How to organise a company buffet: timeline, quantities and budget

To organise a company buffet, follow six steps: set the purpose and headcount, choose the format, collect dietary needs, order, prepare the space, then run the day itself. Three rules prevent most problems: add 10% to the confirmed headcount, allow 6 savoury pieces per person with salads (9 without), and add a second serving point from 20 to 25 guests. At L'Écrin Traiteur you order until 2 pm the day before (48 hours ahead from 50 people) and the buffet is delivered set out.

The 6 steps to organise a company buffet

1. Set the purpose and the headcount. Team lunch, partner welcome, leaving drinks, year-end party: the purpose decides the format, the length and the budget. Start from the headcount you have actually confirmed and add 10%, no more: beyond that, the surplus ends up in the bin.
2. Choose the format. Seated around a menu placed in the middle of the table, or standing with a cocktail: see the table below.
3. Collect dietary needs and allergies a week ahead, in the invitation or the sign-up form, and pass them to the caterer with the number of people concerned.
4. Ask for the quote and order. Give the caterer what it needs to price correctly: the date, the address and access, the delivery time, the confirmed headcount, dietary needs and allergies, and your budget. At L'Écrin the quote arrives within 24 hours and the minimum order is €50 excl. VAT of products.
5. Prepare the space and the access. A clear table, a separate table for drinks, clear access for the delivery person (entry phone, loading bay, floor) and the exact delivery address.
6. Run the day. Receive the delivery, set out the buffet, display the allergen sheet and respect the consumption times.

The timeline: what to do and when

Which format: sharing buffet or cocktail?

The choice depends on the time of day and the mood, not on status: the detail is in sharing buffet or cocktail, how to choose. To size for your headcount, the quantity calculator gives the same calculation.

Lunch trays or buffet: which one to choose?

Four questions settle it: how long is the break, how many people, where do people eat, and do you want the team to talk to each other? A lunch tray (or lunch box) is eaten alone, at a desk or in a meeting room, in a few minutes. The sharing buffet goes in the middle of the table and brings the team together: it is the right format when the meal is part of the event.

The sharing menu therefore costs €6 to €7 excl. VAT more per person than a lunch tray: the extra pays for the shared moment, not for what is on the plate. The three formats are detailed in cold buffet quantities.

What quantities per person?

For a cold buffet, allow per person 6 savoury pieces if salads come with it, 9 without salad, and 2 to 3 sweet pieces. Add 10% to the confirmed headcount.

For the drinks of a one-hour meal, allow one cup, one glass of water and one glass of juice for every other person: for 20 people, 4 one-litre flasks, 5 bottles of water and 2 L of juice, or €121 excl. VAT. The detail for 10, 20 and 50 people is in cold buffet quantities, and the drinks detail in how many drinks per person.

What budget for 20 people?

€29 excl. VAT delivery included; cocktail drinks are not counted.

To add as needed: drinks; hard tableware, glassware and tablecloths, on quote (disposable cups, napkins and cutlery come at no extra cost); delivery with collection of reusable tableware, €39 excl. VAT instead of €29 excl. VAT in Paris, the 92 and the 94; and, for a standing cocktail of 20 to 40 guests, a maître d'hôtel at €250 excl. VAT for 6 hours (see when to plan one). All our prices are public.

Setting up the buffet: order, serving points, utensils

• The order on the table: salads and cold dishes first in the direction of travel, then the heartier dishes, and desserts last, away from the savoury.
• Drinks on a separate table: traffic stays fluid and the queue does not block the main buffet.
• Serving points: beyond 20 to 25 guests, a single point creates a queue. Split the table, or duplicate the main dishes at both ends, so everyone is served within the first ten minutes.
• One serving utensil per dish: a pair of tongs or a spoon for each savoury dish, pastry tongs for desserts, a separate sauce spoon if needed. One utensil too many is better than a queue for lack of one.
• The set-up: at L'Écrin, sharing menus and cocktail platters arrive already set out. You provide the space and, if needed, the hard tableware (on quote). The detail is in setting out a company buffet.

Dietary needs and allergens: what to plan

L'Écrin's whole menu is halal and pork-free. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options are ordered at the same price: put them in the quote request, not on the day. Since 2015, a caterer must state in writing the presence of the 14 regulated allergens, including for a buffet: ask for the sheet with the quote and display it next to the buffet. The full rules are in allergens: what a caterer must state.

The 7 mistakes that spoil a company buffet

• Giving an approximate headcount instead of the confirmed one, or rounding up generously: the surplus is thrown away.
• Planning a single serving point beyond 20 to 25 guests.
• Forgetting serving utensils, or providing only one for several dishes.
• Not specifying tableware when ordering: disposable, reusable or hard tableware are neither the same price nor the same collection.
• Finding out about dietary needs and allergies on the day.
• Putting the drinks on the buffet table.
• Leaving the buffet out too long at room temperature: beyond 2 hours, it is no longer eaten.

With L'Écrin Traiteur

• Delivery from 6:30 am in Paris and Île-de-France, €29 excl. VAT; order until 2 pm the day before (48 hours ahead from 50 people).
• €50 minimum order of products (excl. VAT); quote within 24 hours, company invoice with VAT.
• Sharing menus and cocktails delivered set out, ready to put on the table.

See our sharing menus and our cocktails, or ask for a quote stating the date, the address, the headcount and dietary needs.

Frequently asked questions