Catering to GWU

On Saturday, Feb 20, 2010, we catered the social event for Korean Business Association (KOBA) of the George Washington University. Starting from the last fall semester, KOBA became a big fan of the Todai catering service. The event was on the 4th floor of Duques Hall, and the buffet line was set up on the hall way of the same floor. The event started at 6pm, and catering team needed about 30 minutes to set up the buffet line for 40 people.

Whenever we cater to the event, one of the questions that we ask to planners is if we can use the kitchen in the venue. Most menus are cooked in the restaurant and stored in thermo box and delivered, but some items should be cooked on site for better food quality. If we cannot use the kitchen on site, there might be some limitations for menu selection. For example, Unagi (Eel Sushi) should be cooked in the oven on site for better taste as well as removing unpleasant smell.
In KOBA event case, they want to have Unagi for its event since last semester. However, unfortunately no kitchens were allowed for outside caterers in Duques Hall. Unagi is one of the popular items among Asians, especially for Koreans, but KOBA could not have Unagi for its event last semester.

However, we created the new way to warm up and cook for Unagi without using the oven in the kitchen. We lightly cooked the Unagi in the restaurant first, and we did the final touch on site by using the "torch". When on-site-chef cooked the Unagi with torch on site, it was like a cooking show. KOBA students were gathering and watching the cooking and waited with their watering mouths. Based on the student, who occasionally dines in Todai restaurant and a big fan of the Unagi, she could not tell the difference between the Unagi in the restaurant and Unagi cooked by torch on Duques Hall. Every attendee of the event seemed satisfied with the food, and most of them had extra foods in their carry out boxes.
This means a lot to us and potential customers. As Unagi is one of the popular items, now catering customers can choose Unagi without worrying about whether caterers can use kitchens or not on venues.