A healthy, delicious lunch is an important employee benefit, often provided at larger companies in the form of a company canteen where meals are subsidized or offered at a low price. Canteen food doesn't have the best reputation, but it doesn't have to be unhealthy or boring. There are also alternatives to a traditional canteen, with a suitable solution for every team and company size. We'll show you popular, healthy canteen meals as well as alternative forms of employee catering.

Pros and cons of a company canteen

A company canteen brings several advantages for both employees and employers, but these need to be carefully weighed against the downsides. We've put together the key points for you.

Pros

• A benefit for employees
• Affordable meals for employees
• The canteen can foster team building and exchange when employees from different departments meet
• Encourages fixed break times, since leaving your desk and screen to eat is sensible and healthy.

Cons

• High costs for setup and operations
• Tied to fixed hours
• Limited selection of dishes that won't suit every taste
• Balancing healthy and popular meals with feasibility isn't easy to solve.

Examples of healthy canteen food

Canteens don't always have the best reputation. Boring or unhealthy food are just two of the common concerns about canteen meals. But that's not always the reality. A lot has changed in recent years, or even decades. Awareness of healthy, varied food has also found its way into large-scale kitchens. In many cafeterias and canteens, for example, the range of vegetarian or even fully plant-based dishes has grown significantly.

The most popular canteen meals in Germany still include currywurst, schnitzel, and spaghetti bolognese, as well as pizza of course. Meat-heavy dishes and fast food remain very much in demand. But with growing awareness of healthier and more climate-friendly eating, alternative dishes have nothing to hide.

A few examples of healthy canteen food:

• minestrone
• vegetable lasagna instead of the classic version
• baked or boiled potatoes with quark or tzatziki and a side salad
• spaghetti bolognese with whole wheat pasta and lentil bolognese
• grilled fish
• gnocchi with vegetables
• chili sin carne
• roasted vegetables with hummus
• Buddha bowl

Alternatives to a company canteen or company restaurant

A company restaurant or canteen isn't the only way to provide employees with a lunch option and support them in having a healthy, nourishing lunch break. Which options make sense for your company depends on available space, budget, and demand.

A good first step is to talk with your employees and ask what they'd like for lunch, what dietary needs and allergies exist, and how the company can help.

The mobile canteen

A classic company canteen pays off mostly for larger companies, and only if it's used enough. If a canteen or company restaurant isn't an option, a mobile canteen is a flexible alternative. Here's how it works: lunch is pre-ordered in advance via an app. Employees choose the menus or dishes that match their preferences themselves. Just like in a canteen, individual meal plans can be put together from different daily dishes. Even more individual are meal plans tailored specifically to your company. By the way, you can also order snacks for the afternoon break or your next meeting this way. The canteen food is delivered directly to the office, right on time for lunch, no waiting in line, and no disappointment over a lack of options. One example of a mobile canteen is heycater's heykantine!

Get to know heykantine! now!

Catering for lunch

If you don't want to order lunch for employees every day, only occasionally, a delivery service or classic catering is also a great choice. This way you can try different national cuisines and catering styles. Maybe a small barbecue in the company courtyard in summer, a warm buffet with soups and stews in winter, finger food for a quick break, or classic lunch catering. Or, of course, pizza, which almost everyone loves!

Personal chef

An alternative to a canteen is hiring a chef. This requires enough space and an equipped kitchen. Alternatively, a mobile kitchen needs to be brought in. One example is a food truck or a mobile cooking station, which also needs enough space and connections for electricity, gas, and water (depending on the type of station or truck).

Company kiosk

A micro market or company kiosk can't replace a warm meal from the company canteen, but it can offer a good selection of snacks and cold meals for the lunch break. A smaller alternative is a snack vending machine, which can of course also be stocked with healthy options. And of course, a fruit basket or other snacks and tasty drinks should always be available for the team to help themselves to during working hours, for thirst or a small hunger in between.

Encouraging cooking together

Not a true alternative, since the option to cook requires a well-equipped office kitchen and employees who have the time and desire to cook for the team. Cooking together can be a great team building measure that many employees enjoy. You should ask in advance whether there's interest, and keep in mind that most teams have different allergies and dietary needs.

If everyone, or most of the team, is enthusiastic about the idea, employees could take turns, so that a small group cooks lunch for everyone on the same day each week. It's worth agreeing on the menu in advance, if you know who has allergies or eats halal, vegetarian, or vegan, it can also be a nice surprise.

You'll find more on community catering in this article

Frequently asked questions about canteen food

Still have questions? We've put together some of the most common ones here. If you're interested in a mobile canteen for your company, you can always reach out to our service team, who know all about employee catering and can walk you through the different options.

What is the most popular canteen food?

The most popular canteen meals are still hearty meat dishes like currywurst, roast chicken, and schnitzel, along with Italian-inspired classics like pizza and pasta. Other fast food dishes, like chicken nuggets and fries, are also popular.

How healthy is canteen food?

As mentioned above, the most popular canteen dishes tend to be high in fat and generally low in vegetables and nutritional value. That's not because it's impossible to prepare healthy canteen food. There are good concepts for dishes with better nutritional value in community catering too. So this question can't be answered universally. The fact is: healthy canteen food is possible, and it's being promoted through various initiatives.

When is a company canteen worth it?

The key point is: a company restaurant or canteen requires space and a fairly significant investment to acquire and set up the kitchen and all necessary equipment. Ongoing costs like staff, electricity, and water shouldn't be underestimated either. For a canteen to pay off, it needs to be used enough. It's also worth considering: how many employees want to, or are able to, use the offering, and how often? If you use a hybrid or remote work model, not all employees are in the office every day. If fewer than 100 employees a day would use the canteen, the investment usually isn't worth it, though it depends on your specific circumstances and costs. Above roughly 200 employees a day, it can be worthwhile, in between it's uncertain. A mobile canteen is a different story, feel free to ask us about our offerings and packages.

Is a company canteen mandatory?

Regardless of headcount, no company is required to set up a company canteen or restaurant. It should be understood as a benefit that both sides gain from: employees get an easy, regular meal without having to bring their own food or spend money eating out, and employers benefit from employees who are satisfied and well-fed, and from the better performance and concentration that follows a healthy meal, so offering nutrient-rich dishes and snacks is always worthwhile.

What can a canteen meal cost?

This depends on what's on offer (organic dishes, for example, generally cost more) and on who pays what share of the cost. Employers can subsidize lunch and claim it as a tax-deductible non-cash benefit (see non-cash benefit value). A good benchmark for the employee's own contribution is 2 to 3 euros, though this can vary depending on income, offering, and region.

heycater's mobile company canteen

Already know about our heykantine!, the mobile canteen for healthy employee catering? With just a few clicks, you can order delicious meals for your team, or let employees choose their own lunch. You can select the date and time and pre-order food for the entire week. This way you support your team with healthy meals and a welcome benefit.

Take a look at heykantine! now, or ask our service team if you have any questions!