How is your catering service?

Whilst some caterers deliver a quality catering service in a cost effective manner, others may not fully meet expectation. What they promise does not always materialise, whether it be the quality of food on the plate, the standard of service, financial delivery or the highest standard of hygiene and best working practices. Clients, particularly those with management fee contracts, either through error or misunderstanding, may be charged more for food and services than they should be.

Merritt-Harrison have developed a financial and quality review process, designed for organisations that operate or contract their catering, to identify areas for improvement and, more importantly, what to do to resolve them.

Our Financial and Quality Review involves a full day visit to your catering operation, to view the services and discuss areas of concern. The review will assess all front and back of house operations, including kitchens and ancillary areas, service points and dining facilities.

The key areas for scrutiny will include the menu and product offer, food quality, presentation and display, and operational standards such as cleanliness, food hygiene, health and safety and working practices.

Catering finances are a key aspect of the review, encompassing tariff, charges for free issues or hospitality, volume of sales, cost of sales, purchase prices including discounts and overriders returned or retained, labour and associated on-costs, sundries and the contractor’s management fees and overall earnings.

The consultancy uses computer based models for financial modelling and benchmarking against similar catering provision.

Following the visit, a full report identifying our findings, with recommendations and suggested solutions, will be sent to the client.

On receipt of the report, the client will be able to focus on the changes that are needed in order to improve overall quality, service and value for money.

If, as a result of the review, negotiation with the contractor is required, or ongoing monitoring to ensure that standards are maintained, this can be provided.