Frequently Asked Questions
Q: I have a lot of XYZ ingredient(s) in inventory that I would like to use on my menu. How do I know what recipes and/or products contain the ingredient I am trying use?
A: Dine Central has the capability to allow the end user to search for recipes by specific attributes. The "Advanced Search" button can be used when creating your menu to look for recipes that are specific to what you are trying to menu. For example, if you have a lot of inventory of a specific ingredient you can use the advance search field to filter for all recipes that contain that specific ingredient. Below are screen shot of the specific screens from Dine Central. For more information on the functionality of the Advance Search feature please visit the Dine Central User Guide section(s) of the Virtual Manual.
Q: I heard about recipes that other accounts are using, but when I try to search for them on my menu I cannot find them. How can I get access to these recipes?
A: In order to menu specific recipes and/or products on your menu you [MUST]{.underline} have all the ingredients required to make the recipe on your [Order Guide]{.underline}. If a recipe and/or product exist in the system, but you are unable to put it on your menu you are most likely missing a required ingredient. All FDSs have access to the Recipe Kits; which show all the recipes that exist in Dine Central. When in Recipe Kits you can see all the ingredients, and there corresponding variants, needed to menu the recipe. If you are unable to menu a recipe that exist in Dine Central you should check the recipe kit to see what ingredient you are missing from your order guide. Order Guides are managed by the Procurement Team. If you need an ingredient added to your order guide to use the recipe, please fill out an [Order Guide Change Request]{.underline} with the Procurement Department.
Q: I was previously menuing XYZ recipes and now when I copy over and/or go to create a new menu these recipes are no longer available. Why is that?
A: As previously mentioned, the ability to menu recipes is dependent on the availability of all the required ingredient on your order guide. If you previously were menuing a recipe and/or product on your menu and it no longer appears or has dropped off your menu when copying your menu over something has changed on your order guide. There are varies reasons the Procurement Team may have removed a product from your order guide (i.e. product is discontinued, DM requested to have product removed, etc.). Please check the recipe kit to
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determine what ingredient is missing from your order guide and send an inquiry to Procurement to determine why the ingredient was removed from your order guide.
Q: When I go to create a menu I notice that I have the ability to search by "Product" or "Recipe". What is the difference?
A: Products are menu items that can be "menud directly" as they do not require any preparation (i.e. heating, chopping, mixing, etc.). Some examples of menu directly items are: bowl pack cereal, individually wrapped muffins, fresh hand fruit, half pint milk, etc. Recipes are menu items that cannot be menud directly as they require certain preparation (i.e. cooking, mixing, chopping, etc.). Some examples of non-menu directly items include: Chicken Nuggets, French toast, Pizza, Salads, etc.
Q: When I go to create a menu I notice there is a box that says "Associate Items to Entrée" and heard that this feature can be used to create recipe combinations. How does this work exactly?
A: Dine Central has the capability of creating menu combination between entrée and sides so that they appear together both on the menu and production order records. This feature allows the end user more flexibility in menu creation as it allows them to decide what recipes and/or products should be paired together on the menu. For example a finished recipe for hummus can be paired with a warm pretzel, pita bread or fresh carrots without having specific recipes that include these meal combinations. For more information on the functionality of menu entrée association please visit the Dine Central User Guide section(s) of the Virtual Manual.
Q: I want to try a new recipe in my account and after looking through the "Recipe Kits" I see it is not in our system. How do I go about getting a recipe added?
A: To get a recipe added to the system a [New Recipe Request]{.underline} needs to be filled out on Sales Force. Once a recipe request is submitted your VP will review the request and, if approved, will forward the request to the Nutrition Department to have the recipe created. Once Nutrition receives the request they will advise the VP when the recipe has been added via e-mail.
Please notewhen submitting a recipe request please include as much information as possible. Due to the space limitation in Sales Force, additional recipe information may need to be sent to your VP via e-mail.
Q: I am currently menuing a recipe that I feel certain ingredients should be added as a variant. How do I go about getting this recipe adjusted?
A: Changes to recipes, whether the addition or removal of an ingredient and/or variant*, are treated as a New Recipe Request. To protect the quality of our recipes and guarantee consistent dining experience we must consult with both our culinary chefs and nutrition when changes are being made to recipes; which you're VPs will do once they receive the New Recipe Request. If the changes are approved notification of the change will be sent via e-mail.
*Variants are not the same as ingredients. Ingredients indicate the number of items needed to make a recipe (i.e. oil, garlic, pepper), while variants indicate the similar or alternate variety of ingredient available in the
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recipe. For example, olive oil may be a required ingredient and canola oil, soy oil and butter may all be variants added to the oil ingredient.
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