Holiday pre-orders
Holiday pre-orders for restaurants and bakeries
Take holiday pre-orders on your own page for any holiday in your year: customers pick their dishes, choose a pickup or delivery slot, and pay up front, so your kitchen knows what to make and when. 0% commission on every order. Pre-orders with a date and time start on Lite, US$17 a month.
Set it up once and run it for every holiday. Lite is US$17 a month with a 14-day free trial.
A card starts the trial; nothing is charged until the 14 days end. Pre-orders with a date and time are on Lite and above. Want a paper form first? The holiday pre-order form below is free.
Why take them online
Every holiday rush, in one clean list
Every holiday brings the same problem: more orders than any normal day, each with a name, a date, a slot and a balance. One pre-order page handles all of them so nothing is double-booked or missed.
Order now for the day
Customers pick dishes, then a date and a time slot inside your hours, even while you're closed. Each order waits in your Prebookings list until it's time to cook.
0% commission, your money
Every holiday order is yours. Menuthere takes no cut. Card fees, where you take payment, go to your own payment gateway, not to us.
Set up once, reuse all year
The same Prebooking setup carries from Thanksgiving to Christmas to Easter to Diwali and Eid. Change the menu and the slots; the system stays the same.
Pick your holiday
A page for each holiday rush
Start on the page for the holiday you're selling now. Each one covers the same feature with the right dishes and timing.
| Holiday | What you pre-sell | Where to go |
|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving (US) | Whole birds, sides by the quart, pies for pickup | Thanksgiving online ordering |
| Christmas | Collection and delivery boxes, cakes, party platters | Christmas pre-orders |
| New Year's Eve | Set menus, party platters, a table with dishes ahead | New Year's Eve pre-orders |
| The festive season | A fixed festive menu groups book for weeks | Festive menu ordering |
| Easter, Diwali, Eid and more | Whatever you pre-sell for the day | Free holiday pre-order form |
How it works
Open holiday pre-orders in an afternoon
On Lite, with your menu already uploaded.
- 1
Build your holiday menu
Add your holiday items with sizes and photos. Mark the ones that need notice, such as a whole turkey, a celebration cake or a box of sweets, so a customer can't order them for tomorrow.
- 2
Turn on Prebooking and set your rules
In Settings › Ordering › Prebooking settings, choose fixed or rolling slots for the day, how far ahead customers can order, and the notice you need per dish.
- 3
Decide how you take payment
Take card payment up front for the pre-ordered food (Lite and above, through your own gateway), send a payment link, or take cash on pickup. Paid up front means fewer no-shows.
- 4
Share your link and QR code
Open Share to copy your link, post it on Instagram and your Google listing, and print a QR code for the counter and your packaging. One link runs every holiday.
- 5
Work the list on the day
The Prebookings tab shows what to prepare and when, with the next hour at the top. Orders go out in slot order, and kitchen tickets show the time each order is for.
An illustration
Where the money goes on 50 orders
50 holiday orders at US$45 each, paid by card up front. An example, not a quote; card fees are set by your gateway, not by Menuthere.
| Line | On Menuthere Lite | On a 30% marketplace |
|---|---|---|
| 50 orders at US$45 | US$2,250 | US$2,250 |
| Platform commission | US$0 (0%) | −US$675 (30%) |
| Your plan | −US$17 (one month of Lite) | US$0 |
| Card fees | Set by your own gateway | Usually bundled into the cut |
| You keep (before card fees) | US$2,233 | US$1,575 |
Commission is the difference. A marketplace cut grows with every order; Lite is a flat US$17 a month however many holiday orders you take.
Good to know
What it does and doesn't do
Pre-orders are on Lite, not Free. On the Free plan customers order for as soon as possible. Pre-orders with a date and time start on Lite (US$17 a month), which has a 14-day free trial: a card starts it and nothing is charged until the 14 days end. See pricing and the restaurant pre-order system.
No separate deposit or no-show fee yet. To protect a holiday order, take card payment up front for the food itself (Lite and above, through your own gateway), or send a payment link. That is the order paid, not a held deposit.
Want a paper form instead? The free holiday pre-order form makes a printable PDF, with presets for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Diwali, Easter and Eid, and no sign-up. Good at the counter alongside the online page.
Questions owners ask
Answered, plainly.
Open your holiday pre-orders today
Start your 14-day free Lite trial, turn on Prebooking, and take holiday orders on your own page for every holiday in your year. 0% commission.
