Order cutoff times: how to set them and make customers stick to them

A cutoff is the moment after which orders and changes for a meal are locked. It sounds strict. In practice it is the single habit that lets a small kitchen cook the right amount, plan its riders and stop throwing food away.

Why cutoffs matter

• A final count. After the cutoff, you know exactly how many meals to cook. Before it, you are guessing.
• Less waste. Late “no lunch today” messages are how meals end up in the bin.
• Plannable deliveries. A fixed list means routes can be planned properly.
• Fairness. One rule for everyone is easier to defend than a series of exceptions.

Choosing your cutoff times

Work backwards from when you start cooking. The cutoff should give you enough time to shop or prep for the final number, with a margin.

TifTif ships with cutoffs of 11:59 pm the night before for breakfast, 10:00 am for lunch and 3:00 pm for dinner, and you can change each one. Pick times you can keep every day — a cutoff you move around is not a cutoff.

Making customers respect it

Make it visible

Customers break cutoffs they cannot see. A live countdown in the app — “2h 14m left to change tomorrow’s lunch” — does more than any reminder message.

Make changes easy before it

If pausing a meal takes one tap and the refund is automatic, customers make their changes on time. When the only option is messaging you, they put it off — and message you after the cutoff.

Be consistent

The first late change you accept “just this once” becomes the new rule. If you want flexibility, build it in openly — a later cutoff — rather than as favours.

Be kind about genuine emergencies

A hospital visit is not a late order. A goodwill credit to the wallet for a genuine emergency keeps the relationship without breaking the rule for everyone.

What happens after the cutoff

New orders for that meal roll over to the next available day. The kitchen cooks to the count, packs by delivery round, and riders get their planned routes. In TifTif, the kitchen screen shows the final count the moment the cutoff passes.

Checklist

• One cutoff per meal, chosen by working back from cooking time
• Shown to customers as a countdown
• Pausing and changes easy before it, locked after it
• The same every day

See how cutoffs work in TifTif on orders, cutoffs and zones, and read the delivery operations guide for the rest of the daily cycle.