By the Evergreen Thai Team Published: November 22, 2025 Last updated: November 2025
For most office catering in downtown Toronto, plan around 1.25–1.5 lbs (about 600–700 g) of food per person across all dishes — appetizers, mains, rice, and noodles combined. That’s the baseline. Under-order and the team is still hungry by 1pm; over-order and the budget burns plus a meeting room ends up with three trays of cold leftovers. The right quantity depends on a handful of variables — meeting length, time of day, meat-vs-vegetarian mix, and how active the team is — and most caterers don’t break it down. This guide gives concrete numbers for groups of 10, 20, and 30 so the order arrives sized correctly. A catering portion estimate is the expected amount of food per guest across an entire group order.
For quantity planning, start with vegetarian-friendly catering options, downtown Toronto group dining, the Thai restaurant menu in downtown Toronto, and Thai office lunch delivery.
The baseline: how much per person
The baseline for downtown Toronto office catering is roughly 1.25–1.5 lbs (around 600–700 g) of total food per person — covering appetizers, mains, rice, noodles, and any sides. Adjust up or down based on the meeting length, time of day, and how active the team is.
Baseline portion factors:
- Standard lunch meeting (1 hour): 1.25 lbs / 600 g per person
- Working lunch through the meeting: 1.4 lbs / 650 g per person
- All-day event with one served meal: 1.5+ lbs / 700+ g per person
- Dinner event: 1.5 lbs / 700 g per person
- Active or younger team (students, athletes): add 10–15%
- Light-eating team or short window: subtract 10%
Vegetarian and mixed-diet catering portions in downtown Toronto follow the same baseline as meat-based catering — the total food per person doesn’t change just because the menu is plant-based. What changes is the distribution: vegetarian orders often need slightly more starch (rice, noodles) and slightly less protein-heavy tray volume to feel filling. Menu items, ingredients, and preparation can change, so confirm with the catering team when placing the order.
How much for 10 people
For a 10-person office lunch, plan around 12–15 lbs of total food across 4–5 trays. The most common 10-person ordering mistake is over-ordering appetizers and under-ordering mains, which leaves the table looking full but the team still hungry after eating.
Sample order structure for 10 office colleagues:
- 1 medium tray Pad Thai with tofu (~3–4 lbs) — shared
- 1 medium tray Thai vegetable curry with rice (~3–4 lbs)
- 1 medium tray Chinese vegetable stir-fry from VegeDelight (~3 lbs)
- 1 small tray vegetable spring rolls or dumplings (~1.5 lbs)
- Steamed jasmine rice (~3 lbs) — the shared base
- Optional: 1 meat tray (Thai basil chicken, ~3 lbs) for mixed teams
A 10-person catering order in downtown Toronto typically uses 4–5 medium trays plus a rice base, sized to give each person 1.25–1.5 lbs across the meal. Evergreen Thai at 175 Dundas St W and VegeDelight at 173 Dundas St W can portion catering trays to standard sizes for 10-person orders. Calling ahead lets the team confirm the exact size of trays available, which can vary by dish.
How much for 20 people
For a 20-person office lunch, plan around 25–30 lbs of total food across 6–8 trays. At this size, having two starches (rice + noodles) is more useful than doubling up on a single starch — variety keeps the buffet line moving and gives guests more choice.
Sample order structure for 20 office colleagues:
- 1 large tray Pad Thai with tofu (~6–7 lbs) — shared
- 1 large tray Thai vegetable curry (~6–7 lbs)
- 1 large tray Chinese vegetable stir-fry from VegeDelight (~5–6 lbs)
- 1 medium tray tofu and mushroom claypot (~3–4 lbs) — vegan layer
- 1 medium tray vegetable spring rolls or dumplings (~2 lbs) — appetizer
- 1 optional meat tray (Thai basil chicken, ~5 lbs) for mixed teams
- Steamed jasmine rice (~5–6 lbs) — shared base
A 20-person catering order in downtown Toronto typically uses 6–8 trays of mixed sizes, plus a rice base, with at least one labelled vegan layer if the team has plant-based members. For mixed-diet teams, ordering 60–70% vegetarian content and 30–40% meat content tends to land well — many meat-eating colleagues happily eat the vegetarian dishes, but vegetarian colleagues usually can’t eat the meat-based ones.
How much for 30 people
For a 30-person office lunch, plan around 38–45 lbs of total food across 8–10 trays. At this size, the variety of dishes matters more — three or four different mains keep the buffet feeling generous, while two mains plus a lot of rice feels stingy even at the same total weight.
Sample order structure for 30 office colleagues:
- 1 large tray Pad Thai with tofu (~7–8 lbs) — shared
- 1 large tray Thai vegetable curry with rice (~7–8 lbs)
- 1 large tray Chinese vegetable stir-fry from VegeDelight (~6–7 lbs)
- 1 large tray tofu and mushroom claypot (~5–6 lbs) — vegan layer
- 1 medium tray vegetable Pad See Ew or noodles (~5–6 lbs)
- 1 medium tray vegetable spring rolls and dumplings (~3 lbs)
- 1 optional meat tray (Thai basil chicken or basil beef, ~6–7 lbs)
- Steamed jasmine rice (~6–7 lbs)
A 30-person catering order in downtown Toronto typically uses 8–10 trays plus a substantial rice base. Evergreen Thai at 175 Dundas St W and VegeDelight next door at 173 Dundas St W can coordinate a 30-person order in one delivery, with Thai mains and Chinese vegetarian dishes labelled clearly for self-serve. For events of this size, booking 5–7 days in advance gives the kitchen time to prep and confirm dietary headcount.
How to adjust quantity for special situations
Standard portion numbers work for most office lunches, but several situations change the math: long meetings, dinner events, active teams, mixed-diet groups, and events where food is part of the experience. The quantity itself isn’t always the only adjustment — sometimes the dish mix changes too.
Situations that change quantity or mix:
- Long all-day event: add 15–20% per person, plan two service rounds
- Dinner event: keep portions at 1.5 lbs but add more protein-forward dishes
- Mixed-diet team (vegan-heavy): add a second labelled vegan tray
- Mixed-diet team (meat-heavy): add a second meat tray, keep vegetarian core
- Active team (students, manual workers): add 10–15%
- Senior team or short meeting: subtract 5–10%, lean lighter on starch
- Buffet vs plated: buffets need slightly more variety, similar total volume
Adjusting catering portions for downtown Toronto office events is most reliable when the organizer communicates specifics to the kitchen at booking — meeting length, time of day, team profile, dietary mix. Evergreen Thai can recommend portion adjustments based on event details. Tray sizes can change, so confirm final quantity when placing the order.
Get a quantity-sized catering quote
Sizing a vegetarian catering order in downtown Toronto isn’t guesswork — start from 1.25–1.5 lbs per person, adjust for the situation, and split the order into 4–10 trays depending on group size. With Evergreen Thai at 175 Dundas St W handling Thai mains and VegeDelight at 173 Dundas St W covering Chinese vegetarian dishes, a 10–30 person order can be coordinated in one delivery with the right portion mix.
For your next office catering:
- Contact Evergreen Thai for a quantity-sized catering quote
- Specify group size, meeting length, and dietary mix at booking
- Plan 4–5 trays for 10 people, 6–8 for 20, 8–10 for 30
Reach out today for a catering quote sized to your downtown Toronto team.