# Best Catering Software



## jacqualynn

What is the best catering software on the market for small to medium sized restaurant/catering business. Any help would be appreciated.


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## theethical chef

Cater ease is the standard and can do anything you need it to do, combine that with quickbooks and you have a slam dunk operation.


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## jnwright

I'd check Cater Ease myself. I've heard this is a good one.


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## goodchef

If you go to Caterease site you can see what it has to offer. I bet you will be surprised.


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## quelper

We need to write it!

But for now..

Caterease may be the most mature product on the market, but since it is $1295 for the "Light" version of the desktop product, and $3495 for the professional version, It is a bit pricey for my tastes. The aforementioned Quickbooks interface is an additional $500, and other features that I feel should be included such as contact management, are pay add-ons as well.

Their "On demand" pricing is slightly more compelling, but not too much.

Cateredge is based on filemaker (a very old version last I checked), is feature rich for the price, but also has you paying per user. No online version is available as far as I know.

Total Party Planner is also worth taking a look at.

All and all, if you are looking at a lot of business, and need something that works, $5000 per year may be worth it. Myself, I have an aversion to having my data hosted off-site, especially with a company I pay monthly.

If anyone is interested in helping create an open source community based catering solution, I have been beating the bushes for a while on this, and the time may just be right.


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## rich0452

There are some good foundations to start from on sourceforge.org, good, mature CRM software that's open source - also  a number of good recipe programs. It shouldn't take a lot of work to build on those existing frameworks and cobble something together that would make sense for catering. If anyone's interested in starting up a "wishlist" of features, we might be able to prototype something pretty fast.

My interest is in a web-based solution to handle contracts, CRM and event planning. Maybe others are interested only in desktop.The reason I'm wanting to focus on a web-based solution is that it would be easier to distribute useability as well as data over multiple system architectures with a common interface. But, I'm open to ideas. Let's see if we can do this!!!

Post your ideas and thoughts and let's get started with planning something reasonable and doable in a relatively short time frame!

Rich.


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## quelper

*CRM*

For a CRM check out Vtiger. It is a PHP MYSQL based open source, and a fully operational enterprise level package. You only pay for support (if you need it), or if you hire someone to customize it. This is currently where I am leaning.

It also has reasonable invoicing/inventory system, although the Quickbooks interface is currently Vaporware.

*LIVE CHAT*

Crafty Syntax is also open source, and allows you to offer live chat support services from your web page. This handy little tool will even trigger a sound when someone goes to your page, and report how they got there. I find it useful to know that a person typed "folding chair rental san francisco" on a Safari browser, before I decide to push a chat window at them.

*EVENT PLANNING*

Catering has aspects of a manufacturing business, a service business, and a retail business, all rolled into one. For us software made for for any, or all of these industries share one major deficit, there is no VENUE file. In most cases the SHIPPING address is specific to a particular contact, and therefore must be reentered for each client.

*STAFFING*

Staffmate has a fantastic way of dealing with an on-call crew, and charges $550 a year for up to 50 active staff members. Sadly it is only available as "On Demand" and I want to be able to host my own data.

Just a few thoughts

Mark


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## freshstart

Reviving an old thread here...

We currently use Caterease, but we'd really like a CRM.  As far as I know, Caterease has no plans to automate processes the way that a cloud-based CRM like Salesforce does.  We want to do things like send automatic emails (surveys after events, confirmation emails the day before events).

On the other hand, it would take a lot of customization (if it's even possible) to duplicate the menu, beo, etc functionality in Salesforce that currently exists in Caterease. 

Does anyone have any opinion on this?  Or has anyone found a good solution?


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## rich0452

Hi Mark,

Thanks for the suggestion of vtigerCRM - I checked it out, installed it and we've been using it for over a month now. It doesn't have everything I'd like, but wow - it sure filled an immediate need for us. The quotes/invoicing and scheduling is pretty decent for an open source program. We're still fiddling with the concept of using the "product" inventory for menus - but what the heck - it works! The customer maintenance aspect is really well thought out. Quotes and invoices can be created quickly, saved or printed in PDF, or even automagically emailed in PDF format to your customer.

