The menu for 10, 25, 50 guests
| What to buy | Rule | 10 guests | 25 guests | 50 guests |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandwiches (whole, or 2 halves each) | 1 per guest | 11 sandwiches | 28 sandwiches | 55 sandwiches |
| Chips, 13-oz party-size bags | 1.5 oz per guest | 2 | 4 | 7 |
| Bagged salad mix, by the pound | 1 cup per guest | 2 lb | 5 lb | 9 lb |
| Cookies, by the dozen | 2 per guest | 2 | 5 | 10 |
| Water and soda, cases of 24 | 2 per guest | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Plates, packs of 50 | 2 per guest | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Napkins, packs of 100 | 4 per guest | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Office lunch tips
- Ask for dietary needs ahead of time and label the platters: a vegetarian option and a gluten-free option cover most requests.
- Lunch meetings run about two hours, so drinks are planned for a two-hour event.
- Ordering pizza instead? EnoughPizza's office lunch calculator does the pizza math.
Food safety: don't leave perishable food out more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F (USDA). Keep hot food hot and cold food on ice.
Each food on its own
Every line above has its own calculator with a chart for 10 to 200 people:
Office lunch questions
How many sandwiches per person for an office lunch?
The sandwich line uses the per-person rule in our method, with a cushion for the people who take a second half. The table shows the total for 10, 25 and 50 people.
Should I order extra for an office lunch?
The default 10% cushion covers a few extra people and big appetites. Leftover sandwiches and cookies rarely go to waste in an office.