Perhaps one of the greatest perks and joys of commercial production is lunchtime. In many professions and in most circumstances, lunch is a time when employees go out of the office and spend a portion of the salary they earn on a little bit of food. Not so for the cast and crew of commercials, they get catering – and in Toronto, very often, it’s Catering by Davids’.

Catering by Davids’ arose from the kitchens of David Mintz and his partner Stewart Webb. The ovens went on in 1987 and they have been baking, grilling, roasting and barbecuing up a storm ever since. Mintz says getting involved in the film business was "purely by fluke."

"We heard there was a TV series called War of the Worlds and we heard they were looking for a caterer. We showed up with some food and they liked it. And the rest is history. We started doing film and commercials and have kept on doing so for the last 14 years," Mintz says.

Catering by Davids’ does about six to 10 commercial days each week, and needless to say, it keeps them very busy. Mintz explains the menu: "It’s a wide variety of different food. We always provide a vegetarian entree and what we call a dark meat – which would be a heavier type of meal. And then you have your fish or your chicken. Always fresh pastas and a full salad bar every day.

Davids’ is a full-service catering house, showing up an hour before the scheduled lunch break and requiring only a room and tables. The caterer provides tablecloths, plates, knives and forks – "all of the equipment that’s necessary."

"Lunch," Mintz says, "is usually one hour and we’re out of there a half-hour after that [when the cleanup and tear-down is complete]."

Feeding the commercial industry is not without its challenges. Of course the ever-variable location factor makes for more interesting days than setting up in the usual convention halls and dining areas.

"Sometimes you’re serving on a boat, sometimes you’re on an island, sometimes you’re in a grungy basement or sometimes you’re in a church hall or you’re serving outside," says Mintz.

Another peculiarity of catering for production is the complimentary service they call craft. You know – pretzels, jujubes and the old whole wheat bread with jam. How does Mintz deal with crews snacking between meals? Is there a hidden rivalry between caterers and craft service providers?

"We never butt heads," Mintz answers with a laugh. "The only time that there might be a problem is if, let’s say for example, we’re serving lasagna for lunch. And for substantial – craft services decides to serve that. There are certain things they can serve for a substantial, which is a third-hour snack."

Mintz says he is sometimes asked if his company will provide the craft service as well as the catering to a commercial set. "But we say we can’t. Because that’s not our specialty. There are very few companies that provide both things," he says.

Perhaps the greatest challenge the caterer faces is the sometimes peculiar demands they get at the shoot. Mintz explains: "You’ll arrive on the set of a commercial and somebody will tell you or you’ll get a note that there is somebody important who is lactose intolerant. So for the next five days you make mashed potatoes without butter and if something has cream or milk in it, you always have to make sure there is something for that person. And then on the fifth day, when you do a sundae bar, that person digs into the ice cream."

Although Mintz laughs at what is surely every caterer’s headache, no matter what the business, he points out that "in general, 99% of the people are great and appreciative."

Davids’ specialty is the barbecue, and Mintz says they are ready to fire up the grill whether it is "minus 10 degrees or summertime." The company is also pleased to cater wrap parties, second meals and producers’ Christmas parties.

With a 5,000-square-foot kitchen, housing eight chefs, Davids’ does all its cooking at its Highway 7 and Dufferin Street location, northwest of Toronto. When the food is cooked, Mintz has a system to get it to the set.

"It’s taken down in vehicles and we send it down in hot boxes – food warmers. So that’s where you have to learn how to cook things to a certain point, assuming they are going to cook a little more on the way there. It’s not the same as cooking at home where it’s coming right out of the oven," Mintz explains.

Occasionally, poor weather keeps the food from arriving on time. Fully aware "the crew will go into penalty" in these rare instances, Mintz always agrees to pick up the tab on the lunch.

"I’ve never had somebody tell me I have to pay for it, but in terms of keeping our reputation, we will always pay for it," he says.

From the bellies of one hundred crews a thank-you growls. *