How to Get More Catering Orders for Your Restaurant

You already offer catering. People have ordered. The food went out and customers were happy.

But orders are occasional, and you would like catering to be a steadier part of the business.

There is no single trick that guarantees more catering orders. What usually works is a combination of small, practical changes: making catering easier to find, easier to request, and easier to remember. This guide covers the areas that tend to matter most.

1. Make Catering Easy to Find

Many restaurants offer catering that their customers do not know about.

Check every place a customer might encounter your restaurant:

• Your website homepage and navigation
• Your online listings and profiles
• Your social media bios
• Your printed menus and takeout bags
• Your counter and dining room

If catering is not visible in those places, you are relying on customers to ask. Most will not.

2. Give Catering a Dedicated Page

A single line saying "We cater!" is easy to miss and does not help anyone decide.

A dedicated catering page gives potential customers a place to:

• See what you offer and who you cater for
• Browse packages and menu options
• Understand delivery, pickup, and lead times
• Request catering

It also gives every other marketing effort somewhere to point. Social posts, emails, flyers, and QR codes all work better when they lead to one clear catering destination instead of a phone number.

3. Start With Your Existing Customers

Your regular customers already trust your food. Many of them work at offices, belong to clubs, coach teams, or host family gatherings.

Simple ways to reach them:

• Mention catering on receipts and takeout bags
• Train staff to mention catering to regulars
• Add a small sign near the register
• Include catering in any customer emails you already send

These customers are often the easiest first catering orders because the trust is already there.

4. Reach Out to Local Businesses

Many catering orders come from businesses near your restaurant.

Make a short list of organizations within your delivery area that regularly feed groups:

• Offices
• Medical and dental clinics
• Car dealerships
• Schools and childcare centres
• Real estate offices
• Community organizations

Then introduce yourself. A short visit with a menu, or a brief email pointing to your catering page, is often enough to get on someone's radar.

5. Focus on Corporate Catering

Corporate catering tends to be one of the more repeatable types of catering because businesses hold meetings, training sessions, and staff lunches throughout the year.

The organizations that order regularly care about reliability, timing, and clear packages more than novelty.

For a deeper look, read how to get corporate catering customers.

6. Use Social Media Consistently

You do not need to post every day. You do need to remind people that catering exists.

Ideas that work:

• Photos of real catering orders, with permission where needed
• A simple post showing what a package includes
• Seasonal reminders ahead of holidays and busy periods
• A clear link to your catering page in every post

The goal is not to go viral. It is to be the restaurant people remember when they need food for a group.

7. Promote Catering In-Store

Your dining room is free advertising space.

• A table card or counter sign about catering
• A flyer in takeout orders
• A short mention from staff when someone orders for a group

Customers ordering several meals at once are often good catering prospects.

8. Use QR Codes Wisely

A QR code on a table card, flyer, or bag can take someone directly to your catering page.

Make sure it:

• Leads to the catering page, not your general homepage
• Is large enough to scan easily
• Has a short line of text explaining what it is, such as "Planning a group lunch? See our catering options"

9. Email Your Customer List

If you already collect customer emails, catering is a natural topic.

A short, occasional email can:

• Introduce your catering packages
• Remind people ahead of holiday parties or graduation season
• Highlight a new package

Keep emails useful and infrequent. Always link to your catering page.

10. Make It Easy to Order Again

The cheapest catering order to win is the second order from a happy customer.

After an event:

• Thank the customer
• Ask how it went
• Make reordering easy, for example by offering to repeat the same order
• Check in before the next likely occasion, such as a quarterly meeting

Repeat customers can become a meaningful share of catering revenue over time.

11. Build Partnerships

Look for businesses that serve the same customers but do not compete with you:

• Event venues without in-house food
• Office building managers
• Party rental companies
• Community and sports organizations

A simple referral relationship can bring in orders you would not reach on your own.

12. Plan for Seasonal Opportunities

Catering demand often rises around certain times of year, depending on your area:

• Holiday parties
• Graduations and end-of-school events
• Sports seasons
• Back-to-school staff events

Promote a few weeks before these periods, not during them, when people are already making plans.

13. Respond Fast

Many catering inquiries are time-sensitive. Someone planning lunch for next Thursday may contact several restaurants and go with whoever responds clearly first.

Aim to reply quickly, even if it is only to confirm you received the request and will send a quote shortly.

If inquiries tend to get buried in your inbox, read how to follow up with catering leads.

14. Track What Actually Produces Orders

Without tracking, it is hard to know what is working.

Keep it simple. For each inquiry, note:

• Where it came from
• What they asked for
• Whether it turned into an order

After a few months, you will see which efforts are worth repeating and which are not.

Putting It Together

You do not need to do everything on this list at once. A practical order:

1. Make catering visible and give it a dedicated page
2. Tell your existing customers
3. Reach out to a short list of nearby businesses
4. Respond quickly to every inquiry
5. Follow up after every order

For a more structured approach, read how to market catering for a restaurant. If budget is the concern, see 10 ways to promote your restaurant catering without a big advertising budget.

Where Caterly Helps

Getting more catering orders depends on having a clear place to send people and a reliable way to handle the inquiries that come in.

Caterly gives your restaurant a catering page where customers can see your packages and request catering, plus marketing materials that point back to it and a simple way to track every inquiry through to an order.

For the foundations, see how to start a catering business from your restaurant.