Some of the 800 guests at the National Methodist Conference 2018.

A large unexpected group is ushered past the buffet. We turn, only to see another crowd working their way in. Everytime we turn, there they flow, wave after wave!  The St Andrew’s gynasium was brimming over, well before the official diner time! How will we seat and feed everyone?

Last year the carnival organisers needed to have their licenced VIP area which had 400 guests, operated by a licenced holder who could provide the necessary food. Lovely Grub stepped up using the gull winged trailer to form part of the bar with the kitchen rig turning out the food hot and fresh on location. The large crowd and Lovely Grub rocked the night away to Jordan Luck and his band.

Need a liquor licence……. contact Lovely Grub

It’s not all hard work. There's lots of fun to be had and I, ‘The Boss’ (and others) have recorded a few of the funnier and lovely moments to share with you.

This is what 100 kgs of chicken looks like in roasting dishes.

After eight days of constantly moving location, it was a pleasure to arrive at our rented house in Twizel. It had been a long hot drive from Lawrence with long stops for lunch and coffee at Roxborough and Tarras. Read on to learn what is involved when catering for a rowing regatta.

Thank you cake and letter to Nikki & Co. - makes it all so worthwhile.
Rowing menus are prepared in consultation with many successful rowing coaches including those from Hamilton Boys, Auckland Grammar and St Margot’s.

The food is high in carbohydrate and low in fat. It is also low in sugar and where possible natural fruit sugars are used to do the sweetening. Whole grain flours are generally used in favour of white flour as their energy is released over a longer time.

So, this means no cream for dessert, no bacon with the eggs for breakfast, whole meal rolls instead of white rolls and so on.

This does not always win us prizes with individuals but proof in our strategy is that Lovely Grub fuelled 4 of the 8 rowing eights in the 2018 Maadi Cup final for Boys. We also catered for St Margot’s who made the girls final as well.

There are times when doing extremely long hours, taking special care to look after special food requirements while catering for several hundreds of guests, you wonder if anyone actually cares.

Some Nelson rowing girls asked to borrow some oil and a few other ingredients. They were baking a cake! Not a problem as there are often birthdays happening and the request is quite common.  After dinner, that night, our staff were presented with a vegan gluten-free cake and a lovely letter of thanks.

Living proof they care!

Positioning the white truck at Matangi Station was tricky as the lay of the ground offered only one spot after the recent heavy rain. And we were to get only get one shot at it. Once in position, trek staff begin erecting the marquee for 330 guests

15,739 meals, eighteen 4.30 am starts, nine staff - these guys really rock, and four trucks, just for two jobs.

Working half in darkness and sleeping in lots of different places makes 27 days is a long time to be away from home, friends and family. There is no supermarket at the end of the street either, so all supplies must be right on hand in our kitchen fleet. Full credit goes to the staff at Bidfood Dunedin and Timaru for the time and patience spent in packing and delivering our precious supplies - eight times! - to some of central Otago’s more remote backcountry stations.

Read on about our first part: the 2018 The Great New Zealand Trek.

This wedding had strong Cook Island connections so amazing dancing and drumming entertainment were a treat along with a big hit with Taro in coconut milk. Right from our first arrival we were greeted by many family and friends who assisted our set-up in many ways. Their warmth was evident all night and we love going the extra mile when everyone makes it so easy.

A 'toolbox' breakfast awaits Downer staff working on the Southern Motorway extension project near Templeton

This type of catering has become very popular recently as a way of rewarding workers for getting up that extra bit earlier to attend health and safety briefings and other workplace presentations.

We provided 2 of these breakfasts for Downer staff in December - 2 teams of 120. Again, our ability to cater on site and on time with a smile in the early hours helped brighten the day.

Our seamless arrangements on-site and flexibility, often at short notice are valuable to managers needing to maintain work schedules. In this case we were able to provide a truck within 6 hours, overnight.

Jordon Luck reaches the climax of "Why does love do this to me"

The Kaipoi Carnival was next to kick our summer catering programme into a higher gear, rocking with the Shadow Puppoets and Jordan Luck.  A few days earlier, we were serving Denver leg venison with juniper berry, thyme and black pepper jus, at the Canterbury West Coast Deer Farmers annual velvet awards. Later we served breakfasts for two 'toolbox' meetings Downer and a 90 th. birthday celebration luncheon at Charteris Bay.

When planning a Mexican themed wedding, we called upon our friends from abroad. One of our staff had been living in the southern USA and Mexico for a brief period and made friends with a Mexican chef named Robert. We had a few skype calls during which he generously gave us some recipes. With his tuition and some practice, we managed to produce an amazing meal which was enjoyed by 100 guests in an old woolshed in North Canterbury.