Channel flag combinations
Every item is tagged for one or both ordering channels. The combination of RelishChannel and MarketplaceChannel determines where the item appears.
Goal |
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Marketplace only | not present |
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Meal Program only |
| not present |
Both Marketplace and Meal Program |
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MarketplaceChannel=T cannot stand alone for Meal Program purposes. An item that should appear on Meal Program must have RelishChannel=T, with or without MarketplaceChannel=T.
Menu setup in Olo
Meal Program items can be configured in Olo either way:
Tag existing items that are shared between Marketplace and Meal Program, using the channel flag combinations below.
Create a dedicated Meal Program category in Olo to house the items. A dedicated category is useful when your Meal Program items differ from your standard catering menu, or when they need their own lead time configuration.
If Meal Program tagging isn’t complete when the menu is imported, the import creates a blank Meal Program menu for the location — there will be no available Meal Program menu until the tagging is finished and re-synced
Lead time considerations
Meal Program orders fire to Olo when the meal is finalized, typically about 90 minutes before the customer’s requested event time. The exact timing depends on:
The brand’s configured Relish Finalized timing
The customer’s distance from the location
Whether the order is being picked up by dispatch
Set the lead time on Meal Program categories to 60 minutes in Olo so finalized orders can transmit without failing. If an item needs more than 90 minutes of prep time, use an ezCater-specific menu item in Olo with an extended LeadTime so the order doesn’t fail to transmit. See Lead Times for the LeadTime tag’s accepted values.
Required tags
Item level
Tag | Requirement | Notes |
| Required when set to | Marks the item as eligible for Meal Program. |
| Required when set to | Adds the item to Marketplace. Required only when the item is shared between channels; cannot stand alone for Meal Program. |
| Required | Must always be |
| Required | One value only. See the Tag Reference for accepted values. |
| Required | One value only. See the Tag Reference for accepted values. |
| Required when applicable | Required when the item is genuinely gluten-free, vegan, etc. Omit otherwise. |
| Required when applicable | Required for items that should drive upsells (drinks, desserts, utensils, ice). |
Choice level
Tag | Requirement | Notes |
| Required when applicable | Apply when a specific choice changes the item’s dietary profile. |
| Required when applicable | Required for drink and dessert choices included in a package, so ezCater can track and surface upsell opportunities. |
| Required when set to | Apply to side choices that arrive in their own packaging rather than inside or on the main item. Used by ezCater to generate an additional label. |
Utensils
Items duplicated specifically for Meal Program do not require utensils tagging. Utensils are only required on Marketplace items. See Utensils for the Marketplace requirement.
Tagging logic
When to use INDIVIDUALLY_PACKAGED_RELISH_SIDE
Apply this tag to a side choice when the side is packaged separately from the main item — for example, a customer orders a bowl and adds mac and cheese as a side. Because the mac and cheese arrives in its own container, the tag tells ezCater to generate an additional label for that side.
Do not apply the tag to choices that are mixed into or layered on the main item.
When to use ChoiceTypeTags
Apply ChoiceTypeTags to drink and dessert choices that are included in a Meal Program package. This generates an additional label and feeds ezCater’s tracking and upsell logic. Accepted values include DRINKS, DESSERT, UTENSILS, and ICE.
Testing
ezCater can validate the menu build and provide menu requirement consults, but there is currently no dedicated testing environment for Meal Program — it runs independently of the standard POS testing environment used for Marketplace menus.