Overview

A simple Menu Item uses the same Formula every time it is ordered. A Menu Item with choices works differently because the kitchen quantity depends on what the Customer selects.

For this example, we will use a Classic BBQ Buffet that includes:

• A choice of one or two meats: Pulled Pork and Chicken
• A choice of two sides: Mac & Cheese and Baked Beans
• Bread
• Garden Salad

How those choices calculate is determined by the way the Menu Item is set up in Menu Manager. In this example, the Customer may choose one meat for the full meat quantity or two meats that share the quantity. The Customer must choose two sides, and each side receives its own full side quantity. Bread and Garden Salad are included every time, so they are added as General Prep Items.

This article focuses on putting each Formula in the correct section and making sure the final quantities match what the kitchen needs to prepare.

Understand the Three Formula Sections

When a Menu Item includes choices or modifiers, CaterZen separates the Formula builder into three sections:

The Formula must be added in the section that matches how the item is sold. If a Prep Item is connected to the wrong section, CaterZen may produce it every time instead of only when the Customer selects it.

Before You Build the Formulas

Write down what the package includes and how each quantity should work:

For a 20-person order with Pulled Pork, Chicken, Mac & Cheese, and Baked Beans selected, the kitchen should see:

• Pulled Pork: 4 pounds
• Chicken: 4 pounds
• Mac & Cheese: 3.5 quarts
• Baked Beans: 3.5 quarts
• Bread: 20 pieces
• Garden Salad: 1 full-size pan

Use this expected output to check the Formulas after they are saved.

Step 1: Open the Kitchen Production Formula Builder

• Go to the Admin tab.
• Scroll to Kitchen and Production.
• Click Configure Kitchen Production Report Settings.
• Select Build a Kitchen Production Report.
• Choose Classic BBQ Buffet from Please Select a Menu Item.

After selecting the Menu Item, CaterZen will show the Formula sections connected to that package.

Step 2: Add the General Prep Items

Bread and Garden Salad are included with every Classic BBQ Buffet. They do not depend on which meats or sides the Customer selects.

• Open the blue General Prep Items bar.
• Confirm that it turns orange.
• Click Add Formula.
• Select or create the appropriate Prep Item.
• Complete and save the Formula.

Add these Formulas:

1 piece of Bread for every 1 person ordered

1 full-size pan of Garden Salad for every 20 people ordered

Use General Prep Items only for items that should be produced every time the package is ordered.

Step 3: Open the Options/Dropdown Choices

The meats and sides are Customer choices, so their Formulas belong under Prep Items for Options/Dropdown Choices.

• Click the blue Prep Items for Options/Dropdown Choices bar.
• Confirm that it turns orange.
• Find the option groups connected to the Classic BBQ Buffet.

For this example, you should see:

• Meat Choice
• Side Choice

The number shown beside an option group tells you how many choices the Customer can make. The divide or multiply behavior comes from the way that choice was configured on the Menu Item in Menu Manager. Review the Menu Item setup before building the Formulas so you understand how CaterZen will apply each quantity.

Menu Manager controls how the Formula is applied

A meat Formula does not automatically divide just because it is a meat. CaterZen follows the choice setup connected to the Menu Item.

For this Classic BBQ Buffet, Menu Manager is set up so the Customer can:

• Select one meat and receive the full meat quantity
• Select two meats and divide the total meat quantity between them

That setup is why the meat Formula in this example uses the divide behavior.

You could build the package differently. If the Customer is required to choose exactly two meats, you could give each meat choice its own fixed per-person Formula without dividing it. That would work more like the side choices, where every selected choice receives the quantity assigned to it.

Before deciding how to build any choice-based Formula, confirm:

• How many choices the Customer is allowed or required to make
• Whether the Menu Item setup divides or multiplies the Formula
• Whether each selected choice should receive the full quantity or share a total quantity

Step 4: Build the Meat Choice Formulas for This Package Setup

The Classic BBQ Buffet provides 6 ounces of total meat per person. Because this Menu Item allows one meat for the full quantity or two meats that share the quantity, the Menu Manager setup divides the total when two meats are selected.

To avoid entering the meat Formula in ounces, convert the portion to a larger yield:

• 8 people × 6 ounces each = 48 ounces
• 48 ounces = 3 pounds

The starting Formula for each meat is:

3 pounds of meat for every 8 people ordered

The divide behavior used here matches the choice setup already created for this Menu Item in Menu Manager.

