The kitchen on rhythm, the functions on demand
Rostering for Australian caterers — weekly production crews on templates, weddings and corporate functions staffed by bidding from your casual pool, and GPS clock-in that works at whatever venue the truck parks at.
Catering is two businesses in one — a steady kitchen and an unpredictable events diary. RosterMates runs both.
Two Businesses, One Team
The production kitchen needs a stable weekly rhythm; the functions diary swings from nothing to three events a weekend. Weekly rosters run one, the events calendar runs the other — same staff, same system.
Staffing the Saturday Wedding
Publish the function's positions for bidding and the casual pool applies from the app. You confirm the crew; extras queue on a waitlist as ready-made backups for the inevitable Friday text.
Hours at Someone Else's Venue
The function is at a winery an hour away. Set its location on the event and staff geofence-clock in when they arrive — off-site hours land as solidly as kitchen ones.
Certificates Across a Casual Pool
Food safety in the kitchen, RSAs on the function floor — recorded per person with expiries and reminders, and enforced by position approvals when the crew is being confirmed.
Functions That Run Long
The reception went two hours over. Clock-outs capture the real finish, timesheets show rostered versus actual, and the manager decides what's paid — with a note, not an argument.
Costing Each Event
Labour per function is visible once the hours are in — so quoting the next wedding starts from what the last three actually cost, not a hopeful guess.
Purpose-built tools for caterers and event hospitality crews.
Kitchen Weekly Rosters
- Production crew on reusable weekly templates
- Prep, cook and pack areas with their own positions
- The head chef rosters the kitchen via permissions
- Wage estimates update as the week is built
- Leave and availability flagged before publish
Functions on the Events Calendar
- Weddings, corporate events and festivals as calendar events
- Per-day areas: service, bar, kitchen, logistics
- Positions with capacities and per-day times
- Multi-day festivals configured day by day
- Event managers staff their own functions
Bidding & Waitlists
- Function positions published to the casual pool
- Applications arrive from the app
- Confirm your crew; extras queue as backups
- Drop-outs replaced from the waitlist in a tap
- Open offers for last-minute gaps
Anywhere Attendance
- Geofenced GPS clock-in at any function venue
- Kitchen kiosk with PIN or facial recognition
- Late clock-in alerts before service starts
- Real finish times captured on late pack-downs
- Location stamps on every off-site punch
Certificates & Compliance
- Food safety certificates tracked to expiry
- RSAs across the function-service pool
- Position approvals gate certified roles
- Event briefing forms completed before the day
- Incident reports filed from any venue
Event Costing & Payroll
- Labour cost visible per function
- Kitchen and event hours in one pay summary
- Weekends and holidays identifiable in the export
- Payroll-ready files for Xero, MYOB, KeyPay & Employment Hero
- Custom CSV matched to your payroll's import
How RosterMates helps Nadia run a catering company with a kitchen crew of 12 and a function pool of 45.
Monday — Kitchen Week Set
The standard kitchen template drops onto the week; the head chef swaps two prep shifts around a leave request the roster already flagged. Published by 9am.
Tuesday — Two Functions Published
Saturday's winery wedding and Sunday's corporate lunch go up for bidding: 22 positions between them. By Wednesday there are 31 applications; Nadia confirms crews and banks the extras on waitlists.
Thursday — RSA Check
One confirmed wedding server has an RSA expiring Friday — flagged automatically. She renews online that evening; the certificate date updates and the crew stands.
Saturday 7 AM — One Down
A server wakes up sick. Nadia confirms the top of the waitlist from her phone; his shift details, venue pin and briefing form arrive on his phone before his coffee.
Saturday 3 PM — On Site
Twelve staff geofence-clock in at the winery as they arrive. The reception runs 90 minutes over; clock-outs capture the real finish for every one of them.
Monday — Costed and Exported
The wedding's labour cost sits against the event — overrun included — sharpening the next quote. Kitchen and function hours export payroll-ready in one file.
The kitchen stays steady, the functions staff themselves, and every hour lands on the record.
Common questions from caterers and event hospitality operators.