5 Menu Ideas for Corporate Lunches

Dining on the job is and has long been a fixture in the professional sector, as shared meals are a reliable means of cultivating camaraderie between colleagues, business leadership, and the significant others of both. Whether taking the form of working luncheons, awards banquets, or as a weekly fixture on the calendar, on-site meals allow for the ancient “breaking of bread” tradition to manifest warmly in our modern world.

What has changed in recent years is the increasingly health-conscious diner whose particular considerations and preferences reflect a cultural shift away from processed, salt-laden, fatty foods of decades past, and towards wholesome, natural, nourishing meals which serve to satisfy, at once, the taste buds and one’s body.

Fortunately, there is no shortage of companies perfectly willing to accommodate this welcome shift, even if the restaurant and grocery stores spaces tend to lag behind in many regards.

Thankfully, such lagging is by no means true of all food vendors, with certain caterers rising to the challenge in enviable fashion and flavorful style. In fact, when arranging for your company’s next in-office meal gathering, keep these five menu ideas for corporate lunches in mind, as they are both nutritionally conscious and dense in flavor, to say nothing for aesthetically pleasing.

1.    Pita Platter

Satisfying to the stomach, impossibly tasty, and really rather nutritious, pita platters are certain to please all but the most discriminating of employees. The pitas themselves provide a hearty and energy-packed alternative to starchy counterparts and are best used as an edible utensil. Platters are intended to be modified, customized, and arranged in perfect accordance with a given series of preferences and requests.

Kabobs often encircle a number of hummus varietals, while lightly steamed vegetables might be complement the array for purposes of both visual appeal and nutrient density. One might choose a side dish of rice to lay alongside the meat and produce selections, and a few bowls of tzatziki will go a long way towards ensuring a vanishing of the pitas. However one elects to organize their respective pita platter, bear in mind there is legitimate cause for this particular suggestion resting atop the five menu ideas for corporate lunches. It is simply difficult to displace the potential of such a dynamic ingredient/recipe collective.

2.    Sushi

Ah, yes—sushi. There is not much more that needs to be said. Raw fish, ornately prepared and handsomely flavored, sushi arrangements are notoriously beloved in the corporate luncheon arena. They leave behind very little in the cleanup and are somehow as cosmetically appealing as they are nutritionally potent. One’s employees are sure to leave the meal with a sense of having done right by themselves in terms of quality and portion control, which might make for a welcome departure from more aggressive precursors (pizza parties, perhaps?).

3.    Korean BBQ

Perhaps something of an odd entry on the list of five menu ideas for corporate lunches, Korean BBQ is nevertheless a deserving mention herein. The rice, the broth, the tender meat pieces—such meals often become the stuff of legend when re-imagined in hindsight. Few leave feeling empty after a meal of Korean BBQ, though all walk away with a sense of having taxed their respective taste buds to the utmost, as the cuisine is renowned for its range of spices and clever application of flavor-inducing preparation methods.

4.    Flatbreads

Pizza will likely be a favorite food of Americans for generations to come, but there do exist slightly more sophisticated alternatives, at least one of which very much belongs on this list—flatbreads. Comparatively light in relation to all but the thinnest of thin crust pizzas, flatbreads tend to be characterized by healthier topping arrangements, smaller portion sizes, and the omnipresence of nutritious olive oil. These are well-received at parties and the like; audition the cuisine when next the company is feeling particularly generous.

5.    Hors d’oeuvre Buffet

Expand the culinary horizons of friends and colleagues alike by way of an artful hors d’oeuvre buffet, the contents of which may range from the plain to the ornate without anyone being able to discern one from the next. Broccoli tarts, shrimp cocktail, fondue, and perhaps a selection of cured meats—these are but a few suggestions of literally thousands available when the menu is to be comprised of miniature cuisine of first-rate quality.

Let loose the imaginative energies when authoring an hors d’oeuvre menu. When working with a top-notch caterer, they’ll surely welcome the creative challenge.