Catering software · built inside a working catering company

Run your whole catering business from one place.

Cater-OS is catering software that puts inquiries, quotes, client menus, kitchen prep, staff schedules and labor cost in one system. It's built by a caterer who got tired of retyping every event five times. Founding spots open soon: join the list to get first access and founding prices.

Join the founding list See how it works

Coming soon Free to join. No payment, no commitment.

Sat, Jun 12, 2027 · Lakeside weddingBooked

Guests: 140 adults, 12 children
Menu: Approved by client
Prep sheet: Ready for the kitchen
Crew: 1 lead chef, 6 servers, 2 bartenders
Deposit: 30% paid

Labor budget this month72% used

Illustration with made-up event details.

Most caterers run on five tools and a group text.

Sales software is built for the front office. Kitchen software is built for restaurants. Catering lives in the gap, and the owner fills it by hand.

The event gets retyped

The quote is in one app, the menu in a doc, the prep list on paper. Every copy is a chance for a headcount or allergy to slip.

Labor cost shows up late

Schedules live in another app, so you find out you overspent on labor after payroll has already run.

Food cost is a guess

Recipes, portions and prices sit in spreadsheets nobody updates, so menu pricing drifts from what the plate really costs.

One event, entered once, from inquiry to payroll.

Each step feeds the next, so the kitchen, the office and the crew all work from the same numbers.

Inquiry to projectA lead becomes a project. One client can book several events.
Quote and agreementPackages and pricing turn into a quote, invoice and service agreement.
Client picks the menuTheir choices build the menu details form for your chef to approve.
Kitchen prep and costPrep sheets, recipes and food cost per plate, straight from the menu.
Crew, hours and payrollSchedule against a labor budget, clock in, split gratuity, export payroll.

Catering management software, all in one place

Your whole operation, connected.

Every part of Cater-OS works from the same event. Change a headcount and the menu, prep sheet, inventory, order list and crew schedule all know about it. No exporting, no retyping, no second login.

One event
Quote & agreement
Client menu
Recipes & cost
Prep sheets
Inventory & orders
Crew & hours
Invoice & payroll

Projects & events

Leads become projects. One client, many events: weddings, rehearsal dinners, the same family's vacation every summer. Every event has its own timeline, location, crew and documents.

Quotes, invoices & agreements

Build a quote from your packages and pricing, turn it into an invoice, and send a service agreement. Deposits, final payments, gratuity and fees are worked out for you.

Client menu selection

Clients pick their menu from your packages. Their choices build the kitchen's menu details form automatically, ready for your chef to review and approve.

Recipe database & food costing

Every recipe, ingredient and portion in one library, with cost per serving. Your menu prices stay tied to what a plate really costs.

Kitchen prep sheets

Prep lists build themselves from the approved menus and headcounts across your upcoming events, on simple screens your kitchen team can read on a tablet.

Inventory & order lists

Track ingredients and disposables by storage location. Events take stock off automatically, and anything below its reorder level lands on your order list.

Product orders & gift cards

Sell holiday meals, pies or meal kits with order forms, pickup slots and limits, and the kitchen sees one production day per pickup date. Sell and redeem gift cards too.

Scheduling, time clock & labor

Schedule crews against a labor budget and get warned before you go over. Staff clock in on their phones; managers approve time cards.

Gratuity & payroll export

Gratuity is split by hours worked, and the hours and tips are exported as a file your payroll provider can import. No more spreadsheet math on payday.

Workflows & reminders

Set up the steps your office follows for every booking, from deposit to final headcount, and see what needs attention today on one dashboard.

Dashboards for every role

The owner sees the business, the office sees what's due, the kitchen sees what to make. Each person sees only what their job needs, on desktop, tablet or phone.

Payments, client portal & QuickBooks

Cards on file, a portal where clients see their invoice, menu and agreement, and invoices sent to QuickBooks.

Coming soon

Why one system beats five apps.

Most caterers pay for a CRM, a proposal tool, a scheduling app and a pile of spreadsheets, then pay staff to move information between them.

Less wasted labor

Enter an event once. Prep sheets, order lists, schedules and invoices build from it, so nobody spends the afternoon retyping.

One login, one bill

Sales, kitchen, inventory and staff in one place. Fewer subscriptions to pay for, fewer passwords to share, fewer tools to train new hires on.

Fewer mistakes

A headcount change or an allergy reaches the kitchen without a phone call, and the dashboard flags what's missing before event day.

A more professional business

Clean quotes, agreements and menu forms that look like yours, fast answers to clients, and numbers you can trust when you price the next job.

Where Cater-OS stands today.

No vaporware. Here's exactly what works in our prototype today, and what's finished before your account opens.

Working in our prototype

Clients, leads and projects with multiple events
Quotes, invoices and service agreements
Client menu selection that builds the kitchen's menu details form
Recipes, ingredients and food costing
Kitchen prep sheets
Inventory and disposables with reorder levels
Staff scheduling, time clock and time cards
Labor budget and labor reports
Gratuity pools and a payroll export file
Dashboards for owner, office and kitchen roles

Coming soon · finished before accounts open

Your own private, hosted Cater-OS account
Staff sign-in with roles and permissions
Real card payments and cards on file
A client portal for invoices, menus and agreements
Email sending from the app
A QuickBooks invoice connection

Founding Members vote on what comes after that.

