Easy ways to shake up your Food & Beverage offerings

Meetings and events catering needs to meet exacting standards, sure, but does that mean it should remain stuck in time? Food trends may be fleeting, but societal food shifts cannot be ignored. Here are some simple ways you can update your events’ F&B.

How to be inclusive with your food offerings

Dietary restrictions can isolate attendees, so ensure your menus and snacks include a wide array of options that avoid the most common allergens. Sure, it requires more creativity on the F&B team’s part, but isn’t that what you’re paying them for? 

Here are the most common allergens today:

• Dairy: found not only in milk and cheeses, but hidden in many processed foods.
• Eggs: especially egg whites, widely used in baking, sauces and dressings.
• Peanuts: one of the most severe allergens, usually indicated on packaging in Canada.
• Tree nuts: including almonds, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts and pistachios.
• Wheat: mostly because of the gluten, which in its most extreme cases of intolerance is celiac disease.

This way of enhancing your event’s inclusivity will ensure your delegates feel truly welcome and considered.

Think “plant power” for a fresh and attentive audience

Vegetarian options are still a growing trend in the international food economy, with more and more people choosing to eat plant-based on more than just Meatless Mondays. 

Here are five great plant-based alternatives to meat:

• Tofu: a protein powerhouse with a neutral taste that absorbs marinades beautifully.
• Tempeh: also a soy-based protein, firmer and nuttier than tofu, made from whole fermented soybeans.
• Lentils: a legume that mimics the texture of minced meat easily and soak up spices exceptionally well.
• Mushrooms: great in burgers or as a pulled-meat alternative, they’re full of natural umami.
• Seitan: a protein made from wheat gluten that has the closest texture to chicken or beef.

Vegetarian food can help reduce your F&B costs considerably, too: on average a plant-based flexitarian diet is estimated to cost 14% less than the standard diet, plus it has the benefit of being more sustainable.

How to host low- or no-alcohol festive event 

You’ll have noticed them on restaurant menus far and wide: mocktails are having a moment right now. Among the driving forces behind this is the growing demand for healthier drink options, especially in an events context where the celebrating is constant, and where the crowd is composed of one’s professional peers. 

Find incredible alcohol-free drinks at these 10 Montréal bars:

1. Cicchetti
2. Atwater Cocktail Club
3. Notre Dame des Quilles
4. Living Room
5. Modavie
6. Bar Bisou Bisou
7. La Distillerie
8. Cloakroom
9. Buvette Pompette
10. Bar Furco

Keep your attendees engaged with alternative energy sources

Let’s be honest – what’s an event without caffeine? It’s the perfect fuel, but coffee does come with a crash that more and more health seekers are looking to avoid. By offering alternatives beyond coffee and tea at your refuelling stations you’ll satisfy those looking for a kick without the downside, all the while giving your event a trendy feel. 

Some favoured alternatives? 

• Kombucha, a lightly effervescent, tangy fermented tea made with sugar, yeast and bacteria, prized for its refreshing acidity, subtle sweetness and probiotic power;
• Green juices, which deliver a concentrated boost of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants from leafy vegetables to support hydration, digestion and overall nutrient intake;
• Matcha, a finely ground powder of specially grown green tea leaves, whisked into water or milk to create an infusion rich in antioxidants and prized for its sustained energy;
• Yerba mate, a brew native to South America that’s known to slow the heart rate while sharpening focus and concentration. 

The main tenets of Food & Beverage planning — cost effectiveness, sustainability and wide appeal — can be met while including all these trends. Refresh your offerings, and watch your delegates relish your creativity.