School lunch ordering for caterers, restaurants and crèches
No more Friday phone calls.
Parents pick next week's lunches on their phone. Orders close on your deadline, and you get totals for every dish in every portion size - plus a printed label for every lunch box.
From €4.95 + VAT a month · no set-up fee · English & Irish
Your week with Lunch Order
From menu to lunch box, without the spreadsheet juggling.
-
Mon
Menu goes live
Week 2 of your rotating menu appears for every school, with photos and allergens.
-
Tue–Thu
Parents order
On their phone, for all their children at once. "Same as last week" takes one tap.
412/ 530 pupils -
Thu 16:00
Orders close
Your deadline, automatically. Kitchen totals are ready the moment it passes.
16:00
-
Fri
Print & prep
Totals by dish and portion size, packing lists per school, a label for every child.
Sadhbh Ní ChonaillM 3rd Class · Curry & rice
Monday: the right lunch, in the right size, reaches the right child.
Friday, 3pm, the old way
Scoil na Meacan - rang 2: 14 curry, 9 pasta??
Ms Walsh rang back - 3 off sick
S.N. Bóthar na Cáise: same as last week (I think)
Junior infants - smaller portions!!
Cian - NO milk ← tell kitchen
Thursday, 16:01, with Lunch Order
Kitchen totals
Wed 4 Nov| Dish | S | M | L | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken curry & rice | 31 | 22 | 18 | 71 |
| Tomato & basil pasta | 24 | 15 | 9 | 48 |
| Vegetable chilli | 6 | 8 | 11 | 25 |
| Fruit pot | 40 | 21 | 17 | 78 |
Try it - these are the parents' screens
However you run your menu.
Wednesday · Main, choose 1
✓ Saved - no Save button to forget
On the label
Tomás Ó Sé
S.N. Bóthar na Cáise · 5th Class
Fill in up to four menus. The weeks rotate through the ones that have dishes - add a fourth later and it simply joins in.
- 6 Sep
- 13 Sep
- 20 Sep
- 27 Sep
- 4 Oct
- 11 Oct
- 18 Oct
- 25 Oct
Portion sizes
A junior infant isn't a 6th class pupil.
It's the complaint parents make most. The portion follows the class automatically, parents can change it, and your totals and labels say S, M or L - less waste for the small ones, nobody hungry in 6th class.
3,200primary schools on the Hot School Meals scheme
1 in 5hot meals go uneaten - ordering ahead means cooking what children actually chose
2027/28the scheme brings in cold options and a three-week menu cycle
Sources: Department of Social Protection; RTÉ News, 21 September 2026.
School Meals Scheme
Ready when the Department asks.
Schools must check every supplier invoice before they pay it, and send the Department all invoices for a month of its choosing. Lunch Order makes the monthly invoice per school from the orders - built around the Department's own checklist.
- Each meal type on its own line - hot meal, lunch, breakfast
- Your rate per meal, per school if it differs
- Meals ordered and delivered for every day, signed for at the school
- The school's roll number, your VAT number and payment details
School Meals Scheme 2027/28
Built for the changes announced.
The Department has announced changes for the 2027/28 school year. Lunch Order already does each of them.
Hot or cold, every day
A hot and a cold menu side by side - parents choose per day.
A three-week menu cycle
Menus rotate over up to four weeks, so a three-week cycle just works.
Portion sizes by age
Small, regular or large from the class or year - from crèche to secondary.
Checked against the Nutrition Standards
Every menu week is checked against the weekly rules, with ordered and delivered meals recorded for every day.
No meals for children who aren't in
Days off, bank holidays and attendance days - and teachers can mark a child absent the same morning.
Menus for special classes
An adapted menu for one class only, plus allergen warnings and dietary notes for every child.
Based on the changes announced in September 2026 (RTÉ News, Irish Examiner). Details such as the standard menu are still to be published.
For caterers and restaurants
What could a school bring in?
The School Meals Scheme pays a set rate per pupil per day, every school week from September to June. Try it with the school near you.
Maximum rates of the Department of Social Protection, before your costs. A month is 20 school days; primary schools are funded for up to 36 weeks, secondary schools for 33.
- a week
- a month
- a school year
Lunch Order for this size: + VAT a month ()
For every kitchen, and every school.
School caterers
Several schools, rotating menus, portion sizes and labels - one place for all of it.
Restaurants, cafés and delis
Cook for the school down the road? Take their lunch orders the same way, with your own site and your own menu.
Primary schools
Hot School Meals: every child gets a lunch unless someone says no, and the invoices the scheme needs.
Secondary schools
1st Year to 6th Year and Transition Year, bigger portions, and pupils old enough to order with their parents.
Crèches and preschools
Rooms instead of classes, the days each child comes, and the manager orders for the room - ready for Bia Blasta.
Families
Two parents can order for the same child, each with their own log-in - for every kind of family.
