A summer party, a product launch, a team celebration or a client evening: corporate event catering in London is where good food turns an occasion into something people remember. It is also where the logistics get bigger. Here is how to plan event catering in London, choose the right format, and keep a larger guest list running smoothly.

What corporate event catering covers

Corporate event catering is full-service food and drink for a one-off occasion, usually at a larger scale than a meeting lunch. Think 100 guests and up, with setup, service and clear-down handled for you. For occasions of this size, heycater!'s hey! Events brings location, catering, entertainment and on-site management together, so you are not stitching together separate suppliers.

Choosing the right format

The format sets the tone. A buffet is flexible and social, and scales well for big numbers. Canapes and bowl food keep an evening event moving and conversational. A seated meal suits awards nights and formal client dinners. Food stations and pop-ups add a bit of theatre for launches and summer parties. Match the format to the room, the timing and how much you want people to mingle.

Planning timeline for a London event

Larger events reward early planning. As a rough guide, lock the date, headcount and budget first, confirm the venue and catering format several weeks ahead, finalise the menu and dietary requirements closer to the date, and confirm final numbers in the last week. London venues and the best caterers get booked up around peak seasons, so for summer parties and the December run, earlier is always safer.

Sustainability and dietary needs at scale

At 100-plus guests, dietary coverage and sustainability stop being details and become part of the plan. Make sure vegan, vegetarian, halal and gluten-free options are built in and clearly labelled, and plan portions carefully to avoid waste. heycater! is 100% CO2-neutral and a recognised Green Innovator, with local and seasonal sourcing, which makes the sustainability story easy to share internally.

Corporate event catering with hey! Events

With hey! Events, you get full-service event planning for occasions from around 100 guests: location, catering, entertainment and on-site management in one place. You describe the event, and the team handles the moving parts so you can actually enjoy it. For one-off meetings there is Meetings & Catering, and for daily office meals there is heykantine!. Plan early, pick a format that fits the room, and build dietary coverage and sustainability in from the start, and your event will run as well as it tastes. To start planning, get in touch at event@heycater.com.