I have 3 children that have now all made their way through their elementary, middle and high school years and School Cafe has been right with us “almost” through all 3 kids school years (I think it came out a few years into our oldest child’s schooling). Having School Cafe has been such a blessing in making sure all the kids had their “lunch money”! It has been a partner/much needed (and appreciated) part of all these years for sure! This platform/and the reminders of low funds (in conjunction with the app) has been so very helpful! Admittedly….I think one of my kids had insufficient funds only one time - but that was my fault for missing the “reminder”.. but school cafe never missed a thing (and yes- my daughter has never let me forget that day 😂 - and I never missed another school cafe reminder after that occurrence that’s for sure)!! As far as the small “online” fee - it is so worth it…as School Cafe keeps up with EVERYTHING! Thank you to everyone at School Cafe in helping us all these years!
This app makes knowing your child will always have money on their account for breakfast or lunch a breeze, no more worry or hassle to ensure they are always fed, with the app feature to set low limit balance alerts at the dollar amount of your choice, with the selection of limiting which items they are allowed, allowed occasionally and are restricted from purchasing without you having to be there, you are also able to ensure healthy choices are being enforced even while not in your care, if you so choose to use these features it’s all an extra bonus to the ease of the app in adding funds to your child’s or children’s account lunch balances, snack balances and so forth, definitely worth downloading, no more sending your child with money to school for breakfast or lunch and no more wondering if they ate lunch or breakfast at all that day, with the app keeping record of where and what the money was spent on, water-drinks-food tray- chips- snacks, I love the app by far!
Very easy to use. I like the use of an App rather than having to go to a website or even worse, sending a check in with your child. I also like it that I can see the purchase history. I once found out that my son was buying lunch for his friends, not cool. I put the squash on that really quick by setting purchase limits on his account. (Though, I also found out that the school was allowing him to buy extra meals anyway (not an App issue), so I had to contact them to talk to the lunch staff, to make sure they were abiding by the parents’ requests. Make sure when you choose your purchase limits through the App, that the school staff is actually following your requests!)
The app is convenient and easy. Mine’s been glitching this year though, where the green bar at the top keeps moving all over when I scroll. It makes it to where I have to scroll up and down constantly to see what I need to see. Could be my phone, but maybe not. My biggest complaint, and the only reason why I could only give this app 2 stars, is the service fees! They have raised to to 5% this school year 🤯 I have 4 kids in school. I just paid over $7.00 to put some money in their account. I thought it was high last year, but this is crazy. If I want to put a greater amount of money in (to carry them a while), I will have to pay even more. This isn’t a real estate transaction. It’s parents trying to make sure our kids can eat, and we’re being charged a 5% fee for that. I understand it can’t be free, but there should be a cap to what they can charge you to make a payment, or just a flat fee of $1.00 or $2.00 per transaction.
It is really only good for adding funds to your child’s account and seeing what they buy each day. That’s pretty much it. It has the option to click on your child’s “menu” but you don’t get to see what is offered each day. Some items are marked only as “menu item” and they could be a bag of chips, another snack, or anything they don’t have labeled in the system. You can’t put restrictions on it, like no desserts or snack items, so your child is left to their own devices to choose their foods. There’s a convenience fee with every transaction to add funds to the account, which wouldn’t be so bad if you could manage your child’s food options more. I really don’t understand how this app has 4.9 star rating. It’s a 2 at best. One more thing to add, I haven’t found a “back button” so sometimes when you click on something that takes you to another screen, you can’t get back. You have to exit the app and restart it.
I have two children and I can add different amounts of money to each of their cafeteria accounts since I have one child who eats at school everyday and one child who mostly takes a lunch from home and doesn’t need much money. I was also able to transfer the money from the one who didn’t use the cafeteria at all last year to the other’s account. I also appreciate the customization options where I can place limits on how much my child can spend on “extra” snacks and things and I can see what she buys every day. I’m very glad our school district is using this app!