For dealing with the menu pricing, I've set up RecipeDB for our crew - unfortunately they haven't bought into the concept yet, but I'm not sure anything I would put up would get them to work with a system effectively - even if I spent the money on a full blown supported system. So, that's more of an internal issue with our company.

Vtiger also has an app for the iphone. I've downloaded it and am not impressed - but there's a "helper" routine downloadable from the vtiger support site that works well with almost any type of PDA or phone - I've been using that and although it's not everything I'd like - it sure comes in handy getting customer information and pricing while on the road.

Just one other thought regarding CRM's. SugarCRM apparently has quite a following. I haven't been able to take the time to fully evaluate that yet, but when I get a little more free time I will. If you have any experience with it I'd appreciate your input.

Thanks!

Rich.


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## sharrystew

Hi Jacqualynn.

Are you still in search for a good catering software? I've been running my small catering service business for a couple of years now and I have to say that technology has been of great help to me. With good advice from people I know who had been on the same business ahead of me and the right business approach, i am positive that I could branch out in few more years. This business software is not totally a cook book software or organizer but it can even do more than that. This had been one of my best business partners since I started out, I hope this too can help you like it did to me. See you around.


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## quelper

@chefjanet

Thanks for the link. I have had my eye on shop n cook as it is a "filemaker" based system. Unfortunately despite the fact that filemaker is cross platform, shop n cook is platform specific to MAC. Besides an "On demand" or web browser based system is what most of us need.

For those using drupal for their web site, there is a "recipe" module that does conversion, storage, and imports from many popular programs. This is great for having online access to your recipes, but alas no costing. They _are_ looking into integrating it to the USDA database so that each recipe you write will include nutritional information.

There is a program called PHPrecipe or somthin that works too, but still no costing or inventory control.

Then again _implementing_ a recipe program with costing may not be _cost effective_ for most caterers or restaurants.

STORY: Back in 1988 or so, I found a program called "Recipe Writer Pro." At the time, it was the most powerful recipe costing program I had seen for the "IBM Compatible." I quickly fell in love with it, contacted "At your Service Software" in Yonkers NY, and set myself up as a vendor. I sold just one copy to the Balboa Yacht Club, (I think that was there name), even though it rocked! The reason became obvious after I delivered my sales pitch to a chef over the phone. I had just finished touting the software's ability to track ingredients, cost and convert recipes, when he barked, "That is what *I *do!"

CONCLUSION: Few working chefs will use a recipe costing program because they are busy, well.. working. Some may even view it as a threat.

Keep cookin!


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## chefbee

We started out with cater ease(sleaze). Found the soft ware to be far to complicated for the average staff person to pick up quickly. The company was more than happy to sell us multiple training sessions for large amounts of money. As long as you are spending they are willing to help, as soon as the outflow of cash stops, you are on your own.

We now use total party planner. Great software, easy to use, easy to train the staff on. Free web training sessions. They have web based and desk top systems. Wish we had found them before we wasted so much money on cater ease.


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## calichef100

I have been using


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## michaelcoulter

I'm a new member here, but I wanted to comment that I've just sent out a request for input on doing some software development in the food service market. I won't repeat everything I wrote, you can view it in the thread I posted on if you'd like. Basically, I'm just looking for feedback on creating something for your market. I'd much rather try and make something useful that suits your needs, rather than pretend I know what you'd want or use.

Thanks,

- Michael


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## jabil3681059

So this thread is from'10 and I'm thinking the players have all moved on.

We tried cater edge, mac based we are, and for various reasons we dropped it.

Would like to know thoughts on current catering software.


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## daviimandel

Thanks for picking up the topic again. I don't have any conclusive answers because I, myself, just came here to find out what others had to say. I have had Caterease for the past three-four years but am fed up with their prices. Most of all, I resent the fact that they charge an extra $700-800 for yearly support. You really only need it at the beginning, when you are still learning it. After that, it's once in a while. But if you haven't paid for it, you don't get much from them on the phone.

