FAQ Restaurants

Everything our restaurant partners need to know  ·  2026–2027 School Year

  • Email us at customercare@dishes2u.com with 12–20 of your most popular lunch items, full descriptions, and pricing — just ask and we’ll send an Excel template to fill out your menu options.
  • Where possible, include a variety of options: gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, organic, nut-free, and items with and without cheese.
  • Entrées, combos, and à la carte / sides — with toddler (if possible), kid, and adult portions.
  • Drinks — NO sodas. Drinks must be in a carton or plastic bottle: bottled water, apple and orange juice, chocolate and white milk, Gatorade, flavored waters, etc.
  • Pictures — may we download them from your website? If not, please send them as .gif, .jpg, or .png files.
  • We’ll select lunch items based on the age of the students, along with items we think the staff will enjoy.

  • Let us know any dates or days of the week you’re unable to deliver, so we can build your menu cycles around your availability.

  • Dishes2U uploads new menu cycles and calendars four times a year (except for schools that begin in September):
  • August & September (or September through December)
  • October through December
  • January through March
  • April & May  (some schools run through June)

  • Please discount your pricing approximately 10%–20% — whatever we agree on is what we pay you!
  • Dishes2U donates a portion of each item ordered back to the school — this does NOT affect your pricing.
  • Dishes2U discounts lunch items 10% for all faculty — this does NOT affect your pricing.
  • Dishes2U is tax exempt.
  • No delivery fees are charged.
  • Dishes2U and the schools do NOT tip the delivery person.
  • Deliveries must be made by the restaurant directly — no third-party delivery services (e.g., DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub) may be used.

  • Orders lock at 11:00 AM one day prior to delivery.
  • We’ll email your order and labels between 11:00 AM–2:00 PM the day before delivery. Please purchase Avery labels 1″ x 2-5/8″ (30 per sheet) from Amazon, Staples, Office Max, etc.
  • Each item/meal must be packaged and labeled individually.
  • Vendors are given access to view their orders in advance.
  • Transport food in warmers and coolers.
  • Provide enough napkins, utensils, and necessary condiments for the day’s order.
  • Time & temp ONE hot and ONE cold item before leaving your restaurant, and give this to the lunchroom distributor on arrival.
  • On arrival, check in the order with the lunchroom distributor. If everything is accounted for you’re free to go; if any items are missing, please rectify immediately.
  • Please do not leave invoices at the school.

On-time delivery is extremely important. If a delivery is 20 minutes late or more, the vendor will not charge us, and Dishes2U will issue a mass credit to everyone who ordered that day. Late deliveries are a major disruption — students sometimes have only 15–20 minutes to eat.

  • Contact Shannon Hayes in our Accounts Payable department to set up payment at shannon@dishes2u.com.
  • Dishes2U pays via credit card or check — your choice. Credit card payments are made at close of business on the day of delivery; checks are issued within 15 days.
  • Once delivery is complete, send us your invoice (or the order summary we sent the day prior) and wait for our confirmation that you may charge the Dishes2U credit card.

  • Please send us your logo so we can add you to the partner page at dishes2u.com. We’ll announce our partnership — feel free to connect us with your marketing department, write the content yourself, or let our marketing team write it on your behalf.

  • Check out our website at dishes2u.com to learn about our lunch program, and watch our ‘How To Video’ on preparing your order under the ‘Show & Tell’ tab.

It’s easy — just provide 60 days’ notice. Vendors cannot be removed once menus have gone live. But before giving notice, please call us first — there may be something we can do on our end to ease your concerns. We’re hopeful this will be a WIN-WIN for the schools, restaurant partners, parents, students, staff, and Dishes2U!

Bringing the very best 2U.