Built with caterers who do this every day.
One account, all the children
Parents add each child once - or the school uploads the class list and families claim with a code.
14 allergens, every dish
A warning when a child is allergic, and ALLERGY in black on their label.
Your own site
yourname.hotlunch.ie with your logo and colours. Parents never see us.
As Gaeilge
The whole site in English and Irish, for Gaeltacht schools and everyone else.
Teachers and principals
See their class or school, mark trips and in-service days - packed lunch instead, if you offer it.
Nothing to install
Works on any phone. Two-step log-in for everyone who sees children's details.
A lunch for every child
Nobody goes without: the standard lunch goes to every child unless a parent, teacher or the kitchen says "no lunch" that day.
Same as last week, automatically
Orders repeat by themselves - with rotating menus, from the last week with the same menu.
Breakfast, snack and lunch
Breakfast club, a snack, a hot or packed lunch - each child, each day, in one place.
Every Irish bank holiday
No lunches on bank holidays, without anyone typing them in. School holidays stay the school's own.
Pricing
Pick the size that fits. Like a portion.
Every feature in every plan. Choose by schools or pupils, whichever is higher. 30 days free, no contract.
€4.95
+ VAT a month
up to 10 schools
or 500 pupils
€9.95
+ VAT a month
up to 25 schools
or 1,500 pupils
€19.95
+ VAT a month
up to 50 schools
or 3,000 pupils
€39.95
+ VAT a month
up to 100 schools
or 6,000 pupils
€79.95
+ VAT a month
up to 250 schools
or 15,000 pupils
Cooking for more? Talk to us.
Questions
What caterers ask us.
What is Lunch Order?
An online ordering system for school lunch caterers in Ireland. Parents order each child's lunch on their phone before your deadline. You get kitchen totals by dish and portion size, packing lists per school and a printed label for every lunch box.
How much does it cost?
From €4.95 + VAT a month for up to 10 schools or 500 pupils, up to €79.95 for 250 schools or 15,000 pupils. Every feature is in every plan, the first 30 days are free and there is no contract.
Does it work with the Hot School Meals scheme?
Yes. Parents or teachers choose each child's meal in advance, so you cook what children actually chose - with menus that rotate over up to four weeks, cold options and packed lunches for trips.
Can portion sizes differ by age?
Yes. The portion follows the class automatically - infants to 2nd class small, 3rd and 4th regular, 5th and 6th large - parents can change it, and totals and labels show S, M or L.
Is it available in Irish?
Yes. Each caterer's ordering site can be offered in English and Irish, and class names can be the school's own, for example "Rang a Dó".
Do parents need to download an app?
No. It works in any browser, and parents can add it to their home screen as an app in a few taps - no app store.
How do allergies work?
Every dish shows the 14 EU allergens. Parents add their child's allergies, see a warning on dishes that contain them, and the label says ALLERGY in black.
Can you produce invoices for the School Meals Scheme?
Yes. Each month Lunch Order makes an invoice per school from the orders: each meal type on its own line with your rate, the school's roll number, and the meals ordered and delivered for every day, signed for at the school. It is built around the Department of Social Protection's supplier payment checklist.
Can two parents order for the same child?
Yes. A parent invites the other parent or guardian by email; each has their own log-in and both can order, and you can always see who changed what.
Does it work for crèches and preschools?
Yes. Crèches use rooms instead of classes, each child can come on set days only, the manager orders for the room, and toddlers get small portions automatically.
Can a restaurant or café use it?
Yes - anyone who cooks for schools: caterers, restaurants, cafés and delis. Each gets their own ordering site with their own menu, logo and colours.
What about secondary schools?
Secondary schools on the scheme work like primary schools, with 1st Year to 6th Year and Transition Year and larger portions. Paid canteens with a cashless balance are on our list - talk to us if you would like to try it.
Can parents order breakfast, snacks and packed lunches too?
Yes. A school can have a breakfast club, snacks and a hot or packed lunch on the same day - parents order each one, the kitchen gets separate totals and labels, and each meal type is its own line on the invoice. A school only sees the meals you offer it.
Are you ready for the 2027/28 changes?
Yes, for everything announced so far: hot or cold every day, a three-week menu cycle, portion sizes by age, menus for special classes, the Nutrition Standards and no meals for absent children. When the Department publishes its standard menu, it can be set up as your menu.
Where is the data stored?
On servers in the European Union, run by 24 Hosting in Galway. There is no tracking or advertising, staff log in with two steps, and schools only ever share names and classes.
Made in Galway
Talk to a person, not a call centre.
24 Hosting has run websites and online services for Irish businesses for years. Ring us, or call in to Platform94.
Get your own ordering site.
Tell us about your schools. We'll set up yourname.hotlunch.ie with your menu and show you around - usually within a day.
No more Friday phone calls :)