Last week we took to the streets or better said took to “off-site events” to carry on our Kitchen Conversations Series. This time around we had the privilege of chatting with caterers about their successes as well as some of the challenges in maintaining food safety principles at catered events.

A common concern for many of the caterers we met with is that running a catering business involves more moving parts and processes compared to operating a traditional brick-and-mortar restaurant. The food is received, prepared, stored, transported and served.  The transporting portion is where things can get tricky if not handled properly. Also, the food being served can easily be put at risk if the catering staff is not supplied with the proper tools and supplies need to serve food outside of a kitchen.

We interviewed Food Safety/HACCP expert, Jeff Nelken who works closely with foodservice operators including caterers and here’s a few things he would like to share with anyone who is serving food at off-site events.