. The exceptions like vegetarian, gluten-free, etc. should be given a chance to put their order in or if they're some understood percentage of the office , that should be part of the ordering process. Sandwiches done as an tray full of ingredients that sandwiches can be assembled from widen the options considerably.

The popular, mainstream cuisines are the way to go, unless you have an office full of people who are more adventurous than average.
posted by randomkeystrike at 12:08 PM on July 5, 2013


We do tons of this here. It includes:

1. Several varieties of premade sandwich (with chips and a cookie), including veggie options, the individual picks from, say, ham or roast beef. Lots of restaurants do this.

2. Similar with wraps.

3. Buffet-style: It it's a mediterranean place, you get a tray of hot seasoned chicken pieces, a tray of pita/wrap type bread, chips, hummus, maybe an extra dessert. Maybe a tray of rice, also. Everyone serves themselves. Workplace provides plates, utensils, and drinks (or they get their own from soda machines or fridges if your place does that).

4. Potluck. Workplace buys meat/main course, everyone brings side dish or dessert. Requires somebody to coordinate.

On preview I see lots of similar suggestions. So I will say, if you are having to convince your employer to switch, you could point out that pretty much all of these are healthier than pizza/chinese, which would be good if they care about improving health per their health insurance. Our insurer actually gives us a little break for stuff like keeping fruit around the office for snacks.
posted by emjaybee at 12:11 PM on July 5, 2013


Response by poster: I'm usually the person ordering and sorting the food once it gets here, for what it's worth. :)

My employer is open to options but just doesn't want to spend a ton of money or time, on this.

We do have a Panera and an Au Bon Pain pretty locally, I'll give that a shot.

Re: Chipotle/Qdoba, I did a poll regarding Mexican and Tex/Mex, and half the employees were not cool with that. WTF, man.
posted by rachaelfaith at 12:15 PM on July 5, 2013


I coordinate lunch and learns with lots of vendors, and we also have a lot of other meetings catered too. Usually between 20 and 30 people. I get either a couple trays of hot food (to serve buffet style) or an assortment of sandwiches, no custom orders besides x amount of vegetarian/vegan portions (makes it way easier.)

I get the number of people expected, and figure out what dietary requirements need to be considered (how many vegetarian servings I need). I find a menu for a place (either online or a paper one I've obtained), call them two days ahead and place the order, give them the credit card number and the delivery instructions (to main reception at our address, between 11:00 and 11:30 am, have the receptionist page me when it gets there). I set it up on tables, with the included plates/cutlery the caterer provided, and people know when/where to show up to get fed (noon in the boardroom).
posted by lizbunny at 12:15 PM on July 5, 2013


My company does this although we are smaller (max 12 people eating), and I end up placing the order most of the time.

Logistically: We have a Google Docs spreadsheet (our company uses Google Apps for Business so this is really easy and we do docshare for a lot of things) for ordering. The day before, I let people know what restaurant we're ordering from and resend them a link to the spreadsheet. Spreadsheet has a link to the menu, and they have to put their order on the list.

Placing orders: Our orders are small enough that I can can just call them in. I always make sure to give them each person's name with their order. If they were larger I would try faxing or emailing. There are a couple local places that have online ordering which is nice, and we also have Eat24 and Seamless and a couple other online ordering/delivery options. That said, I live/work in San Francisco so most things are online here!

That said, I definitely think that for a bigger group you should look into catering orders. There are a lot of restaurants with catering menus. At my last job we used to get catering orders all the time. You tell them how many people and which items you want and they tell you how many trays are appropriate. There was a popular Italian place that had great pasta and salads that were great for catering. Even sandwich shops will do catering.
posted by radioamy at 12:20 PM on July 5, 2013


Oh and the trick to ordering for big groups is to remember that someone is going to complain no matter what you do. You provide a reasonable variety of food and make sure there is enough for everyone, and if someone complains you remind them that they are welcome to opt out of the group lunch.
posted by radioamy at 12:24 PM on July 5, 2013 [3 favorites]


Best answer: I handle ordering and setting up the weekly lunch for an office of 100. I have a weekly budget of $600 for a company lunch.

