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Running a catering business means making decisions every day without always having time to look things up. This is where you find the answers. Practical guides on pricing, quoting, invoicing and everything else that keeps your operation running.
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Our top-read articles on quotes, pricing strategy and catering invoicing.
You've sent a great quote, the client agrees, and then you hear nothing for a while. Or worse: two weeks before the event someone calls to say it's off. A deposit prevents both situations. But how much do you ask […]
A non-binding quotation is a price estimate that you, as an entrepreneur, can adjust or withdraw without legal consequences. For hospitality and event companies, this offers flexibility in changing circumstances such as seasonal prices, uncertain supplier costs, or complex events […]
Setting prices for a catering quote is more than adding up your purchasing costs and putting a margin on top. Getting the calculation wrong means working hard for nothing. […]
The price of catering is determined by five main factors: the number of guests, the type of menu, the location, the level of service and the timing of your event. In addition, additional costs such as transport, equipment hire and […]
A healthy profit margin in the hospitality industry is between 3% and 15%, depending on your type of business. Restaurants usually operate on a net margin of 3-5%, cafés can achieve 10-15%, and catering companies often sit between 5-10%. These […]
A quote is more than a price list. There are legal obligations a quote must meet. Ignoring them puts you at risk in a dispute. […]
Contract catering gets lumped in with event catering so often that many people assume it's just a bigger, longer version of the same thing. It isn't. Where event catering delivers a single occasion, contract catering means running food service at […]
Vegan and vegetarian requests used to be a single line on a booking form that caterers handled with an afterthought salad. That's changed: guests now expect a plant-based option that's as considered as everything else on the menu, and getting […]
Afternoon tea catering looks simple on the surface, a few sandwiches, some scones, a pot of tea, but getting the details right is what separates a memorable afternoon tea from a disappointing one. Timing matters more than with most catering […]
During a busy catering day, it's not the recipe but the organisation in the kitchen that decides whether everything goes out the door on time. A kitchen with clear positions, where everyone knows their role, stays calm even under pressure, […]
A summer BBQ is often the easiest event for a client to book, and one of the trickiest for you to plan properly. You're cooking outdoors, at the mercy of the weather, with live grilling happening right in front of […]
A dish that looks profitable on the menu can quietly lose you money if the food cost behind it was never properly worked out. Food cost is the percentage of what you charge that goes straight back into ingredients, and […]
One bad allergic reaction, one van break-in, one slip on a wet marquee floor, and a single uninsured incident can undo months of profit. Catering insurance isn't one product though, it's a stack of different covers, and not every caterer […]
It's one of the first questions a client asks, and one of the easiest to get wrong: how many canapes does everyone actually need? Too few and the room feels stingy, too many and you've cooked (and bought) for nothing. […]
A funeral is rarely booked with much notice, and the tone is nothing like a wedding or a corporate do: quiet, respectful, and built around comfort rather than spectacle. Getting the catering right for a funeral tea or wake means […]
Every food business in the UK gets inspected and given a Food Hygiene Rating, a score from 0 to 5 that anyone can look up online before they book you. For a caterer that rating can make or break a […]
A delivered event is not the same as a paid invoice. Without clear payment terms and a set follow-up rhythm, some clients' payments quietly drift for weeks, and you only notice once it's already hitting your cash flow. In this […]
A reception often gets mentioned in the same breath as a drinks party or a walking dinner, but what actually sets it apart isn't always clear, even to the client booking it. Yet the type of reception shapes a lot […]
More and more guests are consciously drinking less or no alcohol at all, and expect more than a glass of cola in return. A well put-together mocktail offering feels just as considered to them as the regular drinks package, and […]
More visitors on your website is great, but it only turns into revenue if those visitors actually send an enquiry. The problem is rarely your offer or your pricing, it's usually the path someone has to take between interest and […]
A booking cancelled two weeks out costs you more than lost revenue: the buying is often already done and staff are already scheduled. Solid cancellation terms mean you don't have to absorb that cost entirely yourself. In this article we […]
Walking dinner might sound like a trend, but the concept is now a fixture at receptions and corporate parties. Guests move around and are served small courses at different points, rather than sitting at a table for a fixed menu. […]
A buffet looks simple at first glance: put the food out and let guests help themselves. In practice there's more structure behind it, and the approach differs quite a bit from a walking dinner or a plated sit-down meal. In […]
Anyone searching for catering nearby almost always starts with a Google search, and the first thing that shows up isn't your website, it's your Google Business Profile. A profile that's complete, current and backed by good reviews often decides whether […]
More and more clients ask for it without being prompted: a plant-based option on the menu, less plastic on the table, or just something more sustainable without being able to say exactly what they mean. Sustainable catering doesn't have to […]
A festival is often the biggest and toughest day of the season for food truck caterers. Thousands of guests pass your stall in a short window, and the organisers set different rules than a private corporate event. In this article […]
From a full sit-down wedding dinner to a quick bite at a festival, caterers work across very different catering concepts, often without putting a name to them. Yet the approach differs a lot between concepts, in planning, staffing and pricing. […]
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