Regardless of what type of event you’re running, your guests are going to get thirsty. At Maui Wowi Coffees and Smoothies, we can help you quench that thirst and, better yet, offer a delicious treat. We bring coffee and smoothie catering for events, including employee appreciation days, trade show promotions, company picnics, and more.

What kind of events do we cater for?

What kind of event are you running? Work with us and you can get coffees and smoothies for employee appreciation events, corporate meetings, company picnics, retail store openings, client appreciation events, and more. 

Besides office catering in NYC, we offer mobile smoothie catering, so we can come meet you for events outside the usual corporate space. This can include bar/bat mitzvahs, weddings, graduation parties, summer parties, and much more.

Themes, tastes, and services to match every occasion

With our mobile coffee bar and smoothie deck or the ability to set up a stationary booth, we can help you provide delicious treats no matter where your event is. As for what treats we can serve, our options include smoothies, coffee, espressos, cappuccinos, daiquiris, margaritas, hot chocolates, frozen cocktails, and more. 

Have a specific theme or taste you want to cater to? Just ask us and we’ll let us know what we can do. At Maui Wowi, our aim is to do what we can to make your events go as well as possible with the help of our extremely tasty beverages.

Add a taste of appreciation to your event

With our coffee and smoothie catering in NYC, we can help you add a taste sensation to any event. It’s perfect if you’re short on employee appreciation ideas, attracts even more visitors to your booth at trade shows, and with our mobile coffee cart, works excellently for outdoor events, too. Here are just a few more ways to use them:

• Energize with breakfast catering in NYC: A breakfast smoothie is fantastic for perking up your guests, especially during a multi-day corporate conference or trade show. These events can be tiring even when they’re exhilarating. What better than coffees and smoothies to give everyone some pep?

• Show some health consciousness: Delicious as they can be, our smoothies are also very healthy, indeed! As such, you can appeal to your more health conscious employees and guests, and offer them a suitable treat without challenging their values.

• Bring something different to the office: We also offer office catering in NYC, so you can occasionally treat your employees even if there isn’t an event running. A smoothie or gourmet espresso for lunch can brighten up the whole day, contributing to a healthier company culture

Get in touch for top-notch catering services in NYC

If you’re looking for some corporate event ideas to win some good will and treat your guests, then Maui Wowi Coffees and Smoothies are glad to help. As one of the top drink catering companies in NYC, we’re glad to hear from you and to provide the perfect taste solution to events of all kinds and sizes. Get in touch or fill in our contact form to begin your taste journey.

If you’re planning a New York, New Jersey of Connecticut corporate event this coming season and are scouring the web for unique ideas, you should try cutting straight to the point and making coffee and hot chocolate the stars of the show. Because let’s face it, for a fall event you’re going to have steaming mugs of liquid comfort available anyway, so why not host the ultimate coffee and hot chocolate event with all the delectable trappings! Whether you’re having a corporate meeting or an employee appreciation event, a warm treat in a mug brings pleasure and comfort to everyone. It’s a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.

Here are our top tips for hosting the ultimate coffee and hot chocolate themed corporate event.

Know your hot chocolate blends.

Not all drinking chocolate mixes are created equal. If your drinks are going to be the center of attention, go for luxury and pick mixes that will impress. The Spruce Eats has an in-depth article featuring seven of the very best hot chocolate blends.

Variety is key when it comes to coffee.

Anyone who routinely brews up a cup of Joe with family or friends knows that everyone likes their coffee differently. To please everybody, serve a wide variety of coffees at your event. This informative article describes the eleven most popular ways to make coffee.

An excellent blend makes a solid starting point for your coffee catering.

No matter what type of coffee you’re serving, it’s only as good as your coffee grounds. Here’s how to choose quality! 

Add flavors for a unique experience.

Ramp up the deliciousness with an array of flavorings that your guests can select from. Coffee syrups are an enormously popular way to make something extra special out of your cup of Joe, and there are a multitude of mouth-watering recipes out there that add variety to a mug of hot chocolate.

Finish it off with toppings.

Because toppings are the cherry on the cake, so to speak! Have a spread of treats laid out for your guests to spoon or sprinkle onto their drinks. Here are some ideas to get you started. 

