Meet Catered By Design:
Family-Owned Sustainable Caterer Building a Greener Future
Catered By Design's mission is to bring your events to life with sumptuous food and refreshing beverages presented in spectacular fashion.
About Catered By Design
Catered By Design's mission is to bring your events to life with sumptuous food and refreshing beverages presented in spectacular fashion.
This also includes being a good steward of the environment. Our goal is to continually improve our sustainability practices by working closely with our vendors and partners to minimize the impact on the environment. By strengthening partnerships and exploring innovative practices, we aim to leave a positive legacy on the plate and on the planet.
Sam Gray, the Owner and President of Catered by Design, discovered his culinary calling in his grandmother's kitchen as a young kid, working up into Executive Chef positions at multiple restaurants and transforming his passion into a business.
Sam has a lifetime of experience under his belt. After deciding to settle down over 20 years ago, he began his journey with Catered by Design where he has built a loyal team to create and serve thousands of memorable food experiences for clients in Chicago and the greater area.
Our Catering Sales Specialists and Professional Event Team are prepared to bring your next event to life, no matter the event type.
How We Stay Sustainable:
Catered by Design has had sustainability as one of our main drivers since our inception. Especially during the pandemic, we were able to use that time to find ways to become more energy efficient and to minimize our impact on the environment.
We always try to order from local providers that have sustainable practices.
We are a 3-Star Certified Green Caterer as recognized by the Green Restaurant Association since 2024.
During the warmer months, we maintain an herb garden at our commissary to utilize the literal fruits of our labor in dishes which helps reduce a meal’s food miles and to help foster a healthy space for bee pollination.
We replaced all of our lighting with LED bulbs and installed automatic sensors for light and energy conservation. Additionally, we have invested in eco-friendly and energy-efficient models for our kitchen equipment such as ENERGY STAR equipment ensuring that our operations are as green as our ingredients.
For our pick-up and drop-off orders, we have switched over to containers made from eco-friendly materials such as palm leaf plates and bowls and basla wood platters which are all non-toxic, chemical-free, and 100% compostable.
We also utilize and provide Eco-Products beverage cups and containers and Your Green 2 Go biodegradable, recyclable and compostable containers which are 100% biodegradable and made from natural plant material.
Our menu has expanded to include more vegetarian and vegan options to help with bringing down the waste from animal byproducts.
The only way for a better tomorrow is for the leaders of today in our industry to do all that we can to ensure we are educated and up-to-date on the best sustainability practices.
