Describe your event, meals, and deadline. Makeform builds a survey that separates preferences from allergies, connects requests to named attendees, and supports accurate catering counts.
Send dietary responses to Google Sheets, Slack, and Zapier.
Sample prompts for the survey builder
Choose a prompt, tailor it to your menu, or send it to the builder. The fields are an example structure.
Audience
Registered conference attendees receiving lunch
Format
Meal-selection survey with conditional restriction details
Prompt size
360 chars
Example survey structure
Meal-selection survey with conditional restriction details
Name, email, and registration number
Which conference days will you attend?
Choose lunch for each day
Dietary preferences or restrictions
Do you have any food allergies?
Suggested routing tags
Standard meals
Dietary requests
Allergy review
Separate preferences from allergies, with a details box for preparation notes the caterer should review.
Step 1
Identify
attendee, dates, party members, and meals
Step 2
Separate
preferences, restrictions, and allergies
Step 3
Clarify
conditional details for each selected need
Step 4
Count
organized responses ready for catering review
Better meal planning
Structured fields separate preferences, allergies, guests, and menu choices for easier review.
Selecting a restriction opens its detail field; guests without one finish quickly.
Repeat meal and restriction questions per guest so every request has an owner.
Consistent fields make selections easier to sort and total before the final count.
Built around the gathering
Choose a scenario, then add the dates and meal options your venue supports.
Tie choices to attendance days and meal sessions.
Collect selections and restrictions for every named guest.
Use one profile across several scheduled meals.
Collect household quantities, serving slots, and contact details.
Survey workflow
Publish one link, then review exceptions before confirming quantities.
Provide dates, meal sessions, choices, deadline, and response unit.
Use caterer-recognized options and conditional prompts for relevant details.
Share the link and deadline, identifying attendees so duplicates can be reconciled.
Review complex responses, clarify ambiguity, and export final meal selections.
Survey vs email thread
A survey standardizes recurring questions while preserving guest context.
Field guide
Identify guests and meals, capture consistent selections, and isolate details for review.
Attendee identity
Match responses to registration records. For parties, repeat dietary questions by named guest rather than storing one household note.
Attendance and meals
Ask attendance before menu selections. Conditional sections hide meals a guest will miss and protect the count.
Dietary pattern
Offer only categories your provider uses, plus other for needs outside the list.
Allergy details
A dedicated allergy question supports careful review. Preserve the guest's allergen and preparation notes for follow-up.
Deadline and updates
Show the deadline and explain how to update an answer or clarify a request.
Internal handoff
Move standard selections into totals and keep complex requests in a separate review list.
Related tools
Pair dietary collection with an RSVP, catering request, or event-specific registration form using real Makeform tools.
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Open toolFAQ
Practical answers for planners, venues, and caterers preparing meals for a guest list.
It is a pre-event questionnaire that links attendance and menu choices with each guest's preferences, restrictions, and allergy details. Structured answers support meal totals; detail fields preserve requests for review.
Ask for attendee identity, attendance, applicable meals, menu choices, dietary pattern, avoided foods, and allergies. Add conditional fields for the affected guest and details, plus a deadline and correction method.
Yes. Separate questions let organizers total meal styles while routing allergy details for closer review. Include contact information so the caterer can clarify the guest's wording.
Repeat meal and dietary questions for each named attendee. Household quantity fields can count meal types, but allergy or restriction details should still identify the affected person.
Yes. Show allergy details after yes, an explanation after other, or meal choices only for attendance days. Relevant guests provide detail while everyone else sees a shorter survey.
Yes. Makeform offers unlimited free forms and responses, so you can generate, edit, publish, and collect the survey without a response cap. The paid tier removes the Makeform badge.
Review duplicates and unclear submissions. Share structured meal totals plus a separate allergy and complex-restriction list, preserving guest wording and contact information for the people handling meals.
Provide an organizer contact or survey link for corrections. Ask guests to identify their original registration, keep only the accepted choice in final totals, and state the change deadline.
Turn guest needs into a clear meal plan.
