ezCater offers a set of connected tools to help restaurant partners grow and manage their catering business. Together, these solutions help you get more catering orders, run smoother operations, and reach new customers across multiple channels
This article gives a high-level overview of each ezCater solution for restaurants:
ezCater Marketplace
Partner Portal
Dispatch
Online Ordering
Meal Program
This article gives a breakdown of what each solution is, how it works, and how it fits into your catering operations. Separate articles go deeper into setup and best practices for each product.
Marketplace
What it is
The ezCater Marketplace is our online marketplace where business customers search for catering, compare menus, and place large group orders from restaurants like yours. It acts as a marketing and sales channel focused on high‑value catering buyers, not everyday takeout.
What problems it solves
Finding corporate catering customers: Reaches companies ordering food for meetings, trainings, events, and employee programs
Driving incremental sales: Brings in new catering orders in addition to your own website, phone, or walk‑in business
Reducing sales & marketing workload: ezCater handles search, discovery, and much of the customer support, so your team can focus on great food and execution
How it works
You join the Marketplace
Your brand and locations are added to ezCater
You provide menus, pricing, and operational/delivery settings
Customers discover you
Companies search by location, headcount, cuisine, dietary needs, and budget
Your listing appears with menu, photos, and catering‑specific reviews
Orders are submitted through ezCater
Customers build catering orders (often for larger groups and future dates)
They check out through ezCater; orders route into your Partner Portal for review
You accept and fulfill
You review each order confirm that you are able to fulfill
Once accepted, you prepare and deliver (or use Dispatch) just like your other catering orders
You pay only on accepted orders
You’re charged fees only on orders you handle, rather than paying for impressions or clicks upfront
Key features
Catering‑focused restaurant profiles (menus, order minimums, lead times, dietary tags)
Catering‑specific customer reviews and ratings to build trust
Centralized order flow into the Partner Portal across all your locations
Access to ezCater’s support team for order and customer issues
Where to go next
Jump to Signup & Requirements to learn about eligibility and enrollment and go to our website for a first-hand look.
Partner Portal
What it is
The Partner Portal is your catering operations hub. It’s where you view and manage all ezCater‑related activity—orders, customers, drivers, and performance data—in one place.
What problems it solves
Scattered order management: Pulls Marketplace and Online Ordering orders into a single workflow
Team alignment: Provide portal access to an unlimited amount of users so all of your team members are aligned and prepared operationally
Growing complexity: Scales with you as you add locations, drivers, and order volume
How it works
Orders appear in the Partner Portal
Marketplace and Online Ordering orders automatically show up in your dashboard
Review and act
Check order details: date/time, headcount, menu items, special instructions, and delivery information
Accept orders as they come in so customers can plan accordingly
Coordinate production and delivery
Use order lists and production views to plan kitchen prep
Assign deliveries to in‑house drivers or request Dispatch
Track performance
Monitor order volume, revenue, and other KPIs across locations
Export data or connect to integrations for deeper analysis and reporting
How to Access
Access your portal on any web-browser, on any device, by going to partnerportal.ezcater.com
Download our app from the iOS App Store or Google Play Store
Key features
View upcoming, completed, and rejected/canceled orders
Manage and track deliveries to drive customer satisfaction
Track your performance and create reports for analysis and reconciliation
Enroll in our marketing programs to drive visibility and orders
Adjust settings and parameters to ensure reliability
Where to go next
Go to Web & App Walkthrough for a full tour and and a walkthrough of the order lifecycle.
Dispatch
What it is
Dispatch is ezCater’s catering delivery solution. It gives you flexible options to use our on‑demand professional drivers, so you can reliably cover more orders and larger service areas.
What problems it solves
Not enough drivers for catering: Lets you say “yes” to more orders without hiring a large dedicated driver team
Inconsistent third‑party delivery options: Provides catering‑ready drivers (vehicle size, service expectations) and visibility into delivery status
Operational risk on busy days: Helps you handle spikes (holidays, big events, large corporate orders) and operational speed-bumps (car troubles, driver call-outs) without having to reject or cancel orders
Delivery limitations: Increase your overall delivery capability by using drivers that can deliver up to 20 miles away (in most metro areas)
How it works
Choose your usage
You decide when you will deliver and when you'd like to have Dispatch handle delivery
Request drivers when needed, or have us handle all deliveries
Can't deliver an order? Lean on us and request Dispatch
Don't have any delivery staff? Use Dispatch for all of your orders
Prepare, package and handoff the order on time
You'll know the name of the delivery partner and what time they'll be on-site for pickup
Handoff the order in full at the time indicated, and we'll handle the rest
Delivery is tracked and completed
You'll have access to live GPS tracking of drivers on every single order
You can review delivery outcomes and driver performance over time
Key features
Reliable and professional catering delivery available when you need it, for both Marketplace and Online Ordering orders
Live delivery tracking and visibility into driver performance
Order routing based on delivery partner performance to ensure reliable delivery
Where to go next
Jump to Dispatch for:
Breakdown of all Dispatch options
Pricing information for Dispatch delivery
Order lifecycle and operational best practices
Online Ordering
What it is
Online Ordering adds a catering‑specific online ordering experience to your own website, powered by ezCater’s technology. Customers stay on your site, but use a proven catering ordering flow designed for large, scheduled orders.