The tools and information available through the app are wonderful but the app itself is frustrating when viewed on any iPhone (versions 11, 13, and 15). When scrolling down the page, the title bar separates from the top of the page, pastes itself to the middle of the page, and skips down as you scroll. It effectively covers the page and prevents me from being able to view all 3 of my children’s profiles. This same bar then covers the Submit button on the payment page. I had to manipulate the location of the Submit button to finally get my payment accepted. Please fix how the page works on iPhones.
This app takes information that should be easily and publicly available, and hides it behind a password wall. To access school menus at all, you have to create a password protected account. And you can’t save your kids’ school to your ID - no, they don’t need parent statistics. If you want your school as the default, you have to give the your children’s school ID number, which gives SC access to all your children’s personal identifying information. (Otherwise, you have to wade through ridiculously long dropdown menus that constantly reset unless you do them in a precise order.) We should not have to pay ransom with our children’s personal information just to view menus that should be readily available to any school parent. This flagrant consumer data collection app is disgusting, and I hate that my school district has been suckered into using it.
Overall, this app is great and so easy to use! I can quickly check my children’s lunch accounts and love get notified when their balances are low. The only feature that’s missing is the ability to transfer funds from one account to another if you have more than one child on the app. For example, I loaded both kids accounts at the beginning of the year but one child uses their funds frequently and the other decided to bring their lunch. I’d love to have the ability to move that unused money over to my other child’s account. This would make the app 5 stars for me!
With all the craziness in life it’s easy to forget to do certain things, this App has made things a lot easier. I get an alert whenever my daughters account has reached a certain amount of funds and can easily add more without any hassle or confusion. The only down side for me is that I’m not able to use multiple cards for payment. It gives you the option to add more then 1 card but it won’t let me choose between cards, it only ever shows one and won’t let me enter a new one because it says it’s already in the system.
My child is a picker eater and likes to take her time when it’s meal time. That’s just how children are, lol. But upon finding out about this app, I am so grateful that I get to view the school menu and love how I get the option to choose her meals too! That put so much weight off my shoulder! I love how convenient this app is! To be able to alert me on balances and more and for me to see everything my child will be consuming (let’s hope) it’s nice to know that I get to hop on here and check the school meal without doing too much.
So much more efficient than writing out checks to the school all the time! Plus you can see all the extra snacks your kiddos purchase, like ice cream ect.... And you can even control what they can purchase and when! Like, only allowing them to get a dessert like cookies on Fridays, for example. Plus, you can set a low balance alert to send you a notification when their balance is low. So no more phone calls or notices in their back packs that only tell you after the account is already negative! Love it!
I believe there should be an additional way to pay without being charged a credit card fee. The menu is never on the app to choose in advance for kids to have for the day. Even if there are modification’s to the menu, it should be reflected with a notification that is sent out for an update. Being able to update photos would be helpful as well as any additional information that is pertinent to their account. EX: if enrolled in Clayton and have Breakfast Snack and Drink options would be helpful as they are additional costs when bought separately. Breakfast menu is also helpful for same reason as lunch. Planning in advance is very beneficial when you have a picky eater sometimes. Overall the app if very easy to use just needs tweaking. This could help schools also with not having to do a lunch head count in morning and parents can plan accordingly.
It would be nice not to have service fees just to add money to my kid’s lunch accounts. How can it be avoided? Also, would like to see exactly what my child is getting for lunch. I understand the student gets to choose their lunch but being charged $2.40 and $1.00 for a snack but are they getting a good amount of food? Last time, my child got a hamburger, an apple and chocolate milk and still got charged $2.40. I’m sure there were other items to get but wish the school can still offer to them even if they don’t want. I don’t think having a 5 or 6 year old pick out lunch not knowing they are paying for it.
Love using this app! I’ve been using it for 3 years now and It is quick and easy to sign in and add funds with ease! Keeping a card/bank info on file is very convenient as well as setting a min threshold to alert you when the balance has dipped down. Also like how you can view purchase history to ensure your kiddo is getting what they need! Also love that you can manage multiple children through different schools all in one place! Thank you!
