The corporate cafeteria is dead: Free, personalized lunch is the new office perk

Few things bring people together like free food. 

But shuffling through a corporate cafeteria line with limited food choices is less than desirable for employees, and employers may find it an out-of-date feature in office spaces that are not at full capacity five days a week. When Kansas City-based commercial real estate operating company NorthPoint Development moved into their new office in May of 2022, they considered renovating the cafeteria that was already part of the property, but the cons quickly outweighed the pros. 

"We looked at things like cost, overhead, efficiencies and reliability," says Melissa Allinder, NorthPoint Development's office operations manager. "Renovating the existing cafeteria would lead us down a path where we'd need to hire kitchen staff, handle licensing, and maintain a commercial kitchen."

Instead, they wanted to bring their staff of more than 300 together for lunch in a new way: They decided to turn the space into a community kitchen and partnered with corporate catering company EzCater, whose Relish program allows employees to choose meals from a list of local restaurants,  and have them delivered daily — at no cost to employees. 

"Our team members can order exactly what they want, and it's delivered straight to our community kitchen area for them to pick up," says Allinder. "This also allows us to order less food; in return, we see less food waste." 

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Cafeterias in the U.S. create as much as 11 billion pounds of food waste annually, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. By reducing the amount of waste created, NorthPoint's impact is wise ecologically as well as financially. There is also a risk of failure when it comes with on-site food prep — another reason catering won out over a new cafeteria, says Allinder. 

"Things like broken appliances, water or electrical issues — things you don't necessarily see coming but that can definitely prevent us from being able to prepare food for our team members," she says. "With Relish, team members can order ahead on their app, and if there is any sort of issue with the restaurant, the support team at [EzCater] can notify them directly so they can select a backup item."  

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Giving employees the chance to select a meal that fits their personal needs — dietary restrictions is a feature in the Relish app — aligns with efforts to offer more flexibility in the workplace and speaks to a company's level of inclusivity, says Diane Swint, chief revenue officer at EzCater.

"You're giving a little excitement to your employees every day," says Swint. "It's about variety and flexibility and putting those together to allow a much more visible way to appreciate your employees." 

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For NorthPoint Development's employees, not having to pack their own lunch or leave the premises to pick something up means putting time back in their day for more important things, says Allinder. 

"Not only is there the monetary piece of team members not having to pay for their own lunch, but there is a convenience to it," she says. "This brings everyone in the company together around the same time every day. They can grab their lunch and enjoy it at one of our three community table areas with coworkers and friends. It's a win-win."