NBM Lunch Dana

You are most welcome to bring home cooked food as dana to the monastery.

• • NBM sincerely appreciates vegetarian food offerings.
  • We would much appreciate your assistance with a special diet – a small tray of a variety of vegetables (steamed or boiled) with nothing added (no salt, no pepper, no oil) – for the residents with digestive issues.

If you would like to offer dana but are unable to cook and/or bring it to the monastery, you may wish to consider this option.

1. Kindly make an online booking to reserve your dana day before arranging with a caterer
2. NBM sincerely appreciates vegetarian food offerings.
3. Please inform the dana liaison officer (dana@nbm.org.au) if you proceed with this option.
4. Please kindly order for 10 NBM residents. (The minimum number of people for catering with delivery is 10.)
   5. If your family is coming, please add to the catering number of your family on top of the 10.  E.g:  if your family has 4 people coming, please cater for 14 people. 

Caterers’ contact details below (Names are sorted in alphabetical order):

• Ada: 0433 332 226 / ada390@hotmail.com [pick-up only from Footscray]
• Derek: 0434 449 978‬ [pick-up only from Woodend; not fluent in English; if help is required for ordering, please send email to dana@nbm.org.au]
• Earng: 0415 695 942 / atcharapan.9@gmail.com
• Karen: 0409 212 473 / karenbermingham@outlook.com

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1. Can I join a dana (meal offering) on a day that is booked?

YES, you are most welcome. Please feel free to come along and join in with a lunch offering of a few dishes, just enough for the people in your group. These dishes will be included in the lunch offering for the monastics as well.

2. How many monks/nuns/lay people will be there?

Please call (03 5424 1812) or email (dana@nbm.org.au), if you would like to confirm the number of monks, nuns and eight precept lay guests at Newbury on a given date.

3. Are there dietary requirements?

Vegetarian meals are strongly encouraged.
Less spicy food is much appreciated.
Please let us know if your food contains eggs and/or peanuts; we will label the food accordingly for the resident(s) with allergies.

4. How much food should I bring?

If you have made a booking to offer full lunch dana, please bring enough for the monastics and eight-precept lay residents on that given date; and your own group only.

Note: Due to the monastic and 8-precept practice of not taking food after noon, your assistance in taking the leftovers home is much appreciated.

5. Can I cook at the monastery?

The kitchen is not available for cooking of meals.
However, heating/warming up food is possible.
Thank you for your understanding.

6. How to Reschedule/Cancel a Booking

Please refer to the email confirmation of your dana registration. At the bottom of that email, there are options for rescheduling/cancelling your booking.

You can click on the appropriate link to reschedule/cancel your booking. This can only be done up to 48 hours before the time of your dana offering. Otherwise, you must contact the monastery to update your booking.

7. Can I offer requisites to the monastery?

Yes. However, one of the monastic disciplinary rules is that monastics are not allowed to ask for items if there is no invitation from those who are not blood relatives. Therefore, please send an email to dana@nbm.org.au so that we can let you know the items required.  This also ensures that there is no wastage.