Also, like someone mentioned above, they charge you for everything you want to add on.

I like the look of Total Party Planner. I've scheduled a demonstration for tomorrow. So far, it sounds good. 

The fact is that the majority of caterers are small businesses and can't afford to pay $5000 a year for software service. TPP just gives the impression of being "one of the guys".


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## catfish

I personally use Total Party Planner. I look very hard at Caterease but settled with TTP about this time last year. The support is the best. It was very affordable for my business and has everything I need to allow me better control over my business.


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## chef white

I saw on-line catering software that charges a monthly fee, has anyone used such software? Is it any good?


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## catfish

Folks the TTP support is great. I've used it for a year now. I pay monthly and they give me support as needed. In the last year they have updated the program 4 or 5 times with no extra fees or increase monthly charge. For me it the best bang for the buck I could find out there.


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## jabil3681059

Yep, ran through the demo w/ Brandi @ TTP. She was very nice and had a good grasp of the product with a hospitality back round and good support. I had the impression that it was more large event center/ hotel experience.

It still feels like we are trying to force our systems into someone else's box.

Overall the pricing seems better than C/ease or C/edge. But with the additional user fee's; $120 base & 25 per add would still run $200+ per month. That's pretty much the buy in for Cater E or Edge over 2 years.

We are giving BetterCater a trial run, cost is in line but it seems a bit basic.

Our business model includes corporate/casual catering, home meal delivery & retail sales with two separate storefronts.

We currently print a single Word document to detail Daily & Weekly menu production / scheduling, in store pick up and home/corporate deliveries. We use use Quickbooks for accounting and a Word table for tracking daily costs and revenue.

What would be ideal for us is some type of FileMaker program for contact information that is event invoiced / archived to the individual and can be email / FB linked for tailored or general social marketing.

A Calendar that is collapsable from year to month, to week to day. The printable, "daily", large enough to encompass both catering/home delivery schedule and production of menu with a delineation for retail pick up activity. The calendar should microscope down for "event specific" detailing of packing, staffing and special instructions. Also individually printable.

An employee staffing / scheduling database, that can be segmented to account for part time catering event staff and full time production personnel that is email and perhaps FB linked. That can be event staff costed.

An Excel program that downloads current vendor pricing and costs inividual items and complete package menu. That program should tie into sales staff proposals that allows custom price quotes. With line item costs for delivery, tax, rental request and incidentals.

The program should be cloud based, accessible/editable through "Drop Box" or a similar network program to several users, at no additional cost, and have secure "In House" as well as server back up.

What do you think?


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## gourmetk

I'm thinking about giving Better Cater a shot. If any of you have tried it, do you have any feedback? After reviewing a bunch of other options, it almost seems too good to be true, but it seems to have all the basics and for $239 a year, it's a bargain.


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## gdoucet

I'm subscribing to this forum looking for the same information as the original post. I have recently taken on a position doing catering for a local restaurant. I am wondering how much software I'll really need to cost menus and events. Obviously, spending less would be nice but I do not want to buy a product that doesn't do what I need it to. Any discoveries that anyone comes across, please feel free to share.


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## gourmetk

Since I last posted a few days ago, I decided to take Better Cater up on their offer for the free 30-day trial. I researched about 8 other programs before deciding to give it a shot. I've been working with it since yesterday afternoon and so far it's doing a nice a job. I still haven't begun doing all the recipe costing because I'm still inputing the ingredients, but so far it has been very easy to use and the two times I've needed help, they have replied to my messages within minutes. The program is intuitive and as long as you have some basic knowledge about recipe costing, you shouldn't have any problems.

They have an annual program that costs $240, which is about $20/month. Assuming the program does everything you need it to do, you really can't go wrong with that. If you're not happy with it, just cancel it before the trial run is up and they won't charge anything. Although I'd prefer a program I can download directly onto my desktop, I simply can't afford to make an investment of thousands of dollars for something like that at this time. So for now, the cloud will just have to do.


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## daviimandel

We went with Total Party Planner. So far so good. They are very responsive and helpful and the program does a LOT. It's not perfect, but they do respond to suggestions and fix things that are brought to their attention.

