General Procedures

Effective July 1, 2009

Having a caterer registered on the Approved Caterer List is easier than ever for the Mason community – but there have been some changes.  All Mason faculty, staff, students in all departments, no matter what funding is being used to pay for catering, must follow these new procedures. 

• Vendor must be on the approved caterers list (therefore in eVA).
• You must have a Food & Beverage form completed and approved prior to services being rendered.
• Orders must be processed through the eVA Procurement system.
• Orders $5000. and above: 
  All requirements exceeding $5000 will be subject to the competitive requirements set forth in the law (see Purchasing Web Page for further detail). 

Tips to Remember:

1. You must give the caterer adequate time to register with eVA and obtain approval from the Executive Director, Retail Operations to be placed on the Approved Caterer List.  A minimum of two weeks should be sufficient.  A caterer cannot come on any Mason campus if they have not been approved. Link to eVA Home Page here.
2. All caterers for any Mason sponsored event must be registered with eVA, the Virginia Purchasing System.  Ask the caterer to visit this website for instructions on registering as a caterer.
3. Prior to arranging for a caterer always check the Approved Caterer List to ensure the caterer of your choice is approved. To check on the status of your caterer’s application for approval, please check the List of Approved Caterers on this website.  If your caterer’s name does not appear and it is getting close to your event, call Axuiliary Enterprises, 703 993-2840 and see if the caterer submitted their application documents, registered with eVA and has been/has not been approved.  The caterers will receive the signed Catering License and Request for Caterer Approval Form returned to them by fax stating if they have been approved or disapproved. 
4. Enter your order in eVA as a non-catalog item and remember to uncheck the P-card box.
5. After your event your caterer can send the invoice directly to Accounts Payable, referencing the eVA Purchase Order number, or send the invoice to you and you reference the eVA Purchase Order number, authorize payment, and org to charge and send to Accounts Payable.

Department Meetings

"Pot luck" style food provided by staff are allowed for meetings/lunches/birthdays, etc. when only departmental staff are attending. Meetings that include other department's staff must use the catering procedures outlined above.

Non-Mason Affiliated Events

The procedures for serving food at your event, whether it is a wedding or a conference are the same except you pay your caterer directly, and are not required to pay your caterer through eVA, the Virginia Purchasing System. Your caterer must still complete the license agreement, forms, and provide all required documentation. Since your caterer, if approved, will be added to our Approved Caterer List, they will be required to register as an eVA vendor. When your caterer receives approval and is added to the Approved Caterer List, any Mason department will be able to use them for events. Mason is not responsible for paying catering services for private events.