Group Meals
Effective: July 1, 2023
Last Updated: September 9, 2024
Includes information regarding complimentary meals for Seminar Chairs, Rapporteurs, Guest Speakers, and Respondents, meal prices for paying guests dining at Faculty House, instructions on how to request a credit note for select local restaurants, and reimbursements for Chairs and Rapporteurs.
Faculty House Meals
- The University Seminars provides complimentary buffet meals to chairs, rapporteurs, guest speakers, and respondents (if applicable). All other guests are required to pay for their meals.
- Non-student attendees must pay $30 per person for dinner or $20 per person for lunch.
- Student attendees must pay $20 per person for dinner or $10 per person for lunch.
- Sponsored Students: Some seminars sponsor student meals via their gift account or a CU departmental transfer. We will honor this practice and charge $20/pp (dinner) or $10/pp (lunch) for each sponsored student meal.
- The University Seminars offers two complimentary bottles of wine. Additional bottles of wine are available for purchase at $20/ea and will be provided by your FH server upon request.
FH Meal Prices for Meeting Guests
- Guest Type
- Students
- Dinner Price Per Meal
- $20/pp
- Lunch Price Per Meal
- $10/pp
- Guest Type
- Sponsored Students
- Dinner Price Per Meal
- $20/pp
- Lunch Price Per Meal
- $10/pp
- Guest Type
- All Other Guests
- Dinner Price Per Meal
- $30/pp
- Lunch Price Per Meal
- $20/pp
- Rapporteurs should check with their chairs to confirm if alternative payment arrangements exist, such as seminar gift funds or support from academic departments.
- If you or your chair are unsure if gift funds are available or if you wish to make other payment arrangements, contact Gesenia Alvarez at [email protected].
- Credit Card Payments:
- Preferred method: use our credit card form at https://bit.ly/UniSem_CCPay.
- Guests can pay in advance or on the day of the event. Some groups require payment with RSVPs; confirm with your chair how they prefer to handle payment.
- For credit card refunds or a list of credit card payments, contact Gesenia Alvarez at [email protected].
- Check Payments (Personal or Institutional Checks – U.S. Bank issued):
- Make checks payable to "Columbia University" and include the seminar number and “FH Meal” on the memo line.
- Make checks payable to "Columbia University" and include the seminar number and “FH Meal” on the memo line.
- Cash Payments:
- Cash is not accepted. If a guest cannot pay via credit card or check, record their name, email, and meal date(s) and send the information to Gesenia Alvarez. An invoice will be sent to the guest for payment.
- Cash is not accepted. If a guest cannot pay via credit card or check, record their name, email, and meal date(s) and send the information to Gesenia Alvarez. An invoice will be sent to the guest for payment.
- International Bank Checks or Money Orders:
- These payment methods are not accepted.
- These payment methods are not accepted.
- The Rapporteur is responsible for reporting payments on the day of the event. An envelope with a Payment Report form must be completed and any checks collected must be enclosed in the envelope. Ask Giran Ceballos for the Payment Report envelope if one is not provided at your seminar's table.
Payment Types
- Method of Payment
- Credit Card
- Accepted
- Yes
- Method of Payment
- Personal Check (U.S. issued)
- Accepted
- Yes
- Method of Payment
- Institutional Check (U.S. Bank issued)
- Accepted
- Yes
- Method of Payment
- Cash
- Accepted
- No
- Method of Payment
- International Bank Check
- Accepted
- No
- Method of Payment
- International Money Order
- Accepted
- No
- Donations must be made separately from meal payments and are processed by the Alumni and Development office.
- Donations can be made via check, payable to “Columbia University,” with the seminar number and “Donation” in the memo line.
- Credit card donations are accepted via this form: https://www.givenow.columbia.edu/?_sa=06889&_sd=696#
- A "Donate" button is also available at https://universityseminars.columbia.edu.
Group Meals At Other Locations
Though we prefer our groups to make use of Faculty House, we do understand that for some groups meals at local restaurants may be more convenient.
- The University Seminars office will reimburse up to $50 per person (for dinner and beverages, tax and tip included) or $35 per person (for lunch and beverages, tax and tip included) only for the following participants:
- chair(s)
- rapporteur(s)
- guest speaker(s)
- respondent(s) (if any).
- The University Seminars can either pay the restaurant directly for these eligible meals via a credit note (refer to the "How to Request A Credit Note for Select Restaurants" section below), or the chair(s) may choose to pay the restaurant directly and request reimbursement for these eligible meals.
The University Seminars can pay a select group of local restaurants directly via a promissory letter. Rapporteurs need to fill out a Credit Note Request Form in order to receive this letter via email.
