Catering Client Intake Brief
Run a more useful first conversation and collect the information needed to price, scope, and qualify a catering inquiry. The brief separates confirmed details from open questions, then creates a clean internal handoff.
Nothing is submitted or saved by Sterling Food Service. Avoid entering sensitive payment, medical, or identity information.
Inquiry and contact
Event details
Service, menu, and venue
Budget and decision process
Qualification checklist
Check an item only when the detail is clear enough to use in pricing or scope.
Follow-up and internal notes
Why intake comes before a detailed quote
A guest count alone is not enough to price an event. Service style, access, staffing, rentals, timing, menu complexity, dietary communication, and venue restrictions can materially change both cost and risk.
If the client cannot yet confirm the scope, give a clearly labeled budgetary range with assumptions. Reserve a detailed proposal for inquiries with enough information to price responsibly.
What this qualification status means
The status measures discovery completeness, not whether the client is good or bad. Six confirmed items usually support an early range. Nine or ten usually support a more detailed proposal, assuming the remaining open point is not a critical risk.
Availability, pricing, food safety controls, allergen communication, venue approval, and payment terms still belong in the appropriate estimate, agreement, and operations documents.