What problems it solves
No good way to order catering from your site: Gives customers a clear, self‑service way to place catering orders online
General “takeout” ordering tools that don’t fit catering: Handles larger headcounts, longer lead times, and catering‑specific rules better than typical restaurant e‑commerce
Missed demand from web traffic: Converts visitors on your own domain into catering customers
How it works
Links are created for your brand and locations
Once you’re on the Marketplace, ezCater generates Online Ordering links for your brand page and each participating location
You add links to your website
Place “Order Catering” or similar buttons on your site that point to your Online Ordering pages
Customers click from your domain into the catering ordering flow
Customers build and submit orders
They select a location, date/time, and headcount
They build a catering order using your catering menu, minimums, and fees
They check out through ezCater’s secure platform
Orders flow into your Portal
Orders appear in your Partner Portal just like Marketplace orders
You accept, prepare, and deliver (or use Dispatch) using the same processes
Pay a lower commission
Because these orders are generated through your own site, you pay a lower commission without losing access to Dispatch drivers and our Customer Service
Key features
Purpose‑built catering ordering UX (date/time picker, headcount, catering‑specific rules)
Shared order management via the Partner Portal, including access to Dispatch delivery
Access to customer information, including marketing opt-in status so you can promote directly
Ability to create Online Ordering Promotions to drive business to your site
Where to go next
See Online Ordering: Catering Through Your Website to learn more about the benefits, setup process and cost structure.
Meal Program
What it is
Companies use Meal Program to schedule regular meal days, set subsidies or budgets, and let employees order their own individually packaged meals from a rotating list of local restaurants, including participating ezCater partners.
What problems it solves
For companies:
Hybrid attendance & engagement: Drives people into the office on meal days and supports recurring meetings and events
Budget control: Keeps food spend predictable through set subsidies and a central dashboard
Employee choice: Employees pick their own meals that fit their tastes and dietary needs
For restaurants:
Recurring, predictable orders: Provides a steady stream of orders tied to scheduled meal programs
High‑volume drops: Combines many individual employee orders into one coordinated delivery window
Exposure to new corporate customers: Introduces your brand to employees who may order catering again for their own teams or events
How it works
Company configures a program
They choose meal days, times, eligible locations, and spending rules
They select which local restaurants (like yours) will appear on specific days
Employees order their own meals
Employees use the app or website to choose from that day’s restaurant options
They build their own orders within the company’s rules and subsidy
Orders are grouped by restaurant and time
Meal Program combines many individual meals into one large batch order for your location, aligned to a specific delivery window
Meals must be individually packaged and labeled with the employee’s name and (often) group or department
You prepare and deliver
You produce the batch, organize it by label, and deliver (or use Dispatch) to the workplace
Employees receive notifications when meals arrive
Company tracks usage and spend
Admins monitor participation, meal counts, and costs in their dashboard, then adjust schedules, subsidies, or restaurant rotations as needed
Key features
Individually packaged and labeled meals for each employee
Flexible scheduling (e.g., weekly lunches, recurring town halls, training sessions)
Centralized reporting and spend management for companies
Integration with ezCater’s broader corporate solutions for food spend and compliance
Operational considerations
Packaging & labeling: You’ll need a reliable process to label each meal accurately and quickly
Timing: Batch production and delivery must align with the program’s strict delivery windows
Menu fit: Menus should travel well, portion appropriately for individual meals, and support common dietary needs
Where to go next
Jump to Meal Programs for:
Detailed packaging and labeling standards
How Meal Program orders are scheduled and appear in your systems
Best practices to handle volume and maintain quality for recurring programs
How these solutions work together
While each solution can add value on its own, they’re designed to work best together:
ezCater Marketplace and ezOrdering help you find and capture more catering orders—through ezCater and your own website
Partner Portal keeps all of those orders organized so your team can execute consistently
Dispatch makes it easier to deliver reliably without turning away demand
Meal Program connects you with recurring, program‑based demand from corporate customers
Use the detailed product articles linked from this page to configure each piece for your business and build a catering program that grows revenue while staying operationally smooth.