Meal Plans and Kitchen Management for PGs
Kitchen management records each tenant’s food plan, gives the cook a meal-wise head count, and tracks provisions bought and issued. Food charges follow the plan onto the monthly bill.
What the kitchen runs on
Food as a line on the same bill
The plan a tenant is on becomes a charge on the monthly bill alongside the rent. The mess account is not a second register that someone raises, chases and reconciles separately. The tenant gets one total. Food charges cannot be forgotten for a month.
Does your PG kitchen need a food licence?
Food safety rules in India are set by FSSAI. Guides for hostel and PG operators say registration or a licence depends on what food activity happens on the premises and on the size of the business. A kitchen that cooks and serves meals is treated differently from one that buys cooked meals. Fees and thresholds change, so confirm on the FoSCoS portal or with the local food safety office. Your meal plans and purchases stay in the system. It does not file anything for you.
Planning one day’s cooking
Signs the mess is losing money
Mess losses rarely arrive as one big bill. They build through small gaps. Cooking for more than the head count. Plans changed on the phone and never billed. Gas cylinders replaced earlier than expected. A weekly look at the head count against provisions used makes these visible while they are still small.
Tests for a kitchen tool
- Is the food plan stored on the tenant or in a separate list?
- Does a plan change apply from its date?
- Can the cook see only what the kitchen needs?
- Are purchases and issues recorded separately?
- Does it claim to cost recipes? Ours does not.
Reading the kitchen week by week
A cook does not need a report, but the owner does. Weekly, place the meals counted beside the provisions drawn. Look for a week where rice fell faster than the head count rose. Ask why. It may be a guest, a festival or waste. Without the numbers beside each other, the question never arises. With them, it takes a minute to see which week is out of line.
What the module leaves to you
The menu, the cook and the vendors remain yours. Recipe costing is absent, and no per-plate rate is worked out from ingredients. It holds the head count, the plans, and what went into the kitchen against what you paid.
Agree the evidence before signing off this part.
Use a representative scenario to decide what this part of the system must show and where review is still needed.
Planning one day’s cooking
Which observation would change the proposed scope?
For “Planning one day’s cooking”, observe someone completing the task with a representative example. Record where they stop, ask another person or re-enter information, then choose the smallest change whose result the team can verify.
Background reading: GOV.UK: researching user needs
Check stock
What happens to movements entered while a count is being checked?
For “Check stock”, choose a count date and trace the movements around it. Agree who investigates a difference before an adjustment changes the available balance.
Background reading: ERPNext: stock reconciliation
Frequently asked questions
Can tenants tell us when they are skipping meals?
Yes, where you switch it on, and the count adjusts. A PG can start without it and add it once the plans are settled.
Can we change a tenant’s plan mid-month?
Yes. The change applies from its date, and the bill reflects both parts of the month.
Does it plan the weekly menu?
It records the menu so that tenants and the cook read the same thing. Deciding what goes on it stays with whoever decides it today.
Do we need an FSSAI licence for a PG mess?
It depends on your food activity and turnover tier. Check the current rules on FoSCoS or with your local food safety office. The module does not apply for it.
Can the cook see which tenants have allergies?
Yes. Preferences and allergies sit on the tenant’s record, and the cook’s login can show that list.
What about guests who eat but do not stay?
Mention it during scoping. Some PGs charge a visitor’s meal as an extra line on the host’s bill. We will confirm how that is set up for you.
Tell us what you need.
Share your requirements and one of our engineers will come back to you within one business day.
What happens after you share your requirements
- A senior engineer reads your answers. Nobody phones first.
- Within one business day you get a written note: what we understood, what we would start with, and the questions we still have.
- If it fits, a proposal follows with the order of work, what we need from you and what you receive at each step.
- No call is booked and nothing is paid until you have read the note. Your details stay with us.
Start with your requirements
Seven short steps that tell us what you need. A senior engineer reads them before anyone gets in touch.
Share your requirements