Planning an office lunch or team celebration sounds simple enough until you start thinking about guest counts, dietary needs, serving times, equipment, setup, cleanup… and somehow you’re now responsible for making sure 75 hungry coworkers get fed at exactly noon!
That’s where a little planning (and a lot of good BBQ) goes a long way.
Whether you’re organizing an employee appreciation lunch, client event, company milestone, or fall team get-together, this corporate BBQ catering checklist will help you cover the essentials. And with Rocky Mountain BBQ handling the cooking and logistics, you can spend less time worrying about lunch and more time enjoying it.
1. Confirm Your Guest Count
Start by getting a realistic estimate of how many people will attend. When planning a corporate BBQ catering in Calgary, your headcount helps determine food quantities, service requirements, setup, and overall budget.
Don’t forget to consider whether employees will be bringing guests or whether clients and other visitors are attending. A little breathing room in your numbers can also help account for last-minute additions. After all, the smell of fresh BBQ has a funny way of attracting people.
2. Choose the Right Location
Where are you feeding everyone? An office parking lot, warehouse, rooftop patio, outdoor courtyard, or rented venue can all work for a corporate BBQ.
With corporate BBQ catering in Calgary, you don’t necessarily need access to a commercial kitchen. Rocky Mountain BBQ’s mobile catering units are self-sustainable, and we bring our own power, water, serving tables, cooking equipment, and other essentials. That gives businesses much more flexibility when choosing where to host their event.
3. Build a Menu for Your Crowd
Consider your event style, time of day, budget, and guest preferences when choosing a menu. Rocky Mountain BBQ offers everything from AAA Alberta beef, pulled pork, chicken, ribs, burgers, and our signature Smokin’ Sausage to salads, potatoes, mac and cheese, appetizers, desserts, and more.
You’ll also want to identify dietary requirements ahead of time. We can accommodate vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and allergy-friendly requests, so nobody on the team is stuck watching everyone else eat.
4. Set Your Serving Time
Corporate events often run on a tighter schedule than private parties, so serving time deserves a spot on your corporate BBQ catering checklist. If everyone needs to eat between meetings, during a designated lunch break, or before an afternoon activity, make sure your caterer knows exactly when you want the food hot, fresh, and ready to enjoy.
A clear schedule helps coordinate setup, cooking, and service so hot food is ready when your team is. Nobody wants the 1 p.m. presentation competing with a plate of fresh ribs!
5. Decide How Much Service You Need
Think about what you want your team handling on event day.
Professional catering can take care of the setup, fresh on-site cooking, food service, and cleanup. With Rocky Mountain BBQ, our team will arrive with the equipment needed to get the job done, right down to plates, napkins, and cutlery.
6. Plan for Calgary’s Unpredictable Weather
Hosting outside? Have a backup plan. Calgary weather reports aren’t always on point.
Consider tents, sheltered areas, indoor alternatives, and how guests will move between the food and seating areas. Choose BBQ catering services that offer year-round indoor and outdoor options.
7. Book Your Caterer Early
Once you know your approximate headcount, date, location, and budget, start the conversation with your caterer. Booking ahead gives you more time to customize the menu, discuss dietary needs, and work through logistics before event day.
It also means one very important item can officially be crossed off your corporate BBQ catering checklist: keeping everyone well fed.
For a little extra prep, check out our guide to planning BBQ catering for a custom event, which covers key details to consider before the grills fire up!
Bring the Team Together With Rocky Mountain BBQ
A great corporate event should give your team a chance to relax, connect, and enjoy themselves — not leave the organizer running around putting out fires.
Rocky Mountain BBQ provides fresh on-site corporate BBQ catering Calgary businesses can count on for office lunches, staff appreciation events, client gatherings, holiday parties, and company-wide celebrations. We’ll help with the menu and handle the cooking, setup, service, and cleanup so your team can simply show up hungry.
Let us help you start planning a company event worth getting out of the office for!