Enlist some help.

We highly recommend hiring a professional drinks caterer to help you serve guests at your corporate event. Professional catering is wonderfully polished, the recipes and blends just work, and of course, there’s no hassle! We do coffee and hot chocolate catering in New York City, setting up our mobile bars at corporate events of all sorts and sizes. We have an enormous menu of irresistible treats – check it out! We use Ghiradelli chocolate mixes, a premium quality drinking chocolate that is a beloved among hot chocolate connoisseurs for its luxurious, intensely flavorful creaminess. We also boast unique Hawaiian coffee blends that delight our clients. For corporate events catering in NYC that will help create an experience your guests will relish and remember, book one of our mobile hot chocolate or coffee bars today at coffeesandsmoothies.com.

You’d think Google is pretty good and easy to use. Well, mostly. But let’s say you’re a human resources manager in New York City and you’ve decided to have an employee appreciation event. Someone suggests that smoothies would be a fun thing to have.  How would you go about finding a solution?

You might start by searching “smoothie catering nyc.” That’s in fact what a lot of our clients search, or something like it.  What do they see first? The first result is a aggregator catering service (see image). There are a lot of these out there. I’m not going to name them and add to their search engine optimization efforts!  So why not use them?

Well, for starters, you’ll pay a lot more. Most of these services charge folks like us about 15% as a commission if we list with them and they find a client for us (BTW, this has never happened. Never. Happened.  We have never gotten a single client from these services, even after promoting our services through them, in some cases for years.)

If you add another company between you and us, you will pay more. Makes sense, right? We have to charge them more to build in their commission, and they’ll pass that right along to you. How generous of them! These folks are, by and large, not very good at creating business for caterers, but they’re great at showing up first  on a Google search. 

So what should you do when you’re looking for a smoothie catering service in New York? 

Look for one that’s just an independent company! If you look on that very first Google page past the aggregator catering services and the retail shops that might be able to deliver some pre-made smoothies to you (rather than our made-to-order smoothies which we prepare at your office), you’ll find us: www.coffeesandsmoothies.com.  

You may be thinking, “Hey, why don’t you guys just spend some money like those catering services so you’ll show up higher?” We do spend some money. Not as much as “those guys” though.  So you do have to know what you’re looking for. Going through the laborious searches of a catering aggregator to is like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. So scroll down a teeny tiny bit and you’ll see us, right….there!

We provide mobile smoothie and coffee/espresso bar catering, as well as acai bowls made with our signature smoothie recipe, for corporate events, employee appreciation events, company meetings and social events throughout New York, New Jersey, Westchester, Connecticut and beyond – heck, we’ve gone to Maine, Buffalo, Washington and other far-flung places. Have blender, will travel.

We know how dreary it can get in that office sometimes. Tasks are endless, chairs grow uncomfortable, the hours stretch on, and some days even feature heated clashes with dissatisfied clients or frustrated colleagues. Hard work and facing up to unpleasant chores are an essential part of adult life. 

According to Gallup, employees who feel unappreciated for the things they do or put up with are twice as likely to quit their jobs – and a staggering two out of every three employees in the US feel unrecognized for their contributions. Showing your employees some appreciation could be one of the most underestimated strategies for creating a happier workspace, which ultimately boosts your business’ success. Because we have your back, here are our most trusted employee appreciation ideas (plus some corporate event ideas for Employee Appreciation Day) that will brighten everyone’s day and make the work environment more pleasant. 

Before we get to that, though, here’s the most important thing you need to know about effective employee appreciation:

It needs to be genuine.

The reason why this is so crucial is because employees in general feel that only meaningful appreciation actually counts. To be meaningful, appreciation needs to be based on something they’ve achieved – even if that was “Sunniest Attitude of the Week” – and your praise or gratitude needs to be heartfelt. You may need to make a little extra effort to find out a bit more a out your employees, their lives, goals and accomplishments, so that you can reward their efforts in a way that makes them feel recognized and valued.

Once you have a little insight into real ways your employees add to your business, here are some simple, effective employee appreciation ideas to help you show them you appreciate them.

