We read an article a couple of months back in a Manchester business magazine. The report focused on a piece by an event catering company moving to set up offices in Manchester to supply corporate catering to the Blue Chip market.
The MD, clearly new to the perils of PR, was quoted ranting how Manchester Caterers on the whole are dated and would never last in London. This naturally caused some upset in the catering community (including a sheepish apology some weeks later by the company in question!), but did all the same raise an important question, that most catering firms face on a day to day basis.
Given that most people who order corporate catering are ordering for people who they don’t know, should our menus sway on the side of caution, offering tried and tested (but arguably old fashioned) classics, or should we try to provide something different, in the hope originality will gain us a following?
Although badly addressed, the article did make a point. Catering in London, on the whole, is a little more exotic although the price tag is often ‘exotic’ to match. By playing it safe, we avoid the risk of upsetting our client’s visitors should they have conservative tastes, but at the same time, we lose the opportunity to excite and entertain through food – hopefully the reason many caterers do what they do.
We try to keep our menu balanced, offering a clear divide between our more traditional options (basics) and the more contemporary options (classics). Do you think we should lean towards the contemporary and offer more for those who want to try something different and new?
We’d love to hear from you either way.
Yours
South Catering