Policies

Planning your Event

We thank you for selecting Lion's Pride Catering Services for your special event. Our Event Coordinators are ready to assist you with any and all aspects of your occasion. We ask that you take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the following policies. This information is intended to assist you in planning a successful event and familiarize you with our services.  All food agreements are made upon and subject to the rules and regulations of Lion's Pride Catering Services and the following terms and conditions:

Payments
Arrangement for payment for all catering functions must be made when an order is placed.  The person submitting the order is responsible for providing a University budget code or other method of payment, even if another person/department is involved with the event.

Acceptable forms of payment are:

• Purchase Order (FHU only)
• Cash
• Check
• Meal Accounts
• Discover, MasterCard or Visa

A 15% discount will be applied to FHU departmental catering events.

Events not billed to a budget code will be subject to all state and local sales taxes.  Tax exempt organizations must provide a copy of the tax exemption certificate when the order is placed.

Facilities
Lion's Pride Catering Services are happy to provide catering to any on-campus facility. You must make arrangements to secure a location for your event and to officially “reserve” the space in order for us to be permitted to serve you in this location. Please contact us for information regarding any off-campus catering.

You must make arrangements with our Facilities Asst. Director, Larry Cyr at lcyr@fhu.edu to secure facility space, tables, chairs and any equipment you may need for your events held on campus. If you are reserving ARC 150 A/B you must also reserve Study Room 151 at the same time.

How to Contact Lion's Pride Catering Services
When you have a catered event in mind, please contact us as soon as possible.  Even if you are not yet sure of such details as the exact event date, event location and number of guests that will be in attendance, it’s a good idea to touch base with us as early in the process as possible.

Catering arrangements through Lion's Pride Catering Services can be made online; other catering arrangement may require an in-person appointment with one of our event specialists.  Here are the options:

Visit us on the web: you may contact us about your catering needs through our online catering website at www.fhucatering.catertrax.com. The ultimate convenience, this site will enable you to easily view our catering menus, see your order history, place recurring order and much more.

Send us an email: You may speak with our catering specialist Robin Hearnshaw at rhearnshaw@fhu.edu

Give us a call: Contact Robin Hearnshaw at 731-989-6128 or 530-526-6008

Event Notice
We request a two week notice to ensure that your event is successful and well organized.

• Minimum notice to place an order: 72 business hours
• Monday orders must be placed by Wednesday at 5:00 pm
• A confirmation of the number attending is required 72 business hours prior to the scheduled event.  If you do not provide us with a final number, we use the estimated number.

Changes & Cancellations
We understand that sometimes events have to be changed or cancelled.

• Minimum notice to change items on an order (including increases or decreases in number of attendees):  72 business hours
• Minimum notice to cancel an event:  72 business hours

• Cancellations with less than 72 business hours notice will result in a 50% charge of all costs, unless a cancellation is due to extenuating circumstances such as the university being closed due to inclement weather.
  

Linens & Skirting
We provide linens for food and beverage tables at no charge.  Please contact us for pricing on additional guest, registration, and head tables or other additional tables that will not be directly used for catering set up. We offer a selection of  rental 'House' linens for $5.00 each.

Event Information
The following information helps us to plan for proper staffing and for an adequate amount of food to be ordered and prepared.

The following information is needed when placing your order:

• Name of event
• Day, date and time of event
• Contact person, telephone and email
• Location of event (In case of inclement weather, please secure a rain location for your event. Due to employee safety concerns, Food Services, after consulting with the customer, will make the final decision on whether to move an event to the rain location no less than three hours prior to the start of the event.)
• Estimated number to be served
• Budget code number or payment method
• Special arrangements (podium, head table, etc. ~ contact media services to reserve sound equipment and notify Food Services)
• Menu selections (including any special dietary needs)

Menus & Dietary Needs
Please contact us with your dietary requirements. We have a variety of menu options available to accommodate Gluten Free, Vegan, and Vegetarian diets.  Let us know your needs.

Food Removal Policy
In accordance with the Chester County Health Department recommendations regarding food health & safety, it is the FHU Catering Services Policy that all leftover food remains the property of the caterer & cannot be removed from the catered event space by the client. This policy is intended to limit the risk of food borne illness due to improper handling or storage of leftover food items. All leftover food & drink will be disposed of or donated by the caterer at the conclusion of the meal function.

Deliveries & Pick up

Deliveries
In order to provide quality service to the entire university community, deliveries must occur as scheduled. We do not have key access to non-food service facilities; therefore, all facilities should be unlocked for catering access prior to the start time for each event.

There is no delivery fee for catering services held within the Freed-Hardeman University Campus. Deliveries off Campus, will be subject to a dollar amount or 10% delivery fee, whichever is greater.

Pick Ups
Customers can pick up catering orders at the Wallace Gano Dining Hall.

• Pick up location to be determined at the time of order.
• All pick up orders will be in disposable containers. There is a $3.00 charge per disposable container.

Catering Equipment
All necessary equipment will be provided with your order. As the host of the catered event, you are responsible for all equipment we have provided for the service of your event

• Catering staff will return to pick up event equipment as scheduled.
• For efficiency purposes, all equipment will be picked up at the same time.
• Customers choosing to return equipment themselves should do so between 8:00 am – 3:00 pm Monday through Thursday or Friday from 8:00 am - 2:00 pm at Wallace Gano Dining Hall
• The cost to replace any missing or damaged catering equipment or supplies will be charged to your account.  For very large events, specialty equipment may need to be rented at an additional charge.

Service Staff and Attendants
To ensure that your event is a success, catering staff will be provided for all plate served meals and some buffets.  Continental breakfasts, breaks, and most luncheons are priced for self-service.  Buffet style functions are staffed with one attendant for every 50 guests. Served meals are priced on an individual basis.

The charge for each staff member is:

Attendants/Waitstaff $20.00 per hour (minimum 4 hours, includes set up and breakdown)

After Hours (events beginning after 5 pm weekdays and anytime Saturday or Sunday) Attendants/Waitstaff $50.00 per hour (minimum 4 hours, includes set up and breakdown)

Station Chefs – (minimum 4 hours) Call for pricing

A minimum of two Food Services employees are required for all events ending after 5:00 pm

China Charges
We provide high quality plastic products unless otherwise requested.  We offer china service for any event at an additional charge.

Dinner Plate, Knife, Fork, Spoon, Footed Water Glass - $5.00 per guest.

Please ask about additional charges for other serviceware.