In addition to exclusive catering companies, I searched for restaurants in the area and contacted them to see if they'd be willing to do catering (some of them already had catering menus listed on their websites, which helped). A lot of restaurants that wouldn't normally deliver, will gladly do so if there's a large paycheck involved. Others will also be willing to negotiate or create a special menu to hit your budget. I also am able to physically drive to locations and pick up food, although your job may not allow that.

I do order a smaller portion of vegetarian food but otherwise just go with what I think will please the most people. Individual orders are a hassle to accommodate, everyone wants no mayo or extra cheese or toasted bread or whatever. And there will always be a few people who don't like ____ food, but it's free, and they don't need to eat it.

Things we've done in the past (besides pizza):

Lasagna, garlic bread, and salad (from the same pizza place).
Baked potato bar
Various soups & salad bar
Deli sandwiches from Potbelly
"Brunch for Lunch" from a catering company.
Gyros from a local Greek restaurant.
Fried chicken + sides (Carry out from local grocery store deli)
Qdoba DIY taco bar
Pasta + salad (carry out from local Italian restaurant)
Chili and cornbread
BBQ ribs and chicken (usually only for special occasions, it's more expensive)
posted by castlebravo at 12:35 PM on July 5, 2013 [2 favorites]


Response by poster: I should note that about half the employees are warehouse employees and thus do not have access to email/any automated system, so I can't share a Google Docs spreadsheet with them and have them fill it in. That is a great idea in general, though.

castlebravo, fantastic ideas, and that budget is pretty much identical to our aim, though it's not set in stone- we usually aim at ~$5-8/head.
posted by rachaelfaith at 12:48 PM on July 5, 2013


Re: Chipotle/Qdoba, I did a poll regarding Mexican and Tex/Mex, and half the employees were not cool with that. WTF, man.

I don't recommend putting it to a vote: that's just going to leave you with a lot of boring, lowest-common-denominator lunches. It might also lead to people taking free lunches for granted.

My work has free breakfast once a week (bagels, pastries, etc), catered from a different place each week. We don't take it for granted, I think partially because of the following elements:
  1. It's on a different, random day each week
  2. we don't know the day it's happening until an email goes out the day before as "we're having pastries from Nuvrei tomorrow!"
  3. it was never announced as a program, and isn't really treated as such. we just occasionally get this surprise email that there will be breakfast available tomorrow.
Other thoughtful things HR does:
  • orders 2-3 different "entree" items when they cater lunch in
  • always makes sure there are vegetarian options
  • occasionally sends out an email asking employees to recommend restaurants they like that cater.

posted by homodachi at 12:57 PM on July 5, 2013


My office has around 60 people. Every week we have, not lunch, but free breakfast.

Here is how it was done:

1. Have donuts shop catering in donuts every Friday morning.
2. Have bagel shop catering in bagels every Friday morning.
3. Put a person in charge of buying deli meats, cheese, pre-cut fruits and vegetables from Costco the night before and put it in the refrigerator.
4. Free-for-all breakfasts and lunches. Put the leftover meats and cheese in the fridge for continuing feast on Monday.

Also, our kitchen is very well equipped with bagel slicers, condiments, and toasters.
posted by Carius at 1:10 PM on July 5, 2013


It might be easiest to just have a regular rotation of about ten restaurants you order catering from, periodically trying new ones and dropping less popular ones. Instead of asking for approval beforehand, let everyone know where to send feedback. If there's something people really want, or really don't like, they'll seek you out. Keep an eye on the leftovers, too, and adjust future orders accordingly.
posted by Metroid Baby at 1:17 PM on July 5, 2013 [1 favorite]


Best answer: When you say Chinese-by-the-menu was the only thing you had any luck with, I'm not sure what you tried that didn't work, but consider offering less choice to make your life easier. When I've had a group lunch from the Chinese place, it was served in big pans, buffet style. You've had the advantage of seeing what people would order if they had their choice; pick the most popular chicken, the most popular beef/pork, and the most popular vegetarian dish, and order one 10-serving tray of each, with a 25-person vat of the most popular soup and a 30-serving pan of rice.
If that works out for you (on a cuisine that's familiar) then you can branch out to serving lasagna/pasta, or trays of bbq (sandwiches/ribs), or deli platters for make-your-own sandwiches, or piles of premade panera sandwiches...
posted by aimedwander at 2:19 PM on July 5, 2013