It's better than Caterease was, which I used for 5 or 6 years.


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## browe

I've used Total Party Planner for 4 years now. They have great support. I looked at several others before going with them.


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## marisacole

jabil3681059 said:


> So this thread is from'10 and I'm thinking the players have all moved on.
> We tried cater edge, mac based we are, and for various reasons we dropped it.
> Would like to know thoughts on current catering software.


Why did you drop cateredge?im about to buy it but am having reservations because its newer company and $$$$. TPP was my backup. Any thoughts?


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## results79

I have personally found Restaurant Catering Systems, found at www.RestaurantCateringSoftware.com to be the best.

Not only is their software first rate, but the owner used to do a million a year in catering from his restaurant.

They also provide a lot of marketing tools to help you build catering sales.

I love them.

Michael


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## chef iq

Does Restaurant Catering Software have onlune support? Is this an actual software download w/out a monthly or yearly fee?


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## dzshadowbrook

Hi -

I have been looking at Caterease, Tripleseat, Reserve Software, and more recently Delphi.fdc - I own a private events venue, and need something that will store contracts, easily create BEOs, and generate forecasting/reporting with marketing tools a plus.

Any input? Although it's less for outside catering, it is all for onsite catering and something my event sales staff would truly benefit from (along with my server, where everything is curreently stored in an outdated form of Microsoft Access!)

Please let me know!


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## kjax

Hi!

I was wondering if there was any update for those who recently tried Better Cater?  We, too, are wanting to avoid a large upfront cost or high ongoing maintenance in our early stages, and Better Cater sounds like a good option.  We're plannint to try the free trial, but looking for other user feedback as well.  Also wondering about interface (or, at least, ease of upload) with quickbooks?

Thanks!


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## culinaryduo

I would like to know the same....if anyone has reviews of Better Cater let us all know. The price for Better Cater is awesome and having viewed the demo it sure looks like it covers the basics.


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## rizenine

I love to cook and make computer software, so if there is a need for a better online software I would be happy to develop something. I would need a few catering companies willing to give feedback and use the software. Give tips and suggestions to help me direct my development. Of course those catering companies would use the software free of charge. It would probably take me a month or two to get something basic. If anyone is interested please contact me.


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## missklewis

Total Party Planner  is by far the most user friendly and cost effective software on the market.  I have used their software at several jobs throughout my career in the hospitality and catering industry.  It does everything you need it to do without having to invest large amounts of money or spend hours of training to use complicated programs like Caterease.  They are way too complicated for small to mid size catering companies.

Kristen


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## julesmse

Hi missklewis, I would love to help!


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## rizenine

rizenine said:


> I love to cook and make computer software, so if there is a need for a better online software I would be happy to develop something. I would need a few catering companies willing to give feedback and use the software. Give tips and suggestions to help me direct my development. Of course those catering companies would use the software free of charge. It would probably take me a month or two to get something basic. If anyone is interested please contact me.


I did follow through on this. It's basic, and still in beta. I'm always open to suggestions, and thanks to everyone for the help.


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## fierygourmet

Hi Everyone:

I recently joined this community as I am an avid cook and major foodie.  I have always been curious about catering but don't have the resources to start even a small scale business.  What I do have is 12 years of programming, database and process automation and streamlining experience.  From what I have been reading, catering software is somewhat overpriced and bloated with features that aren't necessarily useful.  I would love to work with anyone who would like to develop a catering software that meets the needs of any catering business.  I have been working on an online recipe database that is web based but want to take it a step further and add the catering aspect of it.  I have no real knowledge of the ins and outs of catering other than feeding grumbling stomachs.  A major part of catering is accuracy of invoicing and billing and customer retention and where I lack is the rules of invoicing, ie. sales taxes as they are all different based on state and/or country. 

Anyone who wants to join me in this venture to create a better and user friendly web based system, please let me know!!!  I would love input.  In return, you would access to everything I develop.  I am NOT money hungry and NOT trying to rule the world.  I actually prefer the smaller businesses and would like to gear this around business that are trying to save money while building their business.

