Requirements checklist
What to ask for when choosing software for cloud kitchens.
A checklist built from how cloud kitchens work, to print or save as a PDF and bring to any supplier meeting.
What the software should cover
Tick each one that matters to your business.
- Channel order intake
- Brand menus and item pauses
- Station tickets and prep lists
- Packing and rider handover
- Shared walk-in stock by brand
- Brand profit and app payouts
Roles that need their own access
Who logs in, and what each person may see or change.
- For owners
- For kitchen managers
- For line cooks
- For packers and runners
- For store keepers
Reports to ask for
Ask to see each one with your own sample data.
- Orders by brand, channel and hour
- Ingredient use by brand against purchases
- Plate cost and margin after commission by dish
- Rider waits at the hatch by app
- Refunds and complaints by dish and cook
- Payout statements matched to orders and deductions
- Batch discards for marinades and gravies
Systems it may need to connect to
Note which ones you already run.
- Delivery app order feeds
- Kitchen printer and screens
- SMS and messaging
- Payment gateway
- Accounting export
Questions for any vendor
Put these to every supplier you are comparing.
- Can orders from the delivery apps flow in without re-keying?
- How are ingredients split when brands share a recipe?
- Can one sold-out item be switched off everywhere?
- Does it handle kitchens that rent stations to partner brands?
- How does payout matching work?
- Can we measure how long riders wait?
- What if the internet is down during a lunch rush?
- Can I try it with one brand first?
- What goes into a quotation?
Where the work usually breaks today
Circle the ones you recognise. They set the order of the project.
- Each app is a separate tablet
- One walk-in feeds many brands
- Brand margin is hidden by commission
- Rider waits cause cold boxes
- Payout statements cannot be matched
Prefer to talk it through? See the cloud kitchens page.