We used to do "everyone orders something" system, but that doesn't scale. The big restaurants near our office are able to cater for any requirements, eg "50 people; 15 vegetarians, one celliac"

Letting the catering restaurant figure out the details is *way* easier.
posted by colin_l at 2:38 PM on July 5, 2013


We do this with Indian takeout. A few trays of rice, a box of naan, our office manager has us choose between chicken, beef and veggie, and puts in the order a few days ahead of time. No complaints, ever.
posted by third word on a random page at 3:36 PM on July 5, 2013


Re: Chipotle/Qdoba, I did a poll regarding Mexican and Tex/Mex, and half the employees were not cool with that. WTF, man.

I love Mexican and Tex-Mex, but if chipotle and qdoba were the options I'd vote no because I think they are nasty.

Giving people a vote is a waste of time and everyone will complain anyway. The only considerations I would factor would be vegetatarian/vegan and gluten--free/allergies. Do an anonymous poll to get the percentages of those and set up catering based on those numbers.
posted by winna at 3:48 PM on July 5, 2013


2nding snickerdoodle's suggestion; supermarkets here will make up party platters: sandwich meats and cheese, fruit and cheese plates, crudites, box lunches, shrimp trays, 2 ft long subs, cibatta sandwiches, etc; all the details and ordering options are online at their webpage.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 3:51 PM on July 5, 2013


nthing buffet-style is easy. Chinese food, Thai food (if people aren't used to it, they can take a little from a bunch of different entries (maybe 5-7 entrees?). We've done a build-your-own taco bar. Mexican place will bring all the ingredients and everyone makes their own.

As another 'meal' option, this can also translate to a make-your-own sundae bar. Fun, but very messy, and a lot more work for the coordinator, as I don't know places that will deliver this, but maybe get the managers to go in on coordinating this, as a present to the employees?

Hawaiian food also translates well to groups - lots of teriyaki, pulled pork, yakisoba noodles, rice, macaroni salad.

And maybe BBQ - some pork, some brisket, sides, etc.
posted by hydra77 at 4:32 PM on July 5, 2013


My office gives every employee a free lunch (and breakfast) every day. We get a daily $15 credit on Seamless that we can use however we want, and it's super easy to add other employees' credit to a combined lunch order and divide up the cost accordingly. If you go over the $15, you pay the balance on your credit card (but in practice, this is rarely exceeded, and only by a buck or so if it comes to it). The delivery guys bring it all the way to our door and we don't have to deal with dividing up people's money or anything. It's a great perk even though rationally I'd probably prefer to get that extra $15/day in my paycheck, if I had a choice.
posted by pravit at 4:41 PM on July 5, 2013


Best answer: I used to have to order all the food for the training courses I'd facilitate, anywhere between 15-50 people. Nthing all the people who said to check catering menus -- we'd regularly have Thai, barbecue, sandwich platters, Mexican, all kinds of stuff.

It would probably be worth checking out actual caterers, too. I often used one that would come set up a build-your-own pasta, hot sandwich, or baked potato bar with side salads and those lunches were less than $10/head and always super popular.
posted by ThatSomething at 5:20 PM on July 5, 2013


We ahve lunch every Wednesday for about 15 people. It is always Chinese because our organization has a billing system that most restaurants don't want to deal with. The organizer orders catering trays of food, and usually picks a couple of entrees, a vegetable dish and rice. She changes it up as much as she can within the given budget, and takes requests, and avoids things that people have expressed displeasure with.

This is for a lunch meeting so she passes around a sign in sheet and submits it with the receipt so the restaurant gets paid.
posted by SLC Mom at 6:19 PM on July 5, 2013


Seems like the perfect scenario for a 6' sub. We also found a place that will do a 6' burrito (half chicken, half steak, or whatever).
posted by vignettist at 12:25 AM on July 6, 2013


Response by poster: Thanks everyone for all the great suggestions. I see more variety in our future, and less hassle with regards to individual customization.
posted by rachaelfaith at 10:39 AM on July 30, 2013


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