Add the Pulled Pork Formula

• Open Meat Choice.
• Select Pulled Pork.
• Click Add Formula.
• Select the Pulled Pork Prep Item.
• Enter 3 as the quantity.
• Select Pounds as the Unit of Measure.
• Enter 8 in the For Every field.
• Confirm that the divide behavior matches the Meat Choice setup in Menu Manager.
• Choose Round Up to the Nearest Whole.
• Assign Meats/Proteins as both the Prep Station and Food Prep Category.
• Save the Formula.

Repeat the same steps for Chicken, using the Chicken Prep Item.

How the meat division works

For 20 people, the total meat quantity is 7.5 pounds.

• If Pulled Pork is the only meat selected, it receives the full 7.5 pounds and rounds up to 8 pounds.
• If Pulled Pork and Chicken are selected, the 7.5 pounds is divided between the two meats. Each receives 3.75 pounds and rounds up to 4 pounds.

The total portion stays at 6 ounces per person. CaterZen applies the divide behavior because that is how this Meat Choice was configured in Menu Manager.

If the Customer must choose exactly two meats

If Menu Manager requires the Customer to choose exactly two meats, the Formulas do not have to share one 6-ounce total. You could assign each meat a fixed 3-ounce portion per person.

For a larger yield, 3 ounces per person equals:

• 8 people × 3 ounces = 24 ounces
• 24 ounces = 1.5 pounds

Each meat choice could use:

1.5 pounds of the selected meat for every 8 people ordered

In that setup, both selected meats receive their own full Formula quantity, just like the selected sides do.

Step 5: Build the Side Choice Formulas

In this Menu Item setup, the Customer must select two sides, and each selected side receives the full side quantity. The side Formulas are not divided because Menu Manager is set up to apply the Formula to each selected side.

The side Formula is:

1 quart of the selected side for every 6 people ordered

Add the Mac & Cheese Formula

• Open Side Choice.
• Select Mac & Cheese.
• Click Add Formula.
• Select the Mac & Cheese Prep Item.
• Enter 1 as the quantity.
• Select Quarts as the Unit of Measure.
• Enter 6 in the For Every field.
• Confirm that the Formula applies the full quantity to each choice, matching the Side Choice setup in Menu Manager.
• Choose Round to the Nearest Half.
• Assign Hot Sides as both the Prep Station and Food Prep Category.
• Save the Formula.

Repeat the same steps for Baked Beans, using the Baked Beans Prep Item.

For 20 people, each selected side calculates to 3.33 quarts and rounds to 3.5 quarts.

Step 6: Review All Choices

Open each option group and confirm that every available choice has a Formula.

For this example, verify:

• Pulled Pork has a meat Formula
• Chicken has a meat Formula
• Mac & Cheese has a side Formula
• Baked Beans has a side Formula
• Bread and Garden Salad appear under General Prep Items

If a choice does not have a Formula, CaterZen cannot calculate a Prep Item quantity when the Customer selects it.

Step 7: Test Different Customer Selections

Do not test only one version of the package. Place test orders that cover the different ways a Customer can order it.

Test at least:

• A 20-person buffet with one meat and two sides.
• A 20-person buffet with two meats and two sides.
• A different guest count that creates partial pounds or quarts so you can confirm the rounding.

For the two-meat, 20-person test order, confirm that the Production Report shows:

Also confirm that the items appear under the same Prep Station and Food Prep Category names used in your other Formulas.

Common Mistakes to Watch For

• Adding a Customer choice under General Prep Items: This may produce the item even when it was not selected.
• Dividing side quantities: Each selected side should receive the full quantity in this example.
• Assuming every meat Formula should divide: The divide or multiply behavior depends on the Menu Item setup in Menu Manager.
• Building the Formula before reviewing the choice setup: Confirm how many choices the Customer can make and whether each choice receives a full or shared quantity.
• Missing a Formula for one choice: Open every meat and side choice to confirm each one is complete.
• Creating duplicate Prep Items: Search before creating Pulled Pork, Chicken, Mac & Cheese, or Baked Beans.
• Using different Station and Category names: Keep the same structure across reports.
• Testing only one selection: Test both the one-meat and two-meat versions.

Next Steps

Once the choice-based Formulas are working, the next step is reviewing advanced rounding, nested Prep Items, and any Extra Choices connected to the package.

For the basic Formula setup, see Build a Simple Kitchen Production Formula in CaterZen.

For help creating and organizing Prep Items, see Create, Name, Organize, and Reuse Prep Items in CaterZen.

For an overview of the full process, see KitchenProduction in CaterZen: How Prep Items, Formulas, and Reports WorkTogether.

Need Help Building Your Kitchen Production Workflow?

If you would like help deciding which reports your kitchen should use or reviewing your Kitchen Production setup, book a Kitchen Production session with Jill Hammett.

Support

For additional help, refer to the CaterZen Support Center or contact our CaterZen Support Team.

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