Someone books an all-hands for next Thursday, the invite goes to 60 people, and you're the one who has to figure out food. You pick a number — let's say 60, because that's how many are invited — and add a little buffer because you don't want anyone to go hungry. You end up with enough food for 80, and half the trays go back untouched.
At $18–$22 per person, that buffer just cost somewhere between $216 and $264.
Over-ordering is almost always a planning problem, and it's nearly universal for office catering events above 25 people, precisely because the instinct to "order a little extra" multiplies fast at scale.
The difference between confirmed and invited headcount matters more than you think
"Invited" and "confirmed" feel interchangeable until you've ordered for 80 and fed 55.
For most office events, actual attendance runs 75–85% of the invited list. Someone's kid gets sick, or the all-hands meeting gets moved to a hybrid format three days before. If you're ordering based on invites alone, you're building in waste by default.
A better approach is to wait until 48 hours before the event to finalize your order, using confirmed RSVPs as your baseline, and plan for 85–90% of that confirmed number. A 10–15% buffer is reasonable. Anything above that is where the waste lives.
For events where RSVPs aren't collected, use your office's typical in-person attendance for that day of the week as your baseline. Thursday attendance patterns are different from Monday's. You likely already know this from experience — use it.
How to Estimate Portions for Office Catering
Catering portions aren't the same as restaurant portions. They're designed for a spread, meaning people usually take less of each item when there are more options on the table. A good rule of thumb: the more variety, the smaller each individual serving.
A few practical estimates for a standard office lunch:
Proteins (tray-style): 4–5 oz per person for a single protein; 3–4 oz per person if you're offering two.
Sides: 3–4 oz per person per side, assuming two to three side options.
Individually boxed meals: One box per confirmed attendee, no adjustment needed.
Beverages: Two drinks per person for events under two hours.
The type of event matters too. A working lunch where people eat quickly and go back to a meeting tends to have lower consumption than a celebratory team lunch where people linger. For high-energy celebrations, round up slightly on sides and desserts. For focused working sessions, standard estimates hold.
One more thing: don't skip the beverages line in your order. It's the easiest thing to forget and the most noticeable when it's missing.
Choosing the Right Catering Format Reduces Waste Before You Place the Order
The format of your order has more impact on waste than the food you choose. Yet most admins make the food decision first and figure out the catering format later.
Tray-style catering is great for larger groups (50–100) where the event is relaxed and people serve themselves. The challenge is portion control — trays encourage people to take more than they need early in the line, which means the last few people in line end up with less, and overall waste tends to be higher.
With boxed or individually packaged meals, each person gets exactly one portion, dietary needs can be addressed at the individual level, and there's almost no guesswork on quantity. They work especially well for groups of 20–50, working lunches, and any event where the agenda is tight.
For groups above 50, a mixed format often makes the most sense: trays for sides and shared items where variation matters less, boxed portions for the main protein. That keeps costs manageable and waste lower than full tray-style.
Handling Dietary Restrictions for a Large Group
At 15 people, sending a quick message asking about dietary restrictions is reasonable. At 45, it becomes a thread that never fully closes. Someone always replies late or forgets to mention the allergy they have. And you end up managing exceptions instead of just placing an order.
The better approach at scale is designing the menu to cover restrictions by default, not by exception. Practically, this means choosing restaurants or formats where the main options are already inclusive: proteins that come with a vegetarian alternative, sides that are naturally gluten-free, and any sauces or dressings served on the side.
A rough guideline: if 15–20% of your team has any kind of dietary need (vegetarian, gluten-free, halal, dairy-free), the base menu should cover those needs without requiring a separate order. Most catering-capable restaurants can meet that bar if you filter for it.
The goal is a menu where nobody has to ask if there's something for them because it's already there.
What to Confirm Before You Place a Large Office Catering Order
Run through this before you submit your catering order:
Headcount: Based on confirmed RSVPs, not invites. Use 85–90% of that number as your order quantity.
Lead time: Most catering orders for groups of 20–50 need 24–48 hours minimum. For groups above 50, plan for 48–72 hours, especially if you have specific dietary or format requirements.
Format: Decide it before you pick the restaurant. Tray, boxed, or mixed — and make sure the restaurant you're considering actually offers what you need.
Budget per person: Include delivery fees in your calculation, not just the per-item cost. A $20/person menu with a $60 delivery fee on a 25-person order is actually $22.40/person. It's a small difference, but it adds up across a quarter of events.
Dietary coverage: Confirm at least one solid option for vegetarians and one for any other common restrictions on your team. If you're not sure, check with the restaurant directly before you order.
If you're managing large office catering orders regularly, DoorDash for Business lets you manage budget controls and format options for large catering orders from one place. It won't eliminate every variable, but it cuts down the number of tabs you have open at 9 a.m. on event day.