Founding Membership · opening soon

Get in early. Shape it. Lock your price.

Founding Members get the lowest prices we'll ever offer, help getting set up, and a real say in what gets built. Founding spots aren't open yet. Join the founding list and you'll hear first when they open, before anyone else.

Starter Reserve

40 spots · coming soon

$249deposit

Credited to your first year. Then $99 a month, locked for life.

Live demo access before launch
Monthly progress updates
A vote on the roadmap
Guided self-setup when your account opens

Get first access to Starter

Founding Annual

20 spots · coming soon

$990first 12 months

About $82 a month, vs $149 at launch. Renews at $990 a year, locked.

Everything in Starter
We load your menus, recipes, packages and staff with you
Monthly founders' call
Your 12 months start when your account opens

Get first access to Annual

Founding Custom

5 spots · coming soon

$4,990setup

Then $199 a month, locked, from the day your account opens.

Everything in Annual
1-on-1 session to map your workflow
Your forms, packages, questionnaires and workflows set up for you
Priority on your feature requests
White-glove onboarding for your team

Get first access to Custom

Brought to you by The Chef Guys, a full-service catering company in Montana. When founding spots open, payments are made to The Chef Guys LLC and show on your card statement as THE CHEF GUYS. Nothing is charged today.

Full refund on request any time before your account opens.
Automatic full refund if your account isn't open by Thu, Jul 1, 2027.
30 days to change your mind after your account opens.
Founding prices locked for as long as you stay. Read the draft terms.

Founding list

Get first access to Cater-OS.

Join the list and we'll email you when founding spots open, before they're offered to anyone else. It's free, and you can unsubscribe any time.

First pick of the 65 founding spots
Founding prices, locked for as long as you stay
A look at the interactive demo when it's ready

Questions before you join?

Ask us anything about Cater-OS or how it would fit your business. You'll hear back from the caterer who built it.

Email hello@cater-os.com

Questions

Can I use Cater-OS today?

Not yet. Cater-OS runs our own catering company in its prototype form, and we're building the hosted version for other caterers now. Join the founding list to get first access to founding spots and to the interactive demo when it's ready. Founding Members' accounts open on or before Thu, Jul 1, 2027.

What is catering software?

Catering software runs the business side of a catering company: inquiries and leads, quotes and invoices, client menus, event details, kitchen prep, staffing and payroll. Most caterers piece this together from a CRM, a scheduling app and spreadsheets. Cater-OS puts all of it in one system built around how catering actually works.

Is Cater-OS a catering app for my phone?

Cater-OS runs in your web browser, so it works on a computer, tablet or phone without installing anything. The office works on a desktop, the kitchen reads prep sheets on a tablet, and staff clock in from their phones.

What if you miss the date?

Founding Members get a full refund automatically, unless they tell us in writing they'd rather wait.

Who's building it?

Cater-OS is built by the owner of The Chef Guys, a full-service catering company in Montana. It started as our own system for running events, the kitchen and the crew.

What kind of caterer is it for?

Full-service and off-premise caterers and private chef companies, roughly 3 to 30 staff, who want sales, kitchen and staffing in one place. Not sure if it fits? Email hello@cater-os.com and we'll tell you honestly.

What does it replace?

Usually a CRM or proposal tool, a scheduling app, recipe and costing spreadsheets, paper prep lists and the payroll spreadsheet. You keep your accounting software and payroll provider; Cater-OS sends them clean data.

Can I cancel later?

Yes. You have 30 days after your account opens for a full refund, and you can cancel before any yearly renewal.

What happens to my data?

It's yours. You can export it any time, and we never sell it.

Founding Member terms Draft

Founding spots aren't open yet and nothing is charged today. These are the terms we plan to offer, and the final version will be shown before anyone pays.

Who you're paying. Cater-OS is built by The Chef Guys LLC, a Montana catering company. Payments go to The Chef Guys LLC.
What you pay. Starter Reserve: a $249 deposit now, credited toward your first year, then $99 a month. Founding Annual: $990 once for your first 12 months. Founding Custom: $4,990 for setup now, then $199 a month. Nothing more is charged, and your first year doesn't start, until your account opens.
What works today and what's coming are listed under "Where Cater-OS stands today" above. Everything in the second list is included before your account opens.
When you get it. Your account opens on or before Thu, Jul 1, 2027. We email a progress update every month until then.
Refunds. Full refund on request any time before your account opens, paid within 5 business days. If your account isn't open by Jul 1, 2027, we refund you in full automatically unless you tell us in writing you'd rather wait. After your account opens, you have 30 days to ask for a full refund of your first payment; for Founding Custom, that covers any setup work not yet delivered.
Price lock. As long as your membership doesn't lapse, you keep your tier's price ($99 a month, $990 a year or $199 a month), whatever the public price becomes. Cancel before any renewal.
Setup. Starter: guided self-setup at launch. Annual: we load your menus, recipes, packages and staff list with you. Custom: that, plus a 1-on-1 workflow session, your own forms, packages, questionnaires and workflows set up inside Cater-OS, and onboarding for your team.
Your say. A vote on what we build next for every tier, plus monthly founders' calls for Annual and Custom. Custom requests get priority. We can't promise every request makes it in.
Your data is yours. Export it any time; we never sell it.
Spots. 40 Starter, 20 Annual and 5 Custom memberships.