- Requesting a Credit Note: There are a few local restaurants that will accept a promissory letter from a Columbia University department in lieu of payment for eligible meals only. Please note, the University Seminars can only issue credit notes for the following restaurants:
- Chama Mama
373 Amsterdam Ave (Bet. W. 77th and 78th St.)
New York, NY 10024
Phone: (917) 261-7430
chamamama.com
- Fumo
2791 Broadway (Bet. W. 107th and 108th St.)
New York, NY 10025
(646) 822-2921
fumorestaurant.com
- Le Monde
2885 Broadway (Bet. W. 112th and 113th St.)
New York, NY 10025
Phone: (212) 531-3939
lemondenyc.com
- Marlow Bistro
1018 Amsterdam Ave (Bet. W. 109th and 110th St.)
New York, NY 10025
Phone: (212) 662-9020
marlowbistro.com
- Massawa
1239 Amsterdam Ave (Bet. W. 120th and 121st St.)
New York, NY 10027
Phone: (212) 663-0505
massawanyc.com
- Pisticci
125 La Salle St (near W. 125th St Subway Station - 1 Train)
New York, NY 10027
Phone: (212) 932-3500
pisticcinyc.com
- Tartina
1034 Amsterdam Ave (Between W 110th and 111th St.)
New York, NY 10025
Phone: (646) 590-0577
tartina-restaurant.com
- Chama Mama
- The Credit Note will cover the following eligible meals: rapporteur(s), chair(s), guest speaker(s), and respondent(s) (if any). All other guests are required to pay the restaurant directly for their meals. If a seminar wishes to use their gift account to pay for any other, the guest name should be included in the list of attendees in Credit Note Request Form.
- Chair(s) and/or Rapporteur(s) will need to submit a Credit Note Request Form three to five days before the date of their reservation. Otherwise, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to issue a last-minute promissory note in time for your meal.
- Rapporteurs are responsible for booking the reservations directly with the restaurant of choice.
Chairs and rapporteurs who decide to buy platters, groceries, wine, or other group food delivery services for seminar events (not conferences) can request a reimbursement. The University Seminars office will reimburse up to $50/pp (beverages, tax, and tip included) for the following eligible individuals: chair(s), rapporteur(s), guest speaker(s), and respondent(s) (if any).
Chairs or rapporteurs will need to pay for the delivery service, and submit the receipt and meeting announcement via our Chair/Rapporteur Reimbursement Form.
Some chairs may have another CU department pay for the delivery. Contact Gesenia Alvarez-Lazauskas to arrange an inter-department transfer of funds.
A chair or rapporteur may request a reimbursement for group meals (for eligible individuals).
- Chairs and/or Rapporteurs must submit a Chair/Rapporteur Reimbursement Form. Chairs and/or rapporteurs will be asked to upload an itemized restaurant receipt and a receipt of tendered payment as proof of payment in the form. A list of eligible attendees names and their relationship to the University Seminars must be clearly documented in the reimbursement form.
- Proof of payment may take many forms but must demonstrate that payment was tendered and must include notation of:
- “Cash Tendered”
- “Paid”
- A zero-balance due
- Debit/Credit card payment (card type, last four digits of card and/or signature)
- If no proof of payment is available, a debit or credit card statement may be provided. Please black out any private or unrelated information.
- The University Seminars office will reimburse up to $50/pp (tax and tip included) for the following eligible individuals: chair(s), rapporteur(s), guest speaker(s), and respondent(s) (if any). A list of eligible attendees names and their relationship to the University Seminars must be clearly documented in the reimbursement form.
- All other guests are required to pay the restaurant directly for their meals.
- A chair or rapporteur should request reimbursement within 10 business days of the expense and must request reimbursement no later than 120 days after the date of the expenditure. Late submissions may only be reimbursed with the approval of the department. Supporting documentation must be provided in order to describe the circumstances leading to the late submission in order to evaluate whether it is a taxable event. Expense reimbursements requested more than one year from the date of expenditure will not be reimbursed.
Meals for Virtual Meetings
For virtual meetings, we assume seminars will not require travel funding or other meeting funds. Chairs and rapporteurs may request a reimbursement for meals eaten during or after the meeting. The threshold for individual meals for dinner is $50/pp (tax and tip included); lunch meal is $35/pp. Chairs can extend this perk to their guest speakers and respondents, but there are accounting requirements, and foreign nationals must be eligible to receive reimbursement. Contact Gesenia Alvarez and review the Before Submitting a Reimbursement section in the Reimbursements page before extending a meal invitation to guest speakers and respondents.
Special Events and Use of Gift Accounts
See the Special Seminar Meeting Events page.
Seminars who have established gift accounts may request to charge extra expenses against their gift balance. Contact Gesenia Alvarez-Lazauskas ([email protected]) and request a gift account balance.
See Gift Accounts and Donations page for more information.