Phillipsburg, NJ
Chapter House Foodservice
Q: How are you different from other food service companies?
A: Chefmeals LLC is a business that provides kick ass service ;-) – which means BETTER FOOD, BETTER MOOD and awesome culinary professionals. We are not your typical corporate foodservice management company that operates several chapter houses nationwide. We believe in growing organically right here in Lehigh Valley Pa with our chapter houses. Word of Mouth is our best sales pitch, from our clients! Chefmeals believes in hiring great quality people that believe in our vision, not only do we train our staff on safety and sanitation, menu development, the handling of allergies and other dietary restrictions, but most importantly, what it means to work in a Greek House. All of our staff are Servsafe Certified and Allergen Certified. This translates to a client driven company that you can count on.
Q: How do you determine the cost of a Foodservice Management Contract?
A: Cost is broken down with how many meals a week, days per week, Non-Residents and
Visitors, upgrades, add ons. Furthermore, we take our time to understand your needs.
Q: Am I locked into a long term contract?
A: Unlike other companies in the biz, all Chefmeals contracts have a 30-day cancellation policy. We will do our best to keep our clients happy, but if you're not happy, then we are not happy.
Q: How much input do I have on our food?
A: We are flexible to accommodate as much as you want. You’ll sit down with Chef Joe to plan everything from weekly menus to reviewing special event food options. If you have a food preference for a meal you think your chapter will love, let us know. They welcome collaboration when planning meals. Also, our ordering system and weekly staple items make it easier than ever to communicate House fan favorites with our team.
Q: How does Chefmeals maintain a fresh menu variety?
A: Chefmeals leadership team works off their system with many recipes that Chef Joe has developed with his own culinary books and systems so we are always innovative in the market. This keeps menus fresh, local sourced as we can, with a wide variety wholesome delicious scratch made foods.
Q: How does Chefmeals reassure proper safety and sanitation in your kitchen?
A: All staff are trained in food safety and possess ServSafe® certification. Our team conducts an open and closing checklist to make sure all aspects of serviced areas are up to our standards when it comes to sanitation and food safety.
Q: Does Chefmeals maintain ethical practices with registration and insurance?
A: Your chapter organization will not have to pay or file a claim on your workers’ compensation policy if Chefmeal staff gets hurt. We carry Workers Compensation insurance and also maintain general liability insurance limits in case of unforseen loss, and we ensure that sales tax is paid monthly.
Q: How do we handle special events?
A: We love a good party to provide awesome services for, and while it’s Chefmeals plan to have all other extra service charges included in the price of service, each chapters’ requirements for such event(s) are not uniform. Costs will vary due to the projection of the event, number of folks, menu, labor, rentals, etc., and with the frequency/number of events held throughout the academic calendar year. Additional cost and services for these events will be agreed upon in advance for these events. The chapter house upper leadership must approve all additional charges and services.
FAQS
Chapter House Foodservice
Q: Are new chapter members added to the meal plan?
A: Traditionally, new chapter members are added to chapter meal plans shortly after the recruitment process begins. New member meal plans vary by chapter and can range from full service (typically 5 lunches and 5 dinners a week) to just a few meals a week.
Q: How chapter members are billed for meal plans?
A: All chapter meal plans are billed through the Chapter House organization with some Universities allowing students to access financial aid, payment plans, and scholarship monies if applicable. Refunds are issued in the same manner and are at the discretion of the chapter house corporation.
Q: What if I have any Food restrictions or dietary needs?
A: The staff that services each chapter house are trained to handle a variety of special dietary needs. Please ask your chapter leadership how best to communicate those needs. For members whose dietary needs cannot be accommodated, the chapter leadership will define a process to be exempted from the meal plan.
Q: How do I inquire about meal service and meal plans?
A: Current clients- If there are issues or concerns with your meal plan or service, please bring them to the attention of the Chefmeals point of contact and house leadership. Chapter meal plans are administered by the chapter house team and issues can be sent to them. New clients- you can contact us here to speak with Chef Joe in regards to your inquiry.
Q: Do you offer Tastings?
A: Reach out to us and we will set up a time to have you over for a meal at one of our kitchens on campus or we can come to you, and if we’re not already on your campus, you may qualify for a complimentary tasting. If you give us some info about your organization, we can get you set up to try some of our menu items.
Q: We are currently in a contract with a foodservice management company, do I need to pay them to terminate the current contract?
A: We hope not! When you are signing a contract with any food service company there
should be a clear and concise termination clause and they should never charge you to exit the contract. That’s not ethical business practice!
Q: How did Chefmeals LLC Chapter House Foodservice Management start?
A: Chef Joe began this journey after a few chapter houses being the Chapter Chef(Lehigh University) while working for other foodservice management companies throughout the academic calendar years. The idea that food, service and client driven services in the Greek community could be improved was what motivated our founder Chef Joe to start our new services. Since 2022, positive word of mouth has propelled Chef Joe into a local food service management for fraternity and sorority houses here in Lehigh Valley Pa.
Q: Where do you purchase food products from?
A: We purchase our fresh ingredients from a variety of sources from local farmers, purveyors and broad line distributors companies. Each of our markets present different opportunities for fresh products and we take advantage of these opportunities. The great part about contracting with Chefmeals LLC is that we work directly with the vendors, order the groceries, and pay all.