RestroFood Pre-Order System allows customers to place an order today for a delivery or pickup on a future date. This is useful for restaurants that need lead time for catering-style orders, busy holiday periods, or simply want customers to be able to plan ahead instead of only ordering for “right now.”
Setting it up takes two steps in the admin panel, turning on date/time selection for delivery, then enabling and configuring pre-orders, after which customers see the scheduling options automatically at checkout.
Step 1: Turn On Delivery/Pickup Date & Time
Pre-orders depend on customers being able to pick a date and time at checkout, so this needs to be enabled first.
- In your WordPress dashboard, go to RestroFood > Delivery Settings.
- Open the Delivery/Pickup tab.
- Under Delivery Options, toggle Deliver/Pickup Date/Time Show/Hide to Yes. This is what makes the date and time fields appear on the customer checkout popup.
- Configure the related fields:
- Deliver/Pickup Time Option Note – optional note shown to customers near the time selector.
- Delivery Time Format – choose 12 Hour or 24-hour format for the time dropdown.
- Delivery Time Slot – the interval between selectable times (e.g., 30min gives slots like 12:00 pm, 12:30 pm, 1:00 pm…).
- Click Save Setting.
Step 2: Enable and Configure Pre-Orders
- Still under RestroFood > Delivery Settings, switch to the Pre Order tab.
- Under Order Options, you’ll see three controls:
| Setting | What it does |
| Off current date order | When set to Yes, disables same-day (“Today”) ordering, so customers must schedule delivery/pickup for a future date. |
| Pre-order active | Turn the pre-order feature on or off. Set to Yes to allow customers to select a future date at checkout. |
| Pre Order Days Limit | The number of days ahead customers are allowed to schedule an order. For example, entering 6 lets customers choose any date up to 6 days from today. |
- Set Pre Order active to Yes.
- Enter a value in Pre Order Days Limit based on how far in advance you want to accept orders.
- Click Save Setting.
Once saved, you’ll see a Settings Saved confirmation at the top of the page.
Step 3: How Customers Use Pre-Order at Checkout
With the settings above enabled, customers see the scheduling options when they proceed to checkout from the cart/order popup:
- Delivery Type – the customer chooses Delivery or Pickup by me.
- Delivery Schedule Type – the customer chooses between:
- Today Delivery/Pickup – for ordering as usual, for same-day fulfillment. (Only available if Off current date order is set to No.)
- Schedule Delivery/Pickup – the pre-order option, for choosing a future date.
- Depending on which schedule type is selected:
- Today shows a Deliver/Pickup Time dropdown listing available time slots (e.g., 12:00 pm, 12:30 pm, 1:00 pm, based on your Delivery Time Slot interval).
- Schedule shows a Deliver/Pickup Date dropdown listing selectable future dates (e.g., Thursday – April 21, 2022 through Sunday – April 24, 2022), capped by your Pre Order Days Limit.
- The Delivery Availability Checker confirms whether delivery is available for the customer’s location and chosen date, displaying a message such as “Delivery is available.”
- The customer clicks Order & Payment to complete checkout.
Quick Settings Summary
| Location | Setting | Purpose |
| Delivery/Pickup tab | Deliver/Pickup Date/Time Show/Hide | Shows date/time selectors at checkout (required for pre-order) |
| Delivery/Pickup tab | Delivery Time Format | 12-hour or 24-hour time display |
| Delivery/Pickup tab | Delivery Time Slot | Interval between time options (e.g., 30min) |
| Pre Order tab | Off current date order | Disables same-day ordering, forcing scheduled orders |
| Pre Order tab | Pre-order active | Master on/off switch for pre-orders |
| Pre Order tab | Pre Order Days Limit | How many days ahead customers can schedule |
Tips
- If you want to accept only advance orders (no same-day rush), turn on Off current date order.
- If you want to offer both same-day and future scheduling, leave Off current date order as No, customers will see both the “Today” and “Schedule” options.
- Adjust Pre-Order Days Limit based on your kitchen’s planning needs, shorter for perishable/fresh items, longer for catering-style orders.
- Always click Save Setting after changing values on either tab, settings won’t apply until saved.
