our story
uncatered. was created to solve a set of challenges the hospitality industry knows all too well.
Clients often want to meet outside their offices and may fall in love with a great venue, but don’t need or can’t justify the cost of traditional full-service catering. Sometimes the event is more casual. Sometimes the budget simply doesn’t support formal catering. Yet most venues require approved caterers because their top priority is protecting their space. They need professionals who can manage setup, staffing, trash removal, and cleanup so the venue remains in excellent condition.
At the same time, many restaurants would love to participate in the events market but rarely have a clear path in. Breaking into venue-based events requires staffing, equipment, and operational oversight, resources that most restaurants simply don’t have the bandwidth to provide while running a busy kitchen.
The result is a gap: clients who want great food in interesting venues, venues that need operational protection, and restaurants that would welcome the opportunity, but no simple system connecting the three. uncatered. was designed to bridge that gap.
Created by hospitality strategist Jenna Mack, the concept grew out of her work managing venues and advising hospitality businesses through HIVE Consulting. Jenna frequently encountered clients who loved the venues she worked with but needed a more flexible, affordable food option. At the same time, venues needed assurance that events would still be professionally managed and cleaned up. Both parties were losing.
Jenna brings a unique perspective from over 30 years in the industry. She has worked as a planner, a venue manager and a restaurant owner herself. She understands firsthand the razor-thin margins restaurants operate under and how many delivery platforms take significant commissions from every order. For that reason, uncatered. does not take commissions from restaurants and does not markup food. Restaurants are paid their normal menu pricing.
The goal was to create a system that works for everyone involved, a win-win-win for the hospitality ecosystem.
Venues gain a reliable option for smaller or more casual events while still protecting their spaces through proper staffing, equipment, and cleanup.
Restaurants gain access to the events market without sacrificing margins or taking on additional operational burdens.
Planners and clients gain an affordable way to host events with great food and professional service.
uncatered. also reflects a broader shift happening across the events industry. As clients increasingly seek more casual gatherings and restaurants look for alternatives to high-commission delivery platforms, new models are emerging that connect local food businesses with the events market. uncatered. was designed to meet that moment by creating a system that allows restaurants, venues, and planners to work together in a way that is operationally sound and economically sustainable.
The program is launching with a pilot at Page House, a historic event venue on 16th Street NW. The pilot will feature a curated group of restaurant partners, with the majority being locally owned businesses, and will demonstrate how restaurant-driven events can work seamlessly inside traditional event venues.
While the pilot begins at Page House, the vision for uncatered. is much broader. The model is designed to expand to additional venues and can also support in-office and in-home gatherings that need more than simple food delivery by providing the equipment and service staff required to run a smooth event.
At its core, uncatered. reflects a belief that the hospitality industry works best when its different sectors support one another. By aligning the needs of venues, restaurants, planners, and clients, uncatered. creates a new way to host events that is flexible, community-focused, and built to work for everyone involved.