Management and Operations of the Catering Facilities at the United Nations Headquarters in New York

The United Nations invites expressions of interest (EOI) from capable and qualified vendors for the management and operations of the UN's catering facilities at its headquarters in New York. The selected vendor will manage and operate the UN's catering facilities for an initial term of 5 years, which at the UN's discretion may be further extended for another 5 years, for a total duration of 10 years, subject to satisfactory performance. Please see 'Exhibit 1: UNHQ Catering Requirements' to learn more about the UN's catering facilities, requirements, and more. The UN plans to issue a competitive solicitation in January 2024 through a multi-stage Request for Proposal (RFP) procedure. This approach offers prospective vendors, referred to as "Proposers," a unique opportunity to enhance their understanding of the UN's needs. This is achieved through a combination of activities, including a bidders conference, site visits, and individual competitive dialogues. The competitive dialogues will enable Proposers to engage in one-on-one discussions with the UN to gain a deeper understanding of the UN's requirements. These dialogues also serve as a forum for Proposers to present their interim proposals, and to receive constructive feedback from the UN that highlights both the strengths and weaknesses of their initial submissions. With this feedback, Proposers can review their proposed solutions, reassess their underlying assumptions, and make any necessary improvements before submitting their final proposals. In essence, the planned RFP is planned to have more flexibility and open communications to achieve two key objectives: (i) facilitate a better understanding of the UN’s requirements, and (ii) provide a forum where vendors can explain their understanding of the UN's requirements and present their offered solutions. Invitations to participate in the planned RFP will be extended exclusively to Proposers who can satisfactorily demonstrate compliance with the following prequalification criteria: (a) The Proposer should have a minimum of five (5) years of experience in the food service or catering business; (b) The Proposer shall have experience in dealing with Collective Bargaining Agreements.