Alcohol Menu Items

Overview

When creating or editing a menu item in the Otter Dashboard, there is a section within the item details that allows you to mark the item as containing alcohol. Proper tagging of alcoholic items is essential for delivery channels and businesses to avoid compliance issues.

This allows the eater to be informed about the item's contents, but also alerts them that there are special rules around purchasing alcohol.

Tagging an Alcoholic Item

Follow the steps below to mark a menu item as containing alcohol.

Step 1

From the Otter Dashboard, select Apps > Menus.
Step 2

Select the menu you’d like to edit.

Click on the item you’d like to tag or click [+Add item] if creating a new item.
Step 3

Scroll to the Alcohol section.

Select corresponding alcohol type from the drop-down list.
Step 4

Once all edits are made, click [Save].
Step 5

Click [Publish] to publish menu updates.

Select all locations and delivery channels you'd like to apply changes, then click [Publish menu].

Info Non-alcoholic Menu Items

If a menu item does not contain alcohol, select Non-alcoholic from the drop down option under the Alcohol section.

Bulk Alcohol Tagging

To add or update alcohol information for multiple menu items, follow the steps below.

Same Alcohol Selection for Bulk Updating

All items checked to bulk update for alcohol tagging will all be updated to the same alcohol selection chosen. At this time, there isn’t a feature that allows you to choose different alcohol selections for multiple items at once.

Example:

You select menu items Draft Beer and Bottled Beer to bulk update— you would select alcohol tag Beer to apply to both items.

If you selected menu items Hard Cider and Long Island Iced Tea— you could not choose Cider for the Hard Cider item and choose Liquor for the Long Island Iced Tea while bulk updating. These would need to be done separately since they need different alcohol tag selections.

Step	Process	Image
1	From the Otter Dashboard, select Apps > Menus.
2	Select the menu you’d like to edit. Check all items you’d like to update.
3	Click [Edit alcohol setting].
4	Select corresponding alcohol type from the drop-down list. Note: If an item already has an alcohol tag, it will be overwritten with updated selection. Click [Save].
5	Click [Publish] to publish menu updates. Select all locations and delivery channels you'd like to apply changes, then click [Publish menu].

Alcohol Menu Item Alerts

Once a menu item has been marked as alcohol and published, if supported by the platform, it will indicate to the eater or user that the menu item contains alcohol. Some platforms will also display any special instructions or restrictions around purchasing that menu item— to comply with any regulations for that area or platform.

Check out examples of these alcohol menu item alerts below.

Delivery Platform Alcohol Purchasing Alert Examples:

DoorDash US Alcohol Alert Example
DoorDash CA Alcohol Alert Example
Uber Eats Alcohol Alert Example
Skip the Dishes Alcohol Alert Example

Other Platform Alcohol Purchasing Alert Examples:

Otter POS Alcohol Tag Example
Direct Online Order Alcohol Alert Example

FAQs

It’s possible the alcohol tag for a menu item will not appear when previewing your menu. However, when your menu is published, it should show as expected for the platform published to.

Still need help? Reach out to our team:

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Updated March 13, 2025 19:10