Thanks for reading and I hope to hear from anyone willing to help and support smaller businesses!!!


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## chefcornercook

Dear FieryGourmet:  my catering company is looking to move into the next phase of catering.....automation of what we have been doing manually for 3 years.  When I say manually, I mean we have been using excel, word, quickbooks, etc.  We do offsite catering but are also planning on opening a restaurant this summer.  What geographic area of the globe do you operate your business?


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## fierygourmet

Hi ChefCornerCook:

I am located in San Diego, CA, United states.  You?  I would love to get input from you and use you as a pilot tester for the application, with your permission and assistance.


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## rbabich

We have been using mobilelogix.   We run 11 trucks and it works well for us.  Good mobile capabilities and cheap.


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## calichef100

We have been using Better Cater's catering software (www.bettercater.com) for the past few years and have found it to do everything we want. We've even asked the Better Cater team to add financial reports and they've integrated it into their system. Our catering company needs to know our food costs, and quickly send out invoices and proposals to our small and corporate clients. And with BC, we've been able to find a solution.

We've found that Better Cater has done the job. What I appreciated about them was the free trial that allowed us to "test drive" the software. Better Cater was, and continues to be, a great fit four our small business of 6. It's quick to learn, affordable and does the job.


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## rizenine

Take a look at CaterCue. It's a software I've been working on. Any feedback is welcome.


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## calichef100

I agree.  We started using Better Cater when another caterer recommended it several years ago and I haven't looked back!  

Definitely easy to use and covers everything I need for our catering business. 

I recommend it.


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## funkey joe

Has anyone checked out Restaurant Catering Software, Michael Attias, It seams to have a good CRM, Marketing program, Delevery module and good communication, $349.00 a month. Would be great to get any feedback Thanks, Joe


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## livsfinefare

Hello all.  I am picking up on this old forum.  Are there any new recommendations anyone can offer for catering software for recipe tracking/costing?

Thanks!


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## jamienelson11

I'm new to catering and have a couple of venues booked.

I would like to automate the booking process online. The software

suggested in this thread just seems way too expensive for a beginner

like me. Also, I would like to automate things gradually as the need arises.

I want to start with booking. I found several catering online forms like:

https://www.elbowspace.com/FRHformexample167

The web form totals all selections on the same page
and integrates with PayPal and other payment companies. The web 
form is also way cheaper!

The main issue I have with using the web form is
professionalism & appearance. Will my customers perceive
my site as less professional?

Any input is greatly appreciated.


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## rizenine

At one time I created a catering software. I'm still interested in it. I just need the support of catering professionals to help guide my development. At the time it seemed like there was a need for a more affordable software. I work in software currently, but in the past, I worked at my family restaurant. Hence the interest in food and software.  I do think the visuals say a great deal about your company at the start, but become less important if you provide good food and the system works well. I know around my area we know the catering places that just make good food. Nothing can change that.


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## desdinova

missklewis said:


> Total Party Planner is by far the most user friendly and cost effective software on the market. I have used their software at several jobs throughout my career in the hospitality and catering industry. It does everything you need it to do without having to invest large amounts of money or spend hours of training to use complicated programs like Caterease. They are way too complicated for small to mid size catering companies.
> 
> Kristen


I must agree... Total Party Planner seems to fit the bill for us. It's not perfect, but it's darn close.


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## rizenine

What are they key MUST HAVE features you look for in a software?


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## desdinova

rizenine said:


> What are they key MUST HAVE features you look for in a software?


This was my short list. If these things are there, most everything else will be there as well.


The ability to load your ingredients and recipes. Critical for proper per/plate pricing and making adjustments.

Contact management and the ability to create and send proposals and invoices directly from the system.

Event and Personnel management including being able to add people and roles to the event, their hours, salary etc.. And notify them of their involvement

A "cloud" based system so it can be accessed from anywhere on any device at any time.


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## rizenine

What software have/do you use?


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## quelper

And an option to SELF HOST
Or else we won't use it.

Vtiger mods and Drupal mods may be the best option


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