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Across different industries and workplace settings, food is one of the biggest factors influencing employee engagement and office culture. In fact, perks like free lunch can make employees feel more enthusiastic about coming in to work.
But that’s where it gets complicated, because workers aren’t expecting just any food. They want food that tastes good, and they want variety. Employees may get tired of having to choose from the same menu day after day, even if the food is delicious. That’s why menu fatigue is such a common problem for workplace cafeterias.
In this post, we explore how rotating local restaurants can solve these menu planning woes. We also share some of the best employee cafeteria menu ideas to inspire you.
From attendance to employee productivity, there are a lot of workplace performance metrics that food can improve. It fosters culture and connection, making on-site days feel even more “worth it.”
According to Fooda’s latest “What’s Happening in the Workplace Now?” survey, 80% of employees feel more enthusiastic about work when they get lunch from the company. This says a lot about how food serves as a motivator for office attendance, possibly even boosting employee morale.
That said, employees have certain standards when it comes to office meals, with better snacks and drinks being the top demand. This is largely fueled by a population that’s become increasingly food-motivated and growing more adventurous with food.
In fact, 53% of Americans consider themselves to be foodies. And 53% also consider themselves to be adventurous eaters, with many of them being open to try international cuisines.
As such, it’s no surprise that employees also expect food that has some variety and doesn’t taste terrible. So variety and quality are now expectations instead of perks. There’s also a need to provide healthy and authentic options to further elevate the workplace dining experience.
With this considered, cafeteria menu planning needs to evolve beyond static, institutional food. Having access to diverse employee cafeteria menu ideas makes it easy to keep your office cafeteria filled with fresh and exciting options.
So what goes into successful employee cafeteria menu planning? Let’s break down the key ingredients:
· Variety Across Cuisines – Serving up a diverse range of cuisines is the easiest way to keep cafeteria menus fresh and dynamic. These global flavors also allow you to engage your employees with new and interesting options.
· Healthy Cafeteria Ideas – As more workers focus on improving their physical wellness, facilities leaders can support their goals through healthy cafeteria menu selections. Balance indulgence with lighter, customizable options and offer healthy, grab-and-go meals for added convenience.
· Seasonal and Local Dishes – Focusing on seasonal options and local dishes is a great way to support the community. It also enables you to prioritize freshness, which builds excitement.
· Comfort and Discovery – Strategically balancing comfort meals with opportunities for discovery can keep things exciting while still offering a sense of familiarity. Fried chicken and wings can live alongside grain bowls and salmon, for example.
Orange by Fooda is a workplace food solution that takes the guesswork out of cafeteria menu planning. With a rotating lineup of local restaurants to serve up fresh flavors, employees get to enjoy a variety of dishes to fit their preferences and dietary needs. Here are just a few examples of actual dishes served at Fooda-operated cafeterias.
From bold and earthy Peruvian flavors to savory and umami Korean dishes – take your employees on a culinary journey across the world without leaving the office. Check out some employee favorites at Orange by Fooda locations serving authentic, global flavors:
Fresh, versatile, and healthy, seafood is a great option for crafting dynamic employee cafeteria menus. Here are some ideas based on employee favorites across Fooda-operated cafeterias:
Chicken is always a safe protein option, but it can get boring after a while. Balance the traditional with new and exciting ideas based on these employee favorites:
Wondering how to elevate beef and pork options in your employee cafeteria? Serve them up in comforting donburi bowls or as juicy and savory adobo. Here are a few favorites across Orange by Fooda locations:
Offering vegetarian and plant-based options not only helps you maintain variety, but it also ensures more inclusive employee cafeteria menus. Check out these delectable options that have been a huge hit at Fooda-operated cafeterias:
Sides and salads are a great way to balance more indulgent meals with healthier options and offer more variety. Here are a few ideas based on Orange by Fooda cafeteria menus:
Everyone likes to end their meal with a little sweet treat. Complete your menu lineup with these employee dessert favorites:
Having these employee cafeteria menu ideas may be a great start, but you still need to get the foundational aspects right. So let’s share some of the essential tips to help with employee cafeteria menu planning.
Getting to choose from the same set of items every day can quickly lead to menu fatigue. Everyone eventually gets tired of having to choose between noodles, rice, and sandwiches every single day.