Gifts

Everyone likes to be surprised with a little something special they can take home and enjoy. Here is a Pinterest board stocked with inspiration for inexpensive employee appreciation gifts, and here are some tried and trusted favorites.

Praise

Whether it comes from you or their colleagues, heartfelt praise is one of the most powerful ways to make someone feel noticed and valued. The best work environments are ones that have innovative systems in place that take the effort and awkwardness away from commending people’s contributions and strengths. Here’s a list of brilliant recognition ideas that work for other companies.

Entertainment

Every so often, take a couple of hours or even a day off to have some fun together. It’s the best way to say you feel they’ve worked hard, and they deserve a break. This article has loads of inspiration on how to take everyone’s mind off work for a little while and bring some fun into the office, and this one is stocked with corporate event ideas for Employee Appreciation Day.

Treats

Few culinary delights are as universally enjoyed a good cup of coffee: and this is particularly true in an office environment during a tough week or dreary day, when everyone could do with a caffeine kick and some warm, delicious comfort. If you’re planning an Employee Appreciation Day and you’re looking for corporate event ideas, good coffee should be somewhere at the top of your list too. If you’re organizing corporate catering in New York City, book one of our Maui Wowi mobile coffee bars at coffeesandsmoothies.com and spoil your employees with some dreamy coffee catering. We offer corporate catering in NYC where we set up at your location and brew some magic with our unique Hawaiian coffee and wide range of menu options. We do smoothies and Acai bowls too, so visit our site, take a look at the catering we offer, and book a treat that will help to say “thank you – you’re valued” to your employees. 

There’s one small but incredibly effective thing you need to do if you’re planning the catering for a morning event: book some professional coffee catering.

There’s no doubt about it, if coffee was a person, it would be an A-list celebrity. With hordes of fans clamoring for photos, flashing paparazzi bulbs it just can’t escape, and red carpets everywhere. So, if you’re hosting a morning event, make sure the world’s most beloved drink gets the attention it deserves by making it the star of the show. Here’s exactly why you should book professional coffee catering for your next corporate brunch – and where to do that. 

It’s hassle free.

You won’t have to worry about stocking mountains of cream, sugars and sweeteners, or coffee grounds, and making sure that Mississippi-sized river of steaming water is topped up and available to your guests. You won’t have to worry about cleaning or buying cups and teaspoons. You won’t have to worry about whether your guests are satisfied, either, because ease and convenience are just the beginning of the benefits of hiring professional coffee catering.

The variety can’t compare.

The only way to be able to have a dozen or more coffee menu options for guests to enjoy is to get a professional coffee bar set up at your event location. Because coffee is so special and ritualistically enjoyed by nearly everybody, having variety to enjoy helps make an event memorable.

Quality bumps from low or mid-range to the upper echelons of deliciousness.

Even if you put a lot of thought into the coffee that you serve your guests, doing it yourself can’t match having a caterer who does it as a profession, on hand with carefully picked brews, specialty blends and toppings, and tons of recipes crafted and refined by drinks chefs. Coffee catering is an art: let’s give it the recognition it deserves.

The coffee becomes a feature.

Your guests have consumed uncountable cups of ordinary, indistinguishable coffee. Because it brings joy, comfort and energy, coffee is just begging to be used as an easy source of entertainment and pleasure that will make your morning event something special.

Here’s where to find exceptional professional coffee catering in NYC.

If you need to organize some breakfast catering in NYC, or you’re doing the planning for some small event catering in NYC, go to coffeesandsmoothies.com today to book a mobile coffee bar! We’ve witnessed time and again when we do breakfast catering in New York City how our amazing Hawaiian coffee weaves a special kind of magic that soothes the rush of the event, gets guests chatting about their lives to each other, and fills people with fresh energy. We set up at your event, eliminate the hassle of in-house coffee service, and become a feature that adds to what your guests will remember and enjoy about the day.

It’s summer, when a young man or woman’s thoughts turn to….smoothies. Especially if you’re an HR manager or a sales team leader in a corporate office filled with overheated employees who were waiting for the R train this morning or were delayed on the LIRR on the one car that didn’t have air conditioning.

