Why and How to Add a Catering Endorsement to Your BC Liquor License

If you’re a BC liquor licensee with a Food Primary or Liquor Primary license, a catering endorsement for your current license is the easiest way create a secondary revenue stream. A “catering endorsement” is an add-on to your current liquor license, not to be confused with a standalone “Catering License” meant for a catering business with a primary focus of preparing and serving food and beverages.

Liquor Primary license: e.g. bars whose primary focus is serving alcohol beverages.
Food Primary license: e.g. restaurants, cafes whose primary focus is serving food.

Our liquor license consultants have helped many Liquor Primary and Food Primary licensees successfully apply for a catering endorsement and start a catering business.

What Can You Do with a Catering Endorsement?

A catering endorsement enables Liquor Primary and Food Primary licensees to provide food and beverage service at events hosted by their clients.

Some requirements are similar for Liquor Primary and Food Primary licensees:

• Primary focus must be the preparation and service of food
• Must have personnel and equipment necessary to prepare and serve food
• Need a kitchen, cooks and servers for catered events
• Catered events include personal invitation-only, corporate events, community events.
• A “Catering Authorization” must be requested for each event at which you’ll sell and serve liquor purchased under your license. Requests are made via the Liquor and Cannabis licensing portal. Catering authorizations for low-risk events are usually approved automatically. Low-risk events include events of under 500 people, indoor events (other than community events) of under 500 people, any event (other than community events) where liquor service does not exceed two hours.
• Some events require the licensee to submit a security plan
• The licensee, manager(s) or server(s) selling or serving alcohol at a catered event must have a valid Serving it Right certificate.

See detailed terms and conditions in the Catering Endorsement sections of the Liquor Primary and Food Primary handbooks.

Benefits of Catering as a Side-Business

Provided your business meets government requirements and has the staff and equipment, an endorsement can have many benefits:

• Expand your business by operating as a caterer that can also provide liquor service
• Maximize the use of your kitchen so there is no “down time”
• Serve food and liquor at off-site locations
• Accommodate larger groups than you can at your bricks-and-mortar business
• Attract new customers: weddings, conferences, corporate events and parties, event planners

Sources for this article
”Catering Endorsement” (p.43), Liquor Primary Handbook, LCRB.
“Catering Endorsement” (p.36 ), Food Primary Handbook, LCRB.
“Catering License”, LCRB.

Need a Catering Endorsement? Talk to the Liquor License Experts at Thrive Advisors

The easiest way to get a catering endorsement is to contact the BC liquor license consultants at Thrive Advisors. We’ll consult with you and take the lead gathering necessary documents and applying via the Liquor Licensing Portal. Our process makes the experience go much more smoothly and increases the likelihood of timely endorsement approval.