Lunchbox, the online ordering engine and web-based marketing provider, has introduced Catering 2.0, a management suite for restaurants aimed to streamline the guest catering experience.
Catering 2.0 integrates catering management into the same system as restaurants’ everyday orders, allowing businesses to better manage guest relationships and customize their operations.
“Restaurants often use one partner for catering and another for their online ordering solution, this results in a siloed solution where the two systems are unable to communicate seamlessly and share data,” says Lunchbox CTO George Istfan. “Lunchbox is eliminating that silo by building an end-to-end platform that encompasses all of an operator’s menus and creates a frictionless guest ordering experience for each channel.”
With catered check averages generating high profits for restaurants—coming in at about $238 dollars per catering order according to a report by ezCater —the platform’s features prioritize upsell and checkout success. Back-end features include location map pins that display the brand logo, an easy selection for order type, and a display for the order-ready time.
Lunchbox Catering 2.0, gives restaurants access to the following:
- Order-level upsells: suggestions for additional menu items before a guest checks out
- Single-site ordering: allow data, loyalty, and operations to work cross-functionally, keeping all ordering options on a restaurant’s main website
- Enhanced modifiers: limit guest error with refined menu item modifiers
- Reporting: restaurants can track catering orders by location, time of day, outstanding orders, and more
The rollout spurs from the recent spike in demand for catering as a number of employees head back to the office—Lunchbox cites a report by resume builder that states about 73 percent of remote companies are expected to return to in-person work this year.
Entering the catering sector is the latest avenue for the tech provider. Known for its anti-third-party-delivery views, the platform acquired Spread in 2021, an online marketplace that connects mom-and-pop restaurants with diners and offers delivery services without the fees associated with third-party providers.
Last year, the company obtained NovaDine, a digital ordering platform that consolidates all guests’ digital experiences into a single operating system, and most recently, the tech platform launched Lunchbox Essential a commission-free online ordering platform designed for restaurants with one to three locations.
Lunchbox has worked with national and regional QSR brands such as Firehouse Subs, Clean Juice, Wings Over and Papa Ginos.