School Cafe can be associated with an email address so that you receive an email when your child’s balance is low. What’s low? It’s up to you! I receive an email when my child’s balance is below $10. Additionally, when you pay, they have preset payments you can choose from, or you can add your own. As both my husband and I work, it’s great to know that I don’t have to physically go to my child’s school and pay at the front office or in the cafeteria just so she can eat. School cafe is easy and convenient!
I am very pleased with this app. It allows me to share in School Expenses for my grandson who lives 500 miles away from me. I like the fact that I get a warning if his account is running low and he seems to be quite happy with being able to get what he wants from the food area at the school. I would highly recommend it to anyone who has a child either that lives close to them or far away; it makes helping that child much easier.
I enjoy the ease of using this app. The Touch ID allows me to log in easily and quickly add money to my child’s account with my pre-saved credit card information. The reason I won’t give it 5 stars is because I have three children in school and the $100 limit means I have to add money more often than I’d like. Someone with one child can add $100 to the account but with three children I can’t add more than $33 to their account at a time. It would make more sense to set a max per child.
Needs to support families with kids in multiple school districts
One feature that the app is currently lacking is the ability to support families who have children in different school districts. My younger child goes to a public school district but my older child goes to a private one. Both use School Cafe but I’m forced to use a different parent email and account for them and can’t monitor both from the phone app (logging into one District will log you out of the other one). Please try and support this in a future update.
It’s nice to be able to add funds to my child’s school account. Not thrilled with the $1.95 processing fee or the $100 limit (having 3 children I would like to be able to add more at one time!). I do like that we can monitor what our children eat and we can set when we get an alert for low balance. I also see now we have an option to transfer funds or request refund. That’s nice! Overall the app is convenient and easy to use.
I’m a working mother and this app makes things suuuper easy to add funds for each of the kids and I can even fill out the application on there too. That way my kids don’t risk losing cash while taking it to school and I can save time by making trips to the school when everything is accessible through the app. I wish though that the paperwork can be able to convert to PDF or be able to be sent a copy through email for records. Thank you!
I rarely review apps and here I am spending valuable time to give kudos to School Cafe of all things. But this is my favorite app on my phone and that includes FB, IG, Twitter, banking, news, Google Maps, Google Music, Waze, Skype, blah blah blah. I get an email that I need to add money and in under ten seconds I've topped off two student accounts. Oddly but decidedly satisfying. Been using it for years and the redesign has made it even easier. It would be great to see such simplicity with all the technology I use. The fee is definitely worth it.
This app is so easy to use. It allows face recognition for easy sign in. The main dashboard is concise and clear with pics of my kids. Easy to set email alerts when their balance is low, and link my card of choice to easily refill their accounts with two clicks. Their accounts are refilled almost instantaneously, and I receive an email confirmation immediately. Extremely user-friendly and convenient.
Super easy to utilize. Once you get the kids’ profiles set up, you can add money, cash out (they send you a check), transfer balance, etc. I even get alerts so I know BEFORE they run out of lunch money. I haven’t had to use it, but you can also specify what they are allowed to get. One of my favorite things is seeing what they’ve purchased so I know if they’re getting too much junk or how often they are rewarding themselves.
This app makes paying ahead for school lunch so easy. I don’t have to find my checkbook and worry about who all sees banking info before it makes it to the cafeteria. I don’t have to worry about it falling out of my child’s folder and getting lost. You can manage multiple children across different schools and set notifications when your child’s account falls below a specific dollar amount.
It does the job, but some buttons and links are repetitive. For example, the purchase history button in the main landing page leads to the amount of money you’ve loaded into an account. Another purchase history button on another page leads to what someone bought as a meal. Also, the green banner at the top keeps moving down to the middle of the page when I scroll down, so it blocks what I’m trying to review. Very annoying, and it’s been like this for ages despite software updates.
Don’t remember about the set up process or how easy that was. Truly love that I can put money on their account and not have to worry about lost cash. Although a convenience fee is added to the amount still worth it. Especially if kids are short I can screenshot that it’s been added send them the pic and they can eat because we have an awesome district. I have 3 kids so this app makes life simpler.
