LAKEWOOD, Colo. — What would typically be peak season for catering companies, with Colorado weddings abound, is much different this year.
“This is our busy season. We would be right in the middle of wedding season, doing 10 to 12 about a day on the weekend, and now we’re doing none,” said Karen Tucker, the owner of Relish Catering.
Tucker shut down the catering company at the start of the COIVD-19 pandemic in March, only to come back and change the business model to primarily producing produce boxes and small meal orders.
“So that's a totally different pivot,” she said.
The business is still chopping and prepping, but it's not the same. It’s also not something they see as a staple moving forward, but perhaps a slow-season special.
“I think that it’s going to be a very slow turn back, but I think that this is a short-term fix. It’s not something I see that’s going to be grand and make us lots of money. ... It’s just not realistic,” Tucker said.
She's also watching as cities and counties in the metro area are allowed to give restaurants more space in the streets.
“We’re happy to support those businesses but we want that support as well,” she said.
She says the state is wrongfully treating catering companies like restaurants.
“We’ve heard several things. Unfortunately, none of them are consistent,” Tucker said.
So they'll keep chopping away, working to keep people employed and the food served. Tucker says they'll do it until they can get back to helping people celebrate and make their order board full again.
“This is what we do. We provide celebrations for people and we can’t celebrate right now,” she said.