How Do I Choose the Best Halal Caterer?

You choose the best halal caterer in much the same way you choose the best caterer or best business for any of your needs. The secret is to match your needs with their services and with your budget. The best caterer will be the one that meets these three requirements. A halal caterer will have to meet one additional criterion: ensuring all foods are in compliance with Islamic law regarding ingredients and preparation methods.

Make sure the company is halal-compliant. This is a multi-faceted endeavor. First, all meat dishes must be compliant with both Islamic law and dhabihah. The caterer needs to buy meat that has been slaughtered by the cutting of the throat. The meat must not be carrion and must contain as few blood products as possible; preferably zero, but this is hard to achieve.

Secondly, all food products, whether meat or not, must not contain any pork products. This means no pork meat, no use of pork fat to fry food and no pork gelatin. Other products such as whey are also banned. This also includes cross-contamination where tools or machines have previously been used with pork products. The caterer must also not use alcohol for any of its meals.

Consider your needs. Ask yourself why you need catering, how many you are catering for and what food you would like your guests and you to eat at the event. Make a list of your expectations, taking into account the basics and optional extras and set these to a reasonable budget. Keep the reasonable budget below your actual budget in case you need to pay extra; if not, you have saved money for another part of the event.

Check the company’s services. There is no point hiring a wedding specialist to do a funeral and vice versa. When selecting a caterer, it is important to gather information on all the available caterers in the area and those willing to come to where you are; the latter will be more expensive. Remove those who do not offer halal food and then those who do not offer the right services you are looking for.

Check the company’s prices and compare them to your budget. It will become obvious that some are too expensive and others too cheap. Narrow down the list of caterers until you have a shortlist of those who offer the right services at the right prices.

The final stage in choosing the best halal caterer is to talk with each halal caterer about your event and listen to their proposals. Most catering companies will only be too happy to draw up a proposed menu according to your tastes and requirements. Ask them for food samples, but be aware that many companies charge a small fee for samples to cover costs. At this stage, you will be able to select the best halal caterer for you.