Checklist for Setting up Seasonal Meals using Rotating Meal Menus

This article will provide you with a checklist for setting up Seasonal Meals, including Christmas Dinners and other one-off special meal offerings, for schools using Rotating Meal Menus.

Permissions

• Meals: Administer All Students - Set up the Seasonal meal as a meal provision (you must also have the permission below to set up prices)
• Finance: Administer - Set a price for the meal provision and manage payments for meals or trips

If you don't have permission, you'll need to ask your admin team to give you permission using these instructions.

Check that you have the Meal Menus feature

Rotating Meal Menus are included in our newest Perform package. All other Arbor packages won’t have this feature by default. Want to upgrade or find out what package you’re on? Just get in contact with the Partnership Team by emailing customersales@arbor-education.com. 

Using Rotating Meals

Important Notes for this Setup:

You can't create meal menus for just one day. You always need to at least include the day after or before the seasonal meal, too.

The best way to do this would be to create a replacement menu for the week of the seasonal menu, not just the day of the seasonal meal. So, when you create the menu, it will be the same as the menu during a standard week, but with one day changed.

If you would like us to improve this feature, please share your feedback.

Checklist 

1. Add provisions

First, ensure that you have added the Provisions and Prices for your Seasonal Meal Menu by following the steps in this article - Setting Up Meals - Step 2 - Adding Provisions

For example, if you offer a meat and a vegetarian option on your seasonal menu and need these to both have unique prices, you need to ensure you set up a provision for each of those options.

2. Adjust the old Menu's Availability

Next, so that you can replace your current menu with a seasonal one, you need to end the old menu.

1. Go to School > Meals > Setup > Meal Menus 
2. Select Edit availability 
3. Change the Menu Available to date
4. Click Save Changes

Note: If your Seasonal Menu is for the week, set the end date of your previous menu for the Sunday before the Seasonal Menu starts.

3. Add the new Meal Menu

After ending the old menu, proceed to adding the new one.

1. On the page of the Meal Menus, click Add Meal Menu in the top right corner
2. Set the rotation to 1 week 

3. Click Save Changes

    

4. Complete the new Meal Menu

Now that you have added the new menu, you need to start adding the seasonal meal options to the menu and any of the standard options you might offer for that same week.

1. Click View Meal Menu to create the Seasonal Menu for the week
2. Add the Meal Provisions and Labels in (use the standard provisions for the days without the seasonal meal option)

5. Set the Seasonal Meal Menu availability

Next, define when the menu will be in use by adding availability.

1. On the page of the Meal Menus, click Edit Availability on the Seasonal Meal Menu
2. Set the Availability from date to the first day you want the seasonal menu available from

Note: It is not possible to set the availability for just one day. 

6. Created for after the Seasonal Meal Menu 

Lastly, add a menu to start after your seasonal menu ends to go back to your standard menu.

1. Create a new Meal Menu (your standard menu) to start after the Seasonal Meal Menu has ended
2. You can follow the steps in this article to set this up: Rotating Meal Menus - Setting up a Menu