So, you start thinking about how to do something special for your people, or maybe for a special client. “Smoothies!” comes to mind. And then you think, “I’ll have smoothies delivered by the local takeout juice place a few blocks away. Let us tell you why this is a bad idea and why you should plan a smoothie event featuring Maui Wowi’s mobile smoothie bar.

Why Takeout Smoothies Don’t Work

We commend you for your creative thinking and wanting to do an employee appreciation gesture.  But there are a few problems with the takeout approach.

1. Deliveries can be slow. Yes, you can ask the local juice bar for 50 smoothies, but that’s not what they’re set up to do. If they take your order at all, they will have a hard time making them and getting them to you fast. And fast is important in the smoothie biz. Even if they can make them, getting into buildings these days is not so easy. There’s security, then the line at the freight elevator, and getting the receptionist to call you, and you having to get everyone together. Delays are bad for smoothies! If you’re not drinking your smoothie within minutes of its being blended, it will start breaking apart and lose its appeal. Yuck.
2. Bad for the earth. Many delivered smoothies come in Styrofoam cups to preserve the cold. We don’t have to tell you this is a disaster for the planet. We make ours in compostable cups. These cups can’t be delivered because they’ll literally melt in the sun! 
3. A gesture is not an event. Even if you manage to get smoothies delivered to your office, what then? Your people grab and go. Like the virtual tree falling in the forest when there’s no one around. Your gesture didn’t make a sound! Why? Because you didn’t create an event around it.
4. Takeout means not customized. If you order a bunch of smoothies for the office in different flavors, there’s going to be someone who wanted strawberry but there was only a pineapple smoothie left. Sad!

The list goes on. But there’s a better way.

A Maui Wowi mobile smoothie bar offers a number of great features:

1. Maui Wowi is an event for your employees or special clients. We come to your office with our mobile tiki bar and custom-make smoothies in flavors of your employees’ choice (we usually offer three or four).  Our bar and servers create a fun atmosphere.
2. People hang out….and talk. Ever notice people texting from 12 inches away? Give their thumbs a break and let them hang out at the tiki bar and socialize! It’s good for productivity if people talk and like each other more.
3. What if you don’t have space or don’t want the tiki bar? We only need a small space and an electric outlet for our bar. We can set up in a break room or conference room. But if you don’t want the bar, no problem. We can use a kitchen area and make our smoothies fresh, put lids and straws in them (and a colorful parasol) and have them ready to drink. No delivery delays.

BTW, the same applies for takeout coffee drinks from FourBucks. (I think they have renamed it FiveBucks). Those lattes are not gonna be hot, folks. How about having a mobile espresso bar at your office with expert baristas, all the customization your people want, a choice of syrups, sauces, whipped cream, milks and sweeteners.  Spare them your break-room coffee and make a coffee event with a mobile Maui Wowi espresso bar.

Eating healthily not only strengthens your body, it also boosts your mood, improves your memory, fuels your energy levels, and helps you sleep peacefully. Enjoying healthy meals daily elevates employees’ productivity, and simply makes people happier. Whether you’re planning a wellness event, a corporate health fair, or an event or meeting for your company, here’s how to serve up delicious yet healthy food that will bring out the best in everyone.

• Focus on flavor.

According to the American Heart Association, unhealthy foods are highly processed, contain a lot of sugar and salt, or are excessively fatty. And sadly, it seems that our taste-buds are wired to find these foods irresistible! We’ve all experienced the disappointment of trying a healthy dish and finding it bland or downright unpleasant. Here’s how to serve healthy food that won’t let anyone down:

• Book a caterer that specializes in serving healthy food – they’ll know their way around the ingredients and will have refined their recipes to perfection.
• If you don’t have that option, discuss the menu with your caterer and find ways to cook their dishes with a healthy twist. Read our tips below for the main points to cover.
• If you’re seeing to the catering yourself, here’s a clever article on how to cook up a healthily delectable storm.

• Meat: it’s all in the details.

When it comes to serving healthy meat dishes, there’s two aspects to consider – what the meat is comprised of (the animal, how it was raised, and the cut), and how to prepare it. Here and here are in-depth guides to selecting healthy meats, and here’s how to prepare them in a way that’s both delicious and guilt-free!

• Take your veg to the next level.

