Catering enterprises refer to economic organizations engaged in the production of catering products, providing catering places, equipment and services, and selling catering products directly to consumers. Catering enterprises have the characteristics of production, service and sales, which is different from other enterprises.

Small catering enterprises are often directly responsible by business managers and are divided into four departments: kitchen, restaurant, warehouse and accounting. The chef is responsible for the kitchen production, and the designated buyer purchases the cooking materials. The manager of the restaurant department is responsible for the sales service of the restaurant, as well as the purchase and storage of drinks, service utensils and supplies. The warehouse manager is mainly responsible for the storage and collection of cooking materials. The accounting department is fully responsible for financial management.

Small-scale catering industry refers to an operating enterprise engaged in processing and making cooked food, providing dining places and facilities for customers, supplying food to customers in time and providing service labor for them, which belongs to the category of tertiary industry. Compared with other types of enterprises, it has its unique industry characteristics.