Office Lunch Catering in Downtown Halifax
Filipino party trays for a downtown Halifax office lunch: what to order for 20 people, what each tray costs and feeds, allergens to check, and how to book.
Barrios Restaurant & Bar
9/25/20265 min read
Filipino Office Lunch Catering in Downtown Halifax: Feeding 20 Without Sandwiches
If you are the person who orders lunch for the office, you know how fast a sandwich platter becomes routine. Filipino party trays put noodles, a savoury main, dumplings and rice on the same table, so twenty people can build a plate instead of picking the least bad wrap.
Here is what to order, what it costs, what to ask about allergies, and when to book it.
What to order for an office lunch in Halifax
Pick food people can serve themselves with a fork, standing up if they have to.
Pancit bihon is the centrepiece. Rice vermicelli with vegetables, served with lemon. You choose one topping: pork, chicken, shrimp or vegetarian. Family size feeds about five, party size about ten. Listed from $35.
Lumpiang shanghai are the easy crowd-pleaser. Ground pork and vegetables rolled thin and fried, with a sweet chili dip. Listed from $20.
Siomai gives people a smaller bite. Steamed pork and shrimp dumplings, 40 pieces with dipping sauce, $50.
Steamed rice, $20 a tray, good for ten people. Order it with anything saucy.
One signature tray. Pork sisig $40 (on trays the sisig and egg are already cooked together), palabok $40, pork barbecue skewers $70. Crispy pata is on the tray list too, at $80, but it is more of a sit-down dish than a meeting room one. For anyone who wants something familiar, the tray list also has breaded chicken wings at $70 and lasagna at $75. For colleagues who do not eat pork, the chicken inasal tray is $40.
Prices shown are from our current party tray menu and may change. The price on each tray page is the family size, which serves about five.
A worked order for 20 people
This is a starting point built from our serving counts, priced at family size so you can see a real number:
Four family-size pancit bihon, $140 (make one or two of them chicken or vegetarian for a mixed office)
Four family-size spring roll trays, $80
One siomai tray, 40 pieces, $50
Two steamed rice trays, $40 (rice trays serve about ten each)
One family-size pork sisig, $40
That comes to $350 before tax, or $399 with 14 per cent HST, about $20 a head. It gives you noodles, something fried, something steamed, rice and a signature dish.
If your team skews hungry, add a second signature tray rather than more rice. If it skews light, drop one family-size pancit.
Allergies and dietary needs
Ask your team first, then tell us the specific requirement rather than the dish name. Here is what is actually in these trays.
Gluten and wheat. The barbecue skewer tray is gluten free, and so is the pancit bihon. Our soy sauce is gluten free. The lumpia and siomai wrappers are not confirmed gluten free. If it is a medical need such as celiac disease, call us before you order.
Shellfish. Siomai contains shrimp as well as pork. Palabok sauce is made from shrimp stock.
Soy. Our kitchen uses soy, so ask about any tray if soy is a concern.
Pork. Filipino cooking is pork-heavy. The pancit topping can be chicken, shrimp or vegetarian instead, which is the easiest swap, and the chicken inasal tray has no pork.
Our kitchen handles pork, shellfish, peanut, wheat and soy in the same space (peanut is in the kare-kare), so we cannot guarantee a tray is free of any of them. If someone on your team has a serious allergy, call 902-444-2515 and talk it through with us before you order rather than after.
How to order party trays and when to book
Trays need at least 24 to 48 hours notice. Some may be available the same day, so if you are caught short, call 902-444-2515 and ask rather than assuming the answer is no.
Order the trays online and put your pickup date and time in at checkout. Without that, the order does not get confirmed.
Pickup is at 1571 Barrington Street in downtown Halifax, NS B3J 1Z7. Tuesday to Saturday from 11:30 AM to 8 PM, and Sunday from 11:30 AM to 4 PM. We are closed Mondays, so for a Monday lunch, call or message us to ask. For a noon lunch, pickup opens at 11:30 AM.
Hot trays come in an aluminum container inside a box, which keeps them warm for the trip back and the first round of serving. Lids and serving utensils are available if you ask. We do not deliver trays ourselves, so if nobody can leave the office, book a courier in the Uber app and send the driver to us to collect the order.
For December orders, order early. Check our Facebook or Instagram page, call or message us for holiday deadlines and hours.
Catering for a bigger office event
A working lunch is one thing. A staff party or a client event for 50 or more is another, and for that we do a full catering buffet at $37 per person, plus 14 per cent HST on the food and a 15 per cent service fee, which has no HST, either in our dining room with the whole restaurant to yourselves or at your office anywhere in Halifax, Dartmouth or the surrounding HRM, where transportation is added, with HST on it. Give us one to two weeks of notice, and see the catering page for the full menu.
Quick answers
What Filipino food works for an office lunch?
Pancit bihon, spring rolls (lumpiang shanghai), siomai and steamed rice, plus one signature tray such as pork sisig or barbecue skewers.
How much does it cost to feed 20 people?
As a starting point, about $350 before tax at family-size prices, or $399 with 14 per cent HST, about $20 a head: four pancit bihon, four spring roll trays, a siomai tray, two rice trays and a pork sisig.
How many people does each tray feed?
A family-size tray feeds about five and a party-size tray about ten. A rice tray is good for ten. A siomai tray is 40 dumplings, so about two each for twenty people.
How much notice do party trays need?
At least 24 to 48 hours. Some trays may be possible same day if you call. For December, check our Facebook or Instagram, call or message us for holiday deadlines.
Are any of the trays gluten-free or vegetarian?
The barbecue skewer tray is gluten free, and so is the pancit bihon. Our soy sauce is gluten free. The pancit bihon tray also comes with a vegetarian topping option. The lumpia and siomai wrappers are not confirmed gluten free. Call us with the specific requirement and we will tell you honestly what we can and cannot do.
When can I pick up?
Tuesday to Saturday, 11:30 AM to 8 PM, and Sunday 11:30 AM to 4 PM, at 1571 Barrington Street. Closed Mondays.
Do you deliver trays to the office?
No. Trays are pickup only, but you can book a courier in the Uber app to collect them for you.
Can you invoice our company?
We can email an invoice from our system, with a QR code your company can use to pay it.
Ready to order? Browse the trays or call 902-444-2515 and tell us your headcount and your date.