Office breakfast in Paris: budget, composition and organisation

The office breakfast has become the most popular format for bringing a team together: it costs less than a lunch, it only takes an hour, and everyone is there. It still has to be sized correctly. Here are the benchmarks we give our clients, with budgets calculated on our real prices, in Paris and Île-de-France.

How much does an office breakfast cost?

It depends mainly on what you put in it. Two benchmarks, depending on the occasion.

The classic formula, from €8 per person excl. VAT. Pastries, juice, coffee and fruit: what you need for a team catch-up or a morning meeting. For 20 people, allow €160 excl. VAT, plus €29 excl. VAT for delivery, i.e. €189 excl. VAT (€9.45 per person including delivery).

The full breakfast, from €12 to €16 per person excl. VAT. The one you serve when you are hosting or want to mark the occasion: on top of the basics, madeleines or cakes, farmhouse yoghurts, a wider selection of juices. The cost per head goes down as headcount rises: for a team of 10, the trays are shared less efficiently and you get closer to the top of the range. Add delivery, €29 excl. VAT in Paris and nearby towns, and a €50 minimum order (excl. VAT).

For the breakdown by headcount, from 5 to 100 people, we have published dedicated tables in our guide office breakfast budget.

What should an office breakfast include?

A good office breakfast rests on four building blocks. Remove one and it shows immediately.

• Warm sweet items: butter pastries, croissants and pains au chocolat. This is the base, and it is where the difference between artisan and industrial is most noticeable.
• Something fresh: cut fruit or skewers. It is the block most often forgotten, and the one that disappears fastest.
• Hot drinks: coffee and tea, in flasks, in sufficient quantity. One flask for twenty people is not enough.
• Juices: real juices, not concentrate. We deliver Alain Milliat juices and nectars. The quantities to plan are detailed in our guide drinks for an office breakfast.

Beyond that, everything is optional: madeleines, cookies, homemade cakes, farmhouse yoghurts, babka brioche. That is what turns a decent breakfast into one the team talks about again. The full menu is on our breakfasts and breaks page.

How many pastries per person?

The benchmark: 1.5 pastries per person when there is something else alongside (fruit, yoghurts), and 2 per person if the pastries are served alone. Below that, there are always too few; above it, some are left over. We detail the calculation, including for large headcounts, in our guide how many pastries per person.

The same logic applies to other items: see how many macarons to order for more festive formats.

For which occasions?

• The morning meeting or the executive committee, with a welcome breakfast set out before participants arrive
• Onboarding a new hire, or welcoming a client or partner
• The weekly ritual, once a week, which brings people into the office on a given day
• The seminar and the training day, where you often need to manage two services
• Festive moments, such as the Christmas breakfast in December

What time should you plan it for?

Between 9 am and 10 am for a team breakfast. Earlier, some people have not yet arrived; later, it eats into lunch and nobody eats. For a meeting, have it delivered thirty minutes before the start, not on the dot.

We deliver from 6:30 am, which means the tray can be set out well before the first people arrive. You give a precise time, not a two-hour window.

Where should you set it up in the office?

Not in a closed meeting room: people do not go there spontaneously. The best spot is a through area where people can stand, a shared kitchen or open-plan space. The aim is for people to stop naturally, not to have to decide to go to an event.

What about the team's dietary needs?

Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options are specified when preparing the quote, with the number of people concerned. For gluten-free, let us know in advance: our kitchen handles flour, and we are transparent about the risk of traces.

This is the point that solves the most problems internally: in a team of thirty people, nobody has to single themselves out or eat separately.

Delivery in Paris and Île-de-France

We deliver with our own team, never subcontracted. That is what allows us to keep to a precise time slot and to know the access points in our areas: the towers of La Défense on the Puteaux side, Neuilly-sur-Seine, Levallois, Boulogne-Billancourt where our kitchen is located, and all the towns listed on our corporate catering in Paris and Île-de-France page.

For sites with controlled access, a loading bay or screened reception, mention it when ordering: that is what prevents a driver from waiting at a barrier while the coffee goes cold.

Ordering

Order before 2 pm the day before for delivery from 6:30 am. €50 minimum order (excl. VAT), delivery €29 excl. VAT in Paris and nearby towns, company invoicing with VAT, and a single point of contact if you order regularly. Request your quote, you will have it within 24 hours.

Frequently asked questions about office breakfasts