Yes, vegetables are packed with vitality, but we don’t always enjoy them! Here’s some practical tips on making them pop, and here’s a roundup of amazing veggie recipes.

• Don’t give up on starches.

Carbohydrates are good for you – as long as they’re not refined! Here’s an exhaustive list of starches that you can include in your menu plan, and tips on how eating them benefits the body.

• Sauces: the surprise health attack.

Sauces can be surprisingly unhealthy, as they are often high in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats. These sauces are low-calorie, though, and here are some wonderful recipes for more healthy sauces.

• Healthy drinks are also delicious.

Here are some drinks options that won’t drown your guests in sugar:

• Water – it’s obvious, but it must be said. For a special and eye-pleasing touch, serve water in cut-glass jugs with ice, mint or rosemary, and citrus slices.
• Fruit juices, freshly pressed from seasonal ingredients. Include fragrant herbs for a little something extra.
• Craft sodas with low sugar contents, designed for adults.
• Brews with a healthy twist.
• Red wine is good for the heart, if it’s limited to a single glass per guest.

Of course, the most delicious healthy drink of all is a creamy smoothie. Our Maui Wowi smoothies are like fruity milkshakes – but they’re healthy! Here’s an article that explains why this nutritious treat is known to be so good for you – no wellness event would be complete without some smoothie catering. Our Maui Wowi smoothies are lovingly blended from deliciously fresh ingredients, and we have an enormous variety of options. Our mobile smoothie bar will set up at your event and provide a fuss-free corner of palate-pleasing vitality.

Maui Wowi also offer a mobile coffee bar and a full array of espresso drinks, hot and iced – perfect for your dessert menu. Speaking of which….

• You don’t need to leave out dessert.

When it comes to dessert, you don’t need to deprive your guests – the key here is that a little goes a long way. You can serve a small portion of an unhealthy delicacy, like chocolate (preferably dark) or ice cream, with some guilt-free treats, like fresh seasonal fruit. Happily, there are also loads of healthy dessert recipes out there – here are some to get you inspired.

With these tips in your arsenal, your guests will be delightfully surprised over just how sumptuous healthy fare can be!

Let’s face it – people who plan corporate events are often expected to perform miracles on shoestring budgets. If you’re the trusted organizer saddled with the task of planning your company’s upcoming event where you know every penny is going to count, we’re here to hold your hand. We’ve put together a list of tips that will cut costs on events of all sorts, from corporate meetings and company picnics to client appreciation events and corporate health fairs.

• 1. Know your budget from the start.

Ask for a set budget so that you know what you have to work with. Then you can kick into full-on planning mode, knowing that you’re not over-spending.

• 2. Hold your event in a slow month.

Because all your suppliers will be looking for ways to cover their own costs, and they’ll charge you less, or be vulnerable to your secret weapon – bargaining.

• 3. Choose a venue on the outskirts of town.

An out-of-the-way venue has so many advantages: besides the peace and quiet, there will usually be more nearby parking space available, and venue costs will be lower. Encourage attendees to carpool so that they can also save money if they have to travel a little further to their destination.

• 4. Schedule your event so that hotel stays are unnecessary.

You’ll save a lot if you don’t have hotel or guest house expenses as a part of your budget.

• 5. Then, streamline your activities.

Plan just a handful of activities that pack a punch. This will not only keep the day shorter, so that you cut down on catering and venue costs, it will also save money on props and any entertainment or guest speaker expenses.

• 6. In fact, we suggest that you host a brunch or lunch-time event.

Brunch or lunch catering costs less than a full dinner spread, and guests will have ample time for traveling. Plan a buffet, instead of an expensive sit-down meal. Try out several caterers – cheap still means tasty when you have the right chef cooking up your meal. You can cut out mid-morning or afternoon snacks, too, especially if you have some irresistible coffee or smoothie catering on hand! Which leads us to our next tip.

• 7. Have a drinks bar!

We suggest booking a Maui Wowi smoothie and coffee bar. Our delectable drinks will keep guests filled and refreshed, eliminating the need for extra snacks. You can also look over our drinks menu and limit the options that guests can order. We offer a choice of eight tropical fruit smoothies as well as frozen lemonade and frozen cappuccinos. We also provide cold-brewed iced coffe.  To cut costs while pleasing guests, book a mobile coffee and smoothie bar today at www.coffeesandsmoothies.com.

