A weekend retreat in Oeiras needs a catering plan, not a menu — three days of meals, breaks that land when the programme says they will, and food that people can happily eat twice a day without tiring of it. We cover team offsites, family reunions and yoga or coaching weekends in quintas and villas around Paço de Arcos, Caxias and Santo Amaro. Delivery, serving and clearing are arranged day by day.
We plan the retreat as one arc: a lighter first dinner on arrival evening, a proper breakfast, working lunches that do not put everyone to sleep, and one substantial dinner where the group actually sits down. Menus rotate so nothing repeats, and we keep the heavy dishes away from the afternoon sessions. If your programme changes on the Saturday, we adjust the following meal rather than the whole plan.
Rented quintas and villas usually have a domestic kitchen and one oven, which is fine if the menu is designed for it. We prepare in our own kitchen, bring what needs holding at temperature in proper transport, and finish on site only where it genuinely improves the dish. Tell us what the house has — ovens, fridge space, outdoor grill — and we build around it.
Breaks are where retreat catering usually fails: coffee arrives cold, or there is nothing but biscuits at four in the afternoon. We set up a standing station with coffee, tea, water, fruit and small savoury and sweet bites, and refresh it between sessions. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options are on the station all weekend, not produced on request.
Either way works — we can leave staff for the full programme, or deliver each meal and break at agreed times and return to clear.
Small changes are fine up to a day or two before; larger swings we would want to know about earlier so we can order and prep accordingly.
Tell us the date, the number of guests and the style — we'll send a tailored proposal.
MamaVera