Mobile Caterers in Hillingdon

Food Etc are mobile caterers based in Denham that prepare quality food with exceptional service. They have chefs that have worked in some of the best hotels in London and Switzerland and also have some excellent advice on what to ask when booking a caterer.

What do you need to know from an organiser in order to provide a comprehensive quote?

For us to provide a comprehensive quote to a customer, ideally we would like to discuss their actual requirements for the event. We offer more than we advertise, by talking the event through and with our experience in event catering, we can see if we can put together anything more suitable.
Many factors may influence the equipment, time and staff required on the day, indoor or outdoor, power supply or no power, staff required or no staff, entertainer contact details etc.

What advice would you give to a customer looking to hire a provider in your area of work?

Firstly, I would always speak to the supplier. This allows you to see if they know their business, ask questions about events they have done in the past, explore what they have done in the area you are looking to cater.
Look through their website. Read reviews of them on Yell.com or other recognised review sites. See how long they have been trading, someone who has been trading for a number of years is likely to understand their business and customers needs. Don't be afraid to ask questions you think they may not be able to help you with i.e asking a caterer if they know a DJ might not be the natural question, but event caterers see lots of different things on their travels and they always take notes of things they see that are good. It adds value to their business, they may not make money out of it but it is great for customer service to be able to recommend something good.

Please tell us a little bit about how and why you started the business.

Food Etc was started by accident! As a chef by profession, I was asked to help a friend impress his boss when he had been let down by the event cater seven days before his party. We stepped up and run barbecues, bars and canapes for more than 200 guests. From that one event in 2000, we received eight bookings! Business organically evolved until 2010 when we found new premises to work out of and set up a website to make life easier for our customers. I have been very lucky to have many repeat customers, this still includes the first ever event we did.
My passion and belief that customer service is everything and a family ethos of supporting as many family businesses as I am able to has been our motto. All our team have the same mentality "nothing is too much trouble" and everyone works as a team. We don't have bar staff or waiting staff, we have a service team who support each other in ensuring the customer has the best experience of Food etc.

Please tell us about a booking you've had through Add to Event, how did it go? Would you recommend us to others?

This platform is fairly new to Food etc. and this is our attempt at looking at different ways to interact with potential new business. I find Add to Event to be a new and innovative way to meet customers, a site where everyone is looking for the same thing. It delivers new business opportunities to use which supplement our loyal existing customer base. We have catered two events since joining in the Summer and have more lined up in the coming months, which we are excited about.
I have looked at the site from a customer perspective and see it is easy to use and delivers the customer directly to what they are looking for instead of trawling through the internet. I am looking forward to 2019 and the opportunities ahead.