• 8. Book everything way, way in advance – and bargain!

The closer in time to your event you book your venue, caterers, speakers and entertainment, the more everything will cost. And if you think something’s overpriced, bring that up. Here’s an insightful how-to on bargaining for events .

• 9. Go paperless.

Send out email invitations, have a Facebook page for the event where you can keep everyone informed and post pics afterwards, and use digital signage (here’s how).

• 10. Recruit volunteers, and give amateurs and university students a chance.

Just ask for examples of previous work when hiring someone inexperienced, so that you can get a feel for whether they’re up to the task.

With these tips, you have some wonderful expense-cutting strategies in your mental toolbox. Now go forth, and save money!

Figures show that businesses which embrace sustainability have a powerful advantage over those that don’t. In fact, 93 percent of CEOs believe that sustainability concerns will be a main player in the future of their businesses. It’s a concern that’s becoming ever more pressing – and so, when planning corporate events in the future, you may be thinking of keeping the Green Factor in mind. We’re here to help make the task simple with a short list of ideas that cover all the essentials.

When it comes to planning the catering for a corporate meeting or company events, these are the three sustainability elements to consider:

• food sourcing
• tableware
• waste management

• What is sustainable food?

It’s local.

Buying food from nearby means a smaller carbon footprint was made getting those provisions to you. Here’s an informative how-to on sourcing local food.

It’s seasonal.

Eating fruits and vegetables in season means that fewer pesticides, waxes, preservatives and time in energy-hungry cold-storage was needed to preserve your fare’s fresh appearance. This is a choice that’s becoming increasingly popular, so ask your caterer what seasonal options their menu has to offer.

It’s farmed sustainably, and organic.

There’s a lot that goes into sustainable farming practices. In short, it ensures that animals live healthy, happy lives, the environment benefits, farmers are satisfied with the returns for their labors, and people sitting down to an organic meal enjoy fare that is full of flavor and nutrition. Here’s a deeper look at what sustainable farming means and here  and here  are some more sources on how to buy organic.

It’s fair trade.

These are the 10 principles of fair trade from the World Fair Trade Organization:

• Opportunities for disadvantaged workers
• Transparency and accountability
• Fair trade practices
• Fair payment
• No child labor or forced labor
• No discrimination; gender equality; and freedom of association
• Good working conditions
• Capacity building
• Promote fair trade
• Respect for the environment

Now this is something we all can get behind! Here’s (https://www.fairtradecertified.org/products) an in-depth site on shopping for fair-trade items in the US.

When looking for sustainable food, consider booking a Maui Wowi mobile coffee bar! Our delicious Hawaiian coffees are sustainably grown and bought through fair trade and we have a wide selection of irresistible options. Or, opt for smoothie catering. Our mobile smoothie bars serve fresh, filling and all-natural treats. To book a sustainability-conscious mobile coffee or smoothie bar that delights guests at your next event, go to coffeesandsmoothies.com.

• How to find green tableware (we don’t mean the color).

It’s reusable.

Make do without plastic or paper! Have jugs of water, linen napkins and tablecloths, reusable cutlery and crockery, condiments in shakers and jars, and go paperless with invitations and signage.

Or, it’s biodegradable.

The next best option when it comes to tableware is finding items that won’t contribute to overflowing dumps, landfills and ocean pollution. Here’s an article full of tips on biodegradable tableware.

• Waste management makes a difference.

Donate.

Instead of throwing away your untouched extras, donate them to someone in need. Here’s a city-by-city guide.

Recycle.

It may mean setting up extra bins yourself, but having recycling options when it comes to waste disposal can make a big difference. Explain the system to your guests, and have clear signage at the bins themselves. Here’s an informative how-to.

Compost

Arrange with a local composter to take on your food waste and biodegradable packaging post-event. It’s a simple but effective way to give back to the environment.

Planning a green event is a little extra effort. But in the long run, it will not only benefit our beautiful earth, it will also contribute to the future success of your company.