Rotating cuisines on a daily basis is the easiest way to keep your cafeteria menu fresh and exciting. Think: Chinese today, Mexican tomorrow, Italian the next, and so on. So employees can look forward to diverse menu options every day. You can bring in local restaurants and rotate between different options to back up these efforts.
Who doesn’t like to indulge in some comfort food every once in a while? Employee cafeteria menus featuring mac and cheese, fried chicken, and chili may bring a familiar sense of comfort right within the office. At the same time, they’re not always the healthiest meal options, especially for those maintaining strict diets for their physical health.
So avoid limiting employees to just indulgent meals. Instead, balance things out with healthy cafeteria ideas that will support the wellness goals and dietary needs of different employees. Salads, protein bowls, and green smoothies can be served alongside some of the more indulgent food options, so there’s something for everyone.
When you build your employee cafeteria menu around seasonal produce, you’re relying on items that are fresh and locally available. This allows you to prioritize freshness and quality as you serve up delectable seasonal dishes year-round. Focusing on locally sourced ingredients not only enhances taste but also helps to promote sustainability and support the local community.
Plus, using ingredients based on seasonal availability helps you maintain a dynamic and exciting menu. Think of crispy cucumbers and delicate greens for light and refreshing salads in the summer and hardy root vegetables for warm, hearty soups in the winter.
Giving employees the freedom to customize their own meals is a great way to engage them, drive participation, and let them be foodies. Build-your-own bowls and taco stations allow them to create the perfect meal with the base, proteins, sauces, and toppings of their choice. So it gives them more control over their meal choices while allowing you to serve up dynamic menus that improve employee satisfaction.
One of the latest trends in corporate cafeteria menu planning is offering meal options that promote employee wellness. This means crafting menus that include healthy, nutrient-rich meals and snacks so it’s more convenient for employees to prioritize their wellness and achieve their fitness goals.
Doing this benefits your organization in a number of ways – boosting employee morale, reducing sick days, improving productivity, and more. As you introduce healthy items to your menu, you can encourage adoption by offering them at subsidized prices. This type of wellness-focused subsidy structure allows organizations to build more fulfilling employee wellness programs.
Between handling all the logistics and bringing your menu to life, cafeteria menu planning can be overwhelming. This is especially challenging when you have to consistently come up with fresh employee cafeteria menu ideas to maintain variety and boost satisfaction. Fooda’s model of bringing authentic local restaurants into the workplace is the key to sustaining variety in your employee cafeteria menu.
Unlike traditional food service, this model ensures that menus evolve daily. With top local restaurants serving authentic and fresh meals every day, you get to bring cultural relevance, discovery, and excitement to your workplace cafeteria.
This means employees get exposure to the best of their city without having to leave the office. And you can always use their feedback and order data to bring back their favorites or rotate them with new options for a dynamic menu offering.
Menu planning for your employee cafeteria doesn’t have to be a burden. With Orange by Fooda, you can take the guesswork out of the whole process with rotating local restaurants and seamless technology.
Orange by Fooda partners with local chefs and restaurants to bring authentic and diverse cuisines right to your workplace. You can rotate between different restaurant partners for daily evolving menus to keep things fresh and exciting.
From shawarmas to noodles to sandwiches and salads – employees get to choose from a huge variety of options based on their dietary needs, preferences, and cravings. So dining at your employee cafeteria never gets boring. You can even make things even more engaging with interactive experiences like culinary showcases and live stations.
Orange by Fooda uses powerful technology to streamline the process of planning your cafeteria menu and deciding which restaurant to bring in next. With adaptive restaurant scheduling, you can bring in the right restaurant at the right time based on ordering data.
You can see what your employees love and when certain dishes tend to be higher in demand. This simplifies the menu planning, as you can easily adapt your workplace dining lineup based on what works. You can even collect feedback and ratings from the Orange by Fooda app to get more insights into the employee experience. So it’s easier to resolve issues and maintain consistent food quality.
Orange by Fooda also simplifies event planning and management with dedicated teams to assist you on-site and help you develop winning employee cafeteria menu ideas. You’ll have a Catering Manager to oversee all the planning, fine-tuning your menu lineup according to your team’s tastes. This ensures that every event hits the mark, especially with a professional team to maintain the highest hospitality standards across every service moment.
Explore Orange by Fooda to see how it transforms workplace cafeterias into destinations for variety and culture.
