Institutional
University Catering in Medellín
Medellin Elite Catering caters academic life in Medellín, from a three-day international congress to a thesis defense with twelve people around one table. We have run events in the city since 2019, and our English-speaking coordinators understand academic calendars and university purchasing rules.
On campus, our clients are faculties, research groups, graduate programs, student councils and international relations offices. Many of them are hosting visiting professors or exchange students, so menus mix paisa classics with options for every diet.
University events come with fixed constraints: a 20-minute coffee break between panels, a fourth-floor seminar room with no service elevator, a purchase order that must match the invoice line by line. We plan around all three.
- Itemized quotes available
- Bilingual English and Spanish coordinators
Plan your event
Our University Catering
We provide coffee breaks, working lunches, receptions and dinners for anyone organizing an event within a university. Service can be on campus, at a hotel hosting a congress, or at an off-site venue for a faculty dinner.
Medellín has some of Colombia's largest campuses: EAFIT and CES in El Poblado, UPB in Laureles, the Universidad de Antioquia's Ciudad Universitaria and the Universidad Nacional sede Medellín, with its El Volador and Robledo campuses. Each sets its own access rules for outside vendors, and we work within them.
EAFIT and CES fall inside our delivery zone for catering in El Poblado, and UPB's campus is a short run on our catering in Laureles route. All five campuses are 15 to 35 minutes from our kitchen outside peak hours.
Academic Conferences
Conference catering spans several days, with food at registration, mid-morning and afternoon breaks, lunch and usually an opening or closing reception. We run it as one contract with a single coordinator, so the third day's lunch tastes as good as the first.
| Time | Service | What we serve |
|---|---|---|
| 7:30 a.m. | Registration coffee | Tinto, aromática teas, pandebono, almojábanas, fruit |
| 10:30 a.m. | Morning break | Coffee, juice, mini sandwiches, arepas de chócolo |
| 12:30 p.m. | Lunch | Buffet or boxed lunch, with a vegan main |
| 3:30 p.m. | Afternoon break | Coffee, fresh fruit, oat cookies, brownies |
| 6:30 p.m. | Reception (first or last day) | Passed canapés with wine or an open bar |
Breaks are timed so 200 attendees are served within 15 minutes, with two coffee lines per 100 people and constant refills. Large congresses usually take a buffet at lunch, while panel-heavy programs prefer boxed meals from our lunch catering range that people can eat during a poster session.
Departmental and Faculty Events
Departments book us for faculty meetings, thesis defenses, doctoral graduations, accreditation visits and dinners for visiting scholars. These events are small, often 8 to 30 people, and the food has to arrive quietly and on time.
A thesis defense usually follows a simple pattern: almojábanas, fruit and coffee for the committee, then 6 to 8 canapés per person for family once the verdict is in. Peer evaluators on an accreditation visit tend to need working lunches that leave the meeting room tidy.
Dinners for visiting scholars are where Medellín cooking gets to show off, with a plated three-course menu such as a refined ajiaco, trout from Santa Elena and natilla with arequipe. For larger institutional galas and anniversaries, our corporate event catering team adds bar staff and rentals.
Student Events
Student events call for simple formats and generous portions. Welcome weeks (semana de inducción), club meetings, international student mixers and end-of-semester parties are the most common requests.
Drop-off menus suit most student events because they need no service staff on site: empanadas with ají by the dozen, arepa bars, arroz con pollo in large trays and sandwich platters for 30 to 100 students. Drop-off orders need 48 hours' notice and arrive in insulated carriers, ready to set out on a classroom table.
Plant-based demand is high on campus, so every student menu includes a vegan main as standard. It follows the same recipes as our vegan catering menus, labeled so nobody has to ask.
University Procurement
We can register as a supplier with private and public universities and bill against purchase orders. Our supplier pack is ready to send when your procurement office asks for it, and departments that order every week can set up a standing agreement with monthly invoicing.
- RUT (tax registration) and a chamber of commerce certificate issued within the last 30 days
- Bank account certification for transfers
- Food-handling documentation under Resolution 2674 of 2013 and the staff food-handler certificates
- Monthly social security payment proof for the staff who work your event
- DIAN electronic invoice quoting your purchase order and internal reference
Public universities such as the Universidad de Antioquia and the Universidad Nacional follow their own contracting rules, and larger purchases may go through SECOP II, the national public procurement platform. Private universities like EAFIT, UPB and CES generally register suppliers through an online portal and pay against a purchase order.
Research projects funded by grants often need the invoice addressed to a specific project code. We add that reference to the electronic invoice, so your project accounts reconcile without a correction cycle. Each quote also comes in a format your department can attach directly to its purchase request.
Questions and answers
University Catering FAQs
Can you work with university purchase orders?
Yes, we work with purchase orders from both private and public universities. Once we are registered as a supplier, we issue a DIAN electronic invoice quoting your order number and internal reference. Approved institutions can pay on 30-day terms instead of the usual deposit.
Do you cater on campuses with in-house cafeterias?
Yes, in most cases, although each campus sets its own rules. Some universities give their cafeteria concessionaire first refusal on catered events, while others only ask outside caterers to register vehicles and staff with campus security in advance. We check the rules with your events or logistics office before quoting and send staff lists, IDs and food-handler certificates 48 hours before the event.
Reserve your date
Plan Your Campus Event
Send the program, dates, room and attendee count through the quote form, and we will return an itemized quote ready for your purchase request within 24 hours. You can also email info@medellincatering.com.
- Itemized quotes available
- Menus, staff, tableware, setup and cleanup in one quote
- Food-handler certified team and labeled allergens on every tray
- Monday to Saturday
- 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
- Sunday
- Closed (events still run)