As working parents this app makes it so easy to see what all your kids are eating, and how much money they are spending each day when purchasing school lunch. It really helps having responsible conversations at home about lunch time eating. Plus the notifications we get when under a certain dollar amount and ease in replenishing their accounts make it a great app to use!
I love the convenience of paying for my kids’ lunch with just the tap of a button. What I don’t like is paying the convenience fee. I understand it’s not much, but after putting $150 onto their accounts, $7.50 is more than I’d like to pay. Not sure if that’s the app charging or the school, but obviously I don’t like it. However, I do like being able to just pay instead of finding our checks and reminding my kids over and over to be sure to turn it in.
This app is so user friendly an easy for those moments of urgent needs of snacks for the teens. I love that although it says allow 24-48 hours for funds to load it typically it will show up available within an hour. I recommend using even for the teen that thinks his mommas money grows on trees you can manage the amount of funds allowed daily. I recommend it’s been a day saver!
I have used this app for many years now with my oldest now serving in the U.S. Navy. The last two also enjoy the benefits as well as myself for adding and tracking their lunches. I can see what they purchase and it helps me if they try to only eat unhealthy food. I truly enjoy this app. Improvements keep being made and the last one where one can donate is awesome! Keep it up!
I like that this app sends notifications of when my child’s account is low in funds and gives me the option to put whatever amount I want on her cafe card. I also like that it has a payment save feature. I do wish it allowed specific food restrictions, so that my child doesn’t load up on sugary foods, such as chocolate milk. Our Pediatric Dentist and Hygienist both have reiterated how bad chocolate milk and gummy foods are bad for young teeth.
While this app has some good features it also has unprecedented number of errors in the list of menu foods that for example show photo that depicts Broccoli but the name , ingredients and nutrition facts depicts Turkey Hot Dog and there is at least another 20 items described wrongly and it worries me when it comes to the heating , serving, combining and mixing foods that the students might be eating contaminated foods or improperly heated , mixed or served especially with the fact that most schools employ mostly non-English speaking cafeteria employees and it raises concerns about safety of the foods that our children eat as most foods labels are in English language only .
The money goes into the account instantly, although it says it takes some time. I’ve never had any issues. Other than an old account being terminated that still had money from a previous school. There is a way to get it and once I found that out, i tried to log in and it was no longer active.
This app rocks!!! Keeps me updated on account balances and with 3 kiddos in 2 different schools it is such a blessing!!!! Love that it even sends us updates you can set a threshold amount so you get reminded when their balance is below for example $5. This way you remember to replenish their lunch. Thanks for partnering with Lamar CISD to make this app so accessible all these years.
V4.6 will not load properly. Even though I have the latest version it still tells me to update the app or use the website. Also, even in previous versions, the food shown in my child’s school lunch isn’t often what is actually being served by the school. I do like being able to create a virtual plate for my child, though, because it makes it much easier for him to see what he’s going to buy prior to the pressure of lunch line. This is where having the correct food being shown comes into play.
It says you can see the school menu and i don’t see it or where it should be listed....it says your child buys a snack but you doesn’t tell you what the snack is so you have to rely on your child to tell you what they bought. I have the alerts set to low amount to notify me and her balance was down to $2 and i received nothing isn’t that considered low? Not happy that you have to pay a convenience charge every time you have to load money on but nothing on here feels convenient!!! For that constant charge everytime you load money i should be able to view a menu get a detail of what was bought and alerts!
Every Parent ( who has students that purchase in cafe) NEEDS this
This is the easiest way to add funds to a students account. I am both a parent and a Cafeteria manager. I can’t tell you how many times kiddos think the parents added money but forgot. Your student could text/call you and you add money right then. Your child can purchase a snack or meal immediately. B. Silvert Cafeteria Manager
I think the fee charge is not the right way to treat people that are trying to pay their way. I can only put so much on my kids account at a time so I get charged the fee like every week. It’s not right charging that each time just because I can’t put a lump sum of money on each account and not have to pay the fee each week.
