A welcome-back event brings the whole company together at the start of the fall. As the event planner producing it, you're deciding three things — the date, the headcount, and how the food gets served. All three are easier to settle in August, while Metro's summer menus are still open and the return week is far enough out to book whatever the event calls for. This post walks through each decision, with the menu windows and lead times that affect it, so you can have the event booked before the office is back.
Labor Day falls on Monday, September 7 this year. If your office comes back that week, the timing lines up with a closing window: Metro's Summer BBQ menu runs through September 11, the Friday of that same week. A welcome-back event held during the return week can still draw on it: burgers, hot dogs, ribs, and the rest of the cookout menu. An event held the following week can't. The Summer Seasonal menu runs through October 2, so a later date still has warm-weather options, but the BBQ window closes first, and it's the menu built for a casual, everyone-invited, summer-ending event.
Two booking rules matter once you have a date in mind:
Settle the date in August and the whole menu is available to plan around. Wait until the second week of September and the cookout options are gone.
An open invite means the catering order has to work before attendance settles. People confirm late, and plans shift during a return week, so you'll place the order before a final number exists. Order against a working headcount — the number you'd expect in the office on a normal day — and adjust it as replies come in, right up to the 3:00 p.m. day-before cutoff. Metro's day-before window is what makes that adjustment possible: you can book the event weeks out without locking in the headcount until the afternoon before.
The All American BBQ fits this kind of event: beef burgers, turkey burgers, veggie burgers, chicken tenders, and beef hot dogs in one order, at $39.95 per guest with a 15-guest minimum. The range covers everyone's preferences, meat-eaters and vegetarians alike, without a separate order for each, and the low minimum means the same package works whether the whole company is fifteen people or a few hundred. BBQ Ribs ($24.95 per guest, 10-guest minimum) are a second option, in four styles — St Louis, Hawaiian Pineapple, Memphis dry rub, and Pasilla Chile, each gluten-free — served with Creamy Coleslaw and Soft Sweet Rolls.
Confirm the working number when you book.
There are two ways to order for an event like this. The first is per guest: packages like the All American BBQ price by headcount, and Metro portions the order to the number you give. The second is as a shared spread — one large presentation set out for the room and priced as a single unit, no matter how many people take from it. Metro calls these displays.
Summer Sliders is one option here, with four slider varieties: Carolina BBQ Pulled Pork, Hot Honey Fried Chicken, Hamburger with Maple Glazed Bacon and Gorgonzola, and a vegetarian Balsamic Baby Bello, at $299.95 per display.
Per-guest ordering fits a lunch-hour event where the food is the meal. A display fits a mid-afternoon or end-of-day gathering, where people graze as they mingle rather than sitting down to a plate. Either way, delivery is scheduled in a 30-minute window, and Metro sets up where you direct.
The return week is under four weeks away, and the Summer BBQ menu closes September 11. Pick the date, set the working headcount, and choose the serving format. Then place the order while the full menu is open. Metro's corporate catering team can walk you through both formats and get the date on the books. Book the event this month, and your team walks into its first week back with the cookout already planned.
Author
Chris Zamfotis
Managing Partner, Metro Catering
Chris Zamfotis is the Managing Partner at Metro Catering, a New York City catering company serving corporate offices, private events, and businesses across Manhattan. With a focus on reliable service, thoughtful menu planning, and polished presentation, Chris helps lead Metro Catering’s approach to modern corporate catering, from daily office lunches to executive meetings, happy hours, and large-scale events.
Metro Catering has been NYC’s trusted corporate catering provider since 1981, offering fresh, high-quality meals for office lunches, corporate events, and workplace dining—delivered on time, every time.
