When you tell people you are a vegan, they mostly stare and say something like, aren’t you hungry? These people, and most others, do not actually know what it means to be a vegan. When you are a vegan, you oppose all cruelty to animals in the form of products, clothing, and food. Vegans have a plant-based diet and focus on foods with grains, beans, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. People who are not vegans may feel this diet is restrictive because they are not use to eating meals that are not on the heavier side. However, for a vegan, there is a wide range of options that they can choose from. Just as any other person does, vegans always want to make sure they mix up their meals, this way their diet doesn’t get boring.
There are many health benefits when becoming vegan. Vegan diets are known to help people lose weight, and shed those excess pounds even better than those on a restrictive calorie diet. It also helps to keep your heart healthy and lowers blood sugar levels in diabetics. A vegan diet is also known to protect against certain cancers, and people have reported that they have higher energy levels and better functioning than those who don’t eat a vegan diet.
Since a vegan diet is a little more intricate than an average meal, it can be challenging to find a vegan friendly caterer that will fulfill your wants and needs. However, there are a few that are able to work with this dietary restriction while also giving you a delicious, successful event.
Five Catering Restaurants that Offer a Vegan Menu
- Walmart
Whether you are having a large event or just a small gathering of family or friends, you should look into your local Walmart for their catering options, party platters, and deli trays. This massive store has a variety of healthy, organic, and vegan food options for you to choose from when it comes to planning a party. The well-prepared food is made with the high quality ingredients. In recent years, Walmart has focused on many more organic foods – both in their supermarkets and in offering various platters with organic ingredients. They now offer fruit platters, vegan sandwich platters, vegan dessert platters, and many more options. Each platter is made to fit the season and event, and many are customized for various dietary needs (such as vegan, gluten free, vegetarian, low calorie, etc.). Whether your vegan or gluten free, no matter what you need, all can be accommodated.
- Corner Bakery Cafe
The Corner Bakery catering menu options include a wide selection of vegan sandwiches and soups. The menu is filled with fresh, healthy delicious food for any event you may be planning. The food is flavorful and prepared daily and customized to your liking. They will deliver the food to your location with no detail spared with its presentation. Your guests will be impressed by this innovative spread of salads, sandwiches, and soups. To keep the menu vegan, most items just need to have the cheese left off. Even with that occurring, you still have amazing meals such as the chickpea and tomato cucumber salad, vegetarian lentil soup, and any of the delicious sandwiches.
- Chipotle
Whether your party is for a handful of people or over a hundred people, a fan favorite is usually tacos! By catering from Chipotle, you will get your own taco station where your guests can create their own taco or bowl. Although Chipotle has many different types of meat proteins, you can also have a completely vegan taco party! Instead of meat, you have three options: fajita veggies, Sofritas or extra guacamole. Along with this, you have black and pinto beans, four salsas, chips, and crisp corn tortillas. Additionally, you will receive stands, fuel, and serving tools to feed your guests. The set-up is not included, so you will have to do that part on your own.
- Panera Bread
A caterer with a lighter fare, and sometime with a larger variety of healthy options for your guests is Panera Bread. You can cater from Panera for any meal. They have various breakfast options for you to choose from that range from an assortment of breads, including whole grains, and bagels, to pastries and scones. You can have a breakfast buffet for hundreds of people that are customized and fit your needs. You can also get custom boxed lunches or other popular bundles if you choose to go that route instead. This establishment has so many amazing options that it does not matter what kind of dietary restrictions one may have – they can stick to a strict vegan menu because they have so many amazing soups, salads, and sandwiches.
- Olive Garden
Capturing the Italian experience, this restaurant delivers blasts of flavorful ingredients from Italy. They will cater to a party of any size, even weddings. Their catering team is dedicated to creating the perfect menu for your party. For a vegan based menu, you can order any of the pasta noodles, their delectable tomato bruschetta appetizer, and the soft crispy peasant bread to name a few. The salad selection is on par and you can choose from the large selection like favorites such as the warm spinach with garlic lemon and oil or the fresh greens with balsamic. Although there are many sauces to choose from, sticking with the tomato basil sauce is the best option. Whatever you end up choosing off the Olive Garden vegan catering menu, you will not be disappointed.