Supplier and Vendor Evaluation Checklist

Request a Certificate of Insurance naming the restaurant as additional insured. Minimum $1M general liability and product liability is standard for food vendors. Distributors like Sysco, US Foods, and PFG provide COIs on request; smaller specialty purveyors often need a reminder.

Get the W-9 before the first invoice clears, not at year-end. Missing W-9s become 1099 headaches in January and can trigger backup withholding. File the signed copy in the vendor folder alongside the COI.

Ask for samples in the same pack size and grade you would order for service — not a hand-picked showcase. Run them through actual prep and a plated tasting with the sous chef. Note yield, trim loss, and flavor against the incumbent.

Ask how they handle a Class I recall — notification timing, lot traceability, and credit. For produce and proteins, confirm they can pull lot numbers within 24 hours. This is what protects you when the FDA pushes a romaine or ground beef recall mid-service.

Match the route day to your prep cycle — a Tuesday seafood drop is too late for a Monday tasting menu. Confirm the cutoff time for next-day orders (most broadliners cut at 4–6pm prior day) and whether the truck has refrigerated and frozen compartments separately.

A $500 case minimum or a tiered fuel surcharge can swing effective price 3–5%. Confirm what triggers a small-order fee and whether it applies per drop or per week. Independent operators get burned here more than chains because they hit minimums less often.

Place a representative order and walk it through the full receiving process — temp the cold and frozen items at the door, count cases against the invoice, and check pack date and use-by. A vendor that delivers warm proteins or short-coded dairy on the trial run will do it again.

Pull the last 30 days of invoices for the top 20 SKUs and compare line-by-line against the new vendor's quote. Headline percentage savings often hide on commodity items while center-of-plate proteins run higher. MarginEdge or R365 makes this comparison routine.

Net 14 vs. Net 30 changes working capital. A 2/10 Net 30 (2% off if paid in 10 days) is worth roughly 36% annualized — take it if cash allows. Confirm credit limit and what happens when an invoice ages past terms.

Save direct cell numbers, not the 1-800 customer-service line. The rep handles weekly orders; the backup covers vacations; the credit contact handles short-pay disputes. Knowing all three names by Friday's order matters when something goes sideways at 5am Saturday.

Submit a small credit on the trial order — a short case, a damaged item — and time how long the credit memo posts. A vendor that takes 10 business days on a $40 credit will take 30 on a $400 one. Industry standard is 48 hours for a documented short.

For TCS items — proteins, dairy, cut produce — request the HACCP plan summary or GFSI certification (SQF, BRC, FSSC 22000). File expiration dates; expired certs are a finding during health inspection traceback if the vendor is implicated.

Under FDA FSMA Rule 204, vendors handling foods on the Food Traceability List must keep lot-level records and provide them within 24 hours of request. Ask how they trace from your invoice line back to grower or processor lot — verbal is not enough; ask for a sample traceback report.

If you serve nut-free, gluten-free, or dairy-free menu items, confirm the vendor's warehouse segregates allergens and labels accordingly. Cross-contact at the distributor is invisible until a guest reacts. Specialty purveyors with mixed dry-goods storage are the typical risk.