Have had to reinstall the app over a dozen times. Most the time when I go on to sign in, in order to check balance of 3 children, the app automatically closes on itself. Don’t even get to sign in. Definitely needs updating so that this dose not continue. The app is however very helpful when it lets me into my account.
Everything is online these days! It is all super easy and when I forget I can just reload on my smart phone....however I loathe the dollar and some change fee. It’s very frustrating and honestly a little unnecessary. Everything is done online and you would kind of think it would just be free. If this could change I’d be very happy! Good app all in general.
Love that all this info is in one spot for all my kids, I can easily load and transfer funds and see menus, but the header bar that randomly moves around the screen is the most annoying thing! Would be great if yall could make that a stationary bar. I’ve been using this for over two years and it perpetually been an issue. Seems like a simple coding problem.
App is cool, easy modern way of things. However not a big fan of the convenience fee. The alternative option is send your kindergarten age child to school with money and hope it makes it. Other than that it’s cool especially when you get a call that your kid is out lunch money and you can add at that moment from phone.
I love this app and it’s so much easier to do on the spot than sending a check:) I do think there should be money taken away vs added for doing online bc even thought convenient for us parents, it gets paid!(so should be discount for that). Or maybe if auto removes so much per month, then get a discount?!
I understand that the credit card companies charge to use their services. However this is a sure way for the cafeteria to receive their money. Isn’t there grant funds or some other type of funds that can cover the service fee? I just paid $2,000 in taxes to FBISD via Fort Bend Tax Accessor. There are many paying that and more. We’re already stretched in this economy. We’re being nickeled and dimed to death.
Wish I could love this app! But for some reason the menu doesn't show every day! I check daily for my younger son and there are times that nothing shows on the day I’m looking at! Also tried printing the monthly menu from my computer and it doesn’t print. Please update the app to function properly every day! So frustrating to not be able to see what is being served for lunch everyday
Easy to use, facial recognition is easy to log in, easy and convenient to pay for school lunches and view menus and purchase history. Wish the convenience fee wasn’t so steep. What does that go toward? A portion or all should go back to the schools for kids that need lunches and are underprivileged. Or pay the balance for “free lunches” already being distributed.
Easy app to use, only thing disappointing is the service fee I find kind of high to use. Most parents work and have younger children in school and I personally rather put money into their account directly instead of sending it to school chancing it could get lost . But it is what it is
I enjoy being able to quickly add funds to my students account. In one easy transaction I can designate funds to each of my kids accounts and they have access to it very quickly. My only complaint is once my card is there I can’t remove it from the drop down list even if I add a new one.
Maybe there’s an update for this app? It’s not showing in my App Store. I appreciate this app to make payments and view menus but when I’m on it some of the windows open and block other things. It doesn’t let me scroll with ease. I also would love to be able to print the monthly menu. That way I can post it in my home and the kids can look at it when they want, as opposed to me having to get my phone and bring up the app. It’s not always convenient in a morning rush!
SchoolCafé is powered by PrimeroEdge, the leading school nutrition management software for K-12 school districts and food service providers in the United States. Parents: Manage your child's cafeteria account. Apply for free or reduced meals. Make payments, view purchase history, receive low balance alerts, and view school menus containing nutritional and allergen information for items. For convenience, setup automatic payments to replenish your child's cafeteria funds. Know what is on the menu at the school cafeteria and provide feedback by rating and sharing items. Favorite your child's favorite items and SchoolCafé will send you a push notification to let you know when it's on the menu. Students and Staff: Use SchoolCafé to check out what's available on the cafeteria menu each day. View nutritional and allergen information to help you make healthy decisions. Use "Make a Tray" to build your meal for the items available that day and see the combined nutrient information. Give your feedback to the school cafeteria by rating items. Favorite specific items on the menu so that you can know when they'll be available in the cafeteria. Connect to your cafeteria account to always know your account balance and have access to your digital ID card. District Administrators: View helpful reports and useful analytics for users in your districts and help them manage their accounts. SchoolCafé is available for participating schools only.
