BlogThroughout the course of the coronavirus pandemic, the catering industry has certainly endured some challenges. With events being postponed indefinitely, we had to wonder – how will we weather this storm?
We took a chance by creating a takeout or delivery meal service for our customers with a rotating menu that we update weekly. We figured that if we could buy ourselves two weeks, that might be enough time to reevaluate our plan – little did we know that two months later this new program would be going strong with continued growth.
The menu changes weekly, with some of our most popular dishes being barbecue grilled chicken, fried chicken, brisket, Korean beef short ribs, and our tomato bisque. As soon as a menu is published for the week, we start talking about the next menu. Our Executive Chef, David Drapes, creates the menu each week based on our continuous brainstorming. We bounce ideas off each other in the kitchen and we agreed early on that there are no bad ideas (even if we don’t end up adding it to the menu). Our focus is on what our customers seem to enjoy the most. When we get requests for certain items frequently, we add them to a future menu.
One thing we’re really glad we’ve been able to do during this major pivot in our routine is give back to the community through The Kettering Backpack Program. They provide at-risk students with a bag of food at the end of the week throughout the school year to bridge the gap for students who rely on school breakfasts and lunches. This year, they are providing weekend food for families in need throughout the summer, as well. For every 45 orders we receive, we donate five meals that feed a family of four to Kettering Backpack. So far, we’ve been able to donate over 45 orders, or 180 meals. We feel honored to give back to the community we call home.
We count ourselves very lucky to have such incredible customers. Each week, we’re astounded by the outpouring of support we receive. It hasn’t been easy, but our customers give us the drive we need to keep going with the same great passion and enthusiasm that they deserve from us. As things start to return to normal, we’d like to keep some aspect of these weekly meals going. It’s clear people love bringing our meals into their homes to enjoy with family and we’re so happy to cook for them during this trying time.
