Journal / Catering Guides
Feeding a room where everyone eats differently
Halal, vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, and the person who cannot do heat. All in one order, without turning it into three orders.
Whoever is organizing the lunch usually sends a list. Two vegetarians, one vegan, someone gluten free, three people who need halal, and one line at the bottom that says "and Dave doesn't like spicy."
Then they try to solve it by ordering four different things from four different places, or by ordering one safe thing that nobody is excited about. Both are worse than the alternative.
The thing that solves most of this before you start
Everything we make is 100% halal certified. Both kitchens, every catering format, no exceptions and no separate menu.
That matters more than people expect in a room this size. Normally the halal requirement is what forces the order to split, because the caterer can cover it for a few people but not for everyone. Here it is already handled for the whole room, and nobody has to be given the special tray.
Nobody wants to be the person eating the different meal. The goal is that you cannot tell who the accommodation was for. Chef Mike Nassar
What we can prepare differently
- Both shawarmas — the I‑75 Chicken and the M‑85 Spicy — can be made vegan or gluten free
- The Russell Street Vegetarian can be made vegan
- All three fry options can be made vegan
- The Pomegranate Thyme Fattoush is vegetarian as it comes
The important part is telling us when you order rather than on the day. A shawarma built vegan from the start is a good sandwich. A shawarma with things removed from it is a worse sandwich, and everyone can tell.
How many vegetarian meals to order
About 15% of the order is a sensible starting point for a general audience. Adjust it if you actually know the group.
The mistake is almost always ordering too few, and it is a specific kind of bad. If you order twenty meals and two vegetarian ones, and three vegetarians turn up, someone is eating fries for lunch. That person tends to be the same person every time, and they notice.
Ordering one or two extra costs very little. Running out is remembered.
What to tell us when you order
- The specific requirements, not just "some dietary needs"
- Whether it is a preference or a medical restriction, because we treat those differently
- Any allergy, named. Do not soften it
- How the food is being served, since a tray and a live station handle this differently
Where we will tell you no
Our kitchen is not allergen free. We handle wheat, dairy, shellfish and nuts in the same space, so we cannot promise there is no cross contact.
If someone in the room has a severe allergy, tell us what it is and we will tell you honestly what we can and cannot do. Sometimes the answer is that they should bring their own food, and we would rather say that than reassure you and be wrong.
Group catering menuEvery package and tray priced individually, with the vegetarian and vegan options markedOne thing about live service
If you are booking the Craft Sandwich Bar or the food truck, dietary requirements get easier rather than harder. Each guest picks their own item at the station, so nobody is handed a labeled box, and we can build one differently without it becoming an event.
With delivered trays it is the opposite. Everything is decided in advance, so the list has to be right when you order.
The short version
- Everything we serve is 100% halal certified, so that requirement is solved for the whole room by default.
- Both shawarmas can be made vegan or gluten free. The Russell Street Vegetarian and all three fries can be made vegan.
- Order roughly 15% vegetarian for a general audience, and round up rather than down.
- Tell us at order time, not on the day. Built-for-purpose beats adapted.
- Our kitchen is not allergen free. Name the allergy and we will give you a straight answer.
