The business: Eden Caterers, 199 Hercules Road, London SE1 7LD,  0207 803 1212 www.eden-caters.co.uk

The owners: Hugh & Angela Walker and Nick Mead

When did Eden open in Waterloo? 2005

How many employees do you have? 22

Describe the business? “We have two sides to the business – “Express Catering”, which are deliveries of ready to eat food (eg sandwiches and buffets) for business meetings, training sessions and conferences and  “Event Catering”, which is catering for parties, receptions, weddings, BBQs etc. All our work is done within London and we prefer to do most as close to Waterloo as possible.”

Why did you choose Waterloo? “Waterloo is an ideal location for us as it allows us to make quick deliveries to our clients in the West End and City. It’s also a cool place with a real sense of community.”

What’s the best thing about the job? “It’s a great time to be working in the food business. There’s a lot of interest in good, nutritious and local food; all things we aim to provide.”

Who are your clients? “Our clients range from the largest global organisations to the smallest businesses, schools to churches, charities to banks. Any organisation that gathers groups of people together and needs food for them can be a client. We cater for groups as small as three people.”  

Anything else? “We keep our food different, and we feel better, by making it all ourselves. We buy great raw ingredients sourced locally whenever possible.  We bake our own cakes, slow roast our own hams and beef and this year we even made our own elderflower cordial from flowers picked from the side of the Thames.”

Tell me about the bees? “We’re very excited to be getting our first colony of bees in July. The hive will be in our car park. We hope to do our bit for the struggling bee population but also have some great honey to use in recipes. Our home made granola with natural yoghurt and honey with a few berries is the best breakfast and will be better still with Waterloo honey!  Anyone wanting to see a bit of bee life is very welcome to come along and see the bees.”

What’s next for Eden? “We’ve just added a range of “Unconventional” wedding catering options aimed at the urban couple looking for a different sort of party to celebrate their union.”   

++Any Waterloo Quarter business ordering from Eden in August will receive a 10% discount. Mention Waterloo Quarter when ordering.