For a long time the EATALO catering table had a gap in it. The pasta trays were there, the lasagne was there, the roast chicken thighs and the skewers were there. Then someone would ask the question every office lunch organiser dreads: "Is there anything to go with it?"
In Italy that question never comes up, because the answer is already on the table. The side dish has its own name, contorno, and its own place next to the main. Potatoes from the oven, greens with lemon, something cold and crunchy in summer. Nobody plans a Sunday lunch without them, and nobody would serve a lasagne on its own.
So we fixed the gap. Six new side trays, cooked in our Martin Place kitchen, delivered hot with the rest of your order. Each one serves 6 to 8, and every one of them is named so you can tell at a glance what it is: a Side Tray goes next to a main, it does not replace it.
What a contorno is, and how many to order
A contorno is the vegetable or potato dish that sits beside the main course. It is not a salad bar and it is not a garnish. It is the roast potatoes everyone fights over, the carrots that make the table look like you tried, the broccolini that stops the whole lunch being beige.
For office catering the maths is simple. Count one side tray for every main tray, and add one more if the group is over 15. A team of 20 with two pasta trays and a roast chicken platter wants three sides: one potato, one green, one cold. That gives everyone something on the plate next to the main, and it keeps the vegetarians and the gluten free people happy without a separate order.
The new side tray range
Rosemary Roasted Chat Potatoes Side Tray
Rosemary Roasted Chat Potatoes Side Tray, $60
Patate arrosto, roast potatoes, are the side every Italian family argues over. Who gets the crispy ones. Why there are never enough. Baby chat potatoes, halved and roasted skin-on in olive oil with garlic, rosemary and sea salt until the cut side goes golden and the skins blister. The safe pair for anything hot: lasagne, roast chicken, beef skewers.
Vegan and gluten free.
Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges Side Tray
Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges Side Tray, $60
Thick wedges, skin on, tossed in olive oil with sea salt, cracked pepper and rosemary, roasted until the edges caramelise. The middle goes soft and sweet, the edges go crisp, and the tray smells like something worth stopping a meeting for. This is the one that empties first.
Vegan and gluten free.
Creamy Mashed Potato Side Tray
Creamy Mashed Potato Side Tray, $60
Some sides are there to look good. Mash is there to make people happy. Floury potatoes passed until smooth, beaten with butter and warm milk, finished with a little more butter on top. Made for roast chicken, beef and meatballs, and the right call for a winter meeting or an end-of-week team dinner.
Vegetarian and gluten free. Contains dairy.
Glazed Dutch Carrots Side Tray
Glazed Dutch Carrots Side Tray, $60
Carrots are the side nobody plans for and everybody eats. Whole rainbow Dutch carrots roasted with a light maple glaze, sea salt, cracked pepper and a pinch of chilli, finished with toasted almonds. The purple, yellow and orange ones bring colour to a table of pasta trays and roast meats, which is why this one earns its place at client lunches where the spread is on show.
Vegan and gluten free. Contains nuts.
Lemon Charred Broccolini Side Tray
Lemon Charred Broccolini Side Tray, $60
Broccolini is the green that gets eaten. We char it hard so the tips go crisp and the stems stay snappy, then hit it with lemon while it is still hot. Garlic, olive oil, sea salt, lemon wedges in the tray. The green on the table for lasagne, roast chicken and seafood, and just as good at room temperature if the meeting runs late.
Vegan and gluten free.
Classic Coleslaw Side Tray
Classic Coleslaw Side Tray, $60
The cold one. Finely shredded green and red cabbage with julienned carrot in a creamy dressing, dressed just before it leaves the kitchen so it stays crisp. Pairs with chicken skewers, sandwich platters, sliders and anything hot that wants a cool contrast. The easy side for summer lunches and boat catering.
Vegetarian, gluten free and dairy free. Contains egg.
And the one you already know
Our fries have been on the menu for a while, so they have joined the side tray family under their proper name. Sea salt, parsley, and the three dipping sauces: mayo, ketchup and zesty aioli. Vegan, dairy free, Halal certified and nut free.
How to build the table
You do not need all seven. Pick a main, then pick the sides that fit it. A few combinations we would put together ourselves:
- Lasagne lunch: a lasagne or pasta tray, chat potatoes and broccolini. The Sunday lunch, in the boardroom.
- Roast chicken dinner: roast chicken thighs, creamy mash and glazed Dutch carrots. Comfort food for the end of a long week.
- Skewers and sliders: beef or chicken skewers, sweet potato wedges and coleslaw. Casual, colourful, gone in twenty minutes.
- Seafood spread: salmon skewers or the seafood board, broccolini and coleslaw. Light, fresh, and the right pair for a summer or boat day.
Every side tray serves 6 to 8. The hot ones arrive hot and ready to serve, in a foil tray you can put straight on the table. The coleslaw arrives chilled. All six new trays are gluten free, five of the seven are vegan, and the tags on each product page tell you exactly what is in each one.
Senza contorno non è pranzo. Without the side, it is not lunch.
Order the new side trays
The full range is live in our Side Dishes collection. Add them to any catering order and they arrive with the rest of your food, delivered across Sydney CBD, Barangaroo, Martin Place, Circular Quay, Pyrmont and North Sydney.
- Browse all side trays
- Pair them with a pasta tray
- Or with hot mains and seafood
- Request a quote for a bigger event
Order online by 2:30pm for next-day delivery, or call us on 02 9241 2127 before 9am for same-day. EATALO Cafe & Catering, corner of Phillip Street and 2/8-18 Bent Street, Sydney NSW 2000.