Boxed Lunches vs. Shared Trays for Office Catering

Individually boxed lunches are available by quote. Box contents, pricing, quantities, and preparation time are confirmed in your written quote. For shared trays, compare the current catering packages. Family Tray serves 7–10 for $159.99; 20-person Spread serves 20 for $399; 30-person Office Spread serves 30 for $599; 50-person Full Spread serves 50 for $999; 75-person Banquet Spread serves 75 for $1,500; 100-person Grand Spread serves 100 for $1,999.

The quick answer: boxed vs. trays at a glance

If you only read one section, read this. Boxed lunches are the grab-and-go option: each person gets a lidded and labeled, portioned meal they can take to a desk, a meeting room, or home on a hybrid day. Trays are the communal option: proteins, rice, salads, hummus, pita, and sauces laid out family-style for a room to share. Here is how the two compare on the things office managers and EAs actually weigh.

When to choose individually-boxed lunches

Boxed lunches solve the logistics problem of a team that isn’t sitting together. Each meal is its own lidded and labeled unit, so there’s no serving line, no shared utensils, and no guesswork about who ate what.

Choose boxed if:

• You’re feeding a client meeting or interview panel where a tidy, individual plate looks more polished than a buffet.
• It’s a hybrid day and some people grab and go while others stay.
• Your team is distributed across floors or rooms and a single tray station won’t reach everyone.
• You want the cleanest dietary separation — a vegan box and a beef box never touch.

Individually boxed lunches are available by quote. Box contents, pricing, quantities, and preparation time are confirmed in your written quote.

When to choose shared family-style trays

Trays win when the room is together and you want to stretch the budget. A spread of proteins, rice, salads, hummus, and pita invites people to build their own plate — and it scales down to a better per-person number as the headcount climbs.

Choose trays if:

• You’re hosting an all-hands, a team lunch, or a conference-room gathering where everyone eats in one place.
• You want the most economical option per head — the 100-person Grand Spread feeds 100 for $1,999, about $20 a person.
• You like the communal feel of a shared table over individual boxes.
• You’re flexible on portions and want people to take what they want.

Drop-off trays arrive with optional place settings, ready to eat, so there’s no setup or cleanup on your end. You can see the full lineup and counts on the catering packages page, and the broader corporate catering options cover larger and recurring needs.

Tray package pricing

How dietary needs are handled in each format

Every package is halal-sourced, there’s a full vegan menu, and we offer gluten-free-friendly builds. One order can cover halal, vegan, gluten-free-friendly, and meat-eaters together — the difference is how that’s presented.

• Boxed lunches: dietary separation is built into the format. Each person’s meal is its own lidded and labeled box, so a vegan or gluten-free-friendly order is physically distinct from the rest. Mix proteins and vegan boxes in a single order and they arrive clearly intact.
• Shared trays: handled with dedicated trays and labeling. Vegan options like falafel sit in their own trays alongside the chicken shawarma, beef shawarma, gyro, and shish tawook, so guests can choose what fits their needs.

If your team has specific requirements, tell us the headcount and the breakdown when you request a quote and we’ll build the order around it.

Lead time and billing

Boxed lunches need about 48 hours’ notice, with 24 hours sometimes available for under-$500 orders. Package notice varies by size: Family Tray: 24 hours. 20-person Spread: 48 hours. 30-person Office Spread: 48 hours. 50-person Full Spread: 5 days. 75-person Banquet Spread: 5 days. 100-person Grand Spread: 7 days. Staffed service for 50 or more guests is quoted per event and may need additional planning time. Net-30 invoicing is available for established business accounts, which makes recurring office lunches easier to manage. Service options are pickup, delivery, or staffed service; delivery is available with a fee that varies by distance.

Ready to order?

Teams and offices across San Diego — from a 20-person team lunch to 100-plus guests — cater with Shawarma House, a family-owned, halal-sourced Iraqi-Mediterranean restaurant in Ocean Beach (4.7 stars across 705 Google reviews). Tell us your headcount, your format, and any dietary needs, and we’ll match you to the right option. Request a quote through our catering page, call (619) 352-0144, or order online through ezCater at ezcater.com/catering/pvt/shawarma-house-3.