Overview
The Template Editor lets you create the parent- and community-facing version of your school menus. You control what gets displayed, how it looks, and how families access it, whether through a link or embedded directly in your district website.
Each template can be assigned to one or more menu plans, styled with your preferred colors and fonts, and configured to show exactly the information you want parents to see.
Want to change the categories on your meals (Entrée, Sides, and so on)? Those live on the meal template, not this public menu template. See Changing a Meal Template. This editor only controls how the family and community menu looks.
Set Menu Plan Display Settings
By default, the public menu shows the internal name of each menu plan. To give it a family-friendly label:
1. Navigate to the relevant menu plan setting (outside the Template Editor).
2. Find the Public menu name field and enter a display name, for example "Fall Menu" instead of "October-November 25-26".
Note: You can also hide a menu plan from the public menu entirely using the Hide from public menu toggle on the menu plan. |
Open the Template Editor
Click on the : menu and select Template editor
1. Existing templates appear as tabs at the top (e.g., MS template, ES template).
2. To create a new template, click + Add template (top right).
3. To edit an existing template, click its tab.
Sharing Your Public Menu
There are two ways to get the public menu in front of families: share a direct link, or embed the menu in your district website. Both are reached from the three-dots (⋮) menu on the Menu plans page, and both stay fully interactive: families can open recipes and view item details.
Share a Link
From the Menu plans page, click the three-dots (⋮) menu and choose Share link. The Public Menu Links dialog opens with a unique link for each school: copy an individual link, or use Copy all links to grab them all at once.
Each link opens the public menu in its own page (you can also copy the URL from the Preview page).
Families can select which menu plan or school to view, switch between weekly and monthly views, filter by allergen, and export to PDF.
Use the Hide school navigation toggle in the dialog if you don't want families switching between schools from the public menu.
What Families See in the Menu and School Pickers
The menu picker offers every active menu plan that is published to the public menu, including plans that start later than the week being viewed. A family looking at the week before school starts can still select the menu that begins the following week.
If the week being viewed has no published menu yet, the page says which week menus begin, rather than asking the family to try another date.
The school picker shows schools only. Central kitchens and warehouses are not offered, since families do not eat at them.
Embed in Your Website
The menu can be embedded directly into your district website as an inline frame, so it appears as a seamless part of your site. The embed is the same public menu wrapped in an <iframe> tag.
In the editor's top bar, click Embed (<>).
Copy the embed code provided.
Share the code with your IT team to insert it into the appropriate page.
Note: Embedding requires IT or web administrator access. The menu updates automatically whenever you publish changes in Gaia, no need to re-share the link. |
Export / Print
You don't need to share a link to view or print the public menu yourself. From Menu or from a School Menu, click Tools to open the public menu directly.
Click the Printer Icon on the bottom right of the screen to export to PDF.
Print options allow to show hide different menu attributes to help administrators and families customize the print out and fit menus into 1 page.
Display: Click on the chips to show / hide custom sections or detailed information inside meal cards
Settings: Choose toggle to select font size, density, and color.
Weeks or date range: Choose a number of weeks, or a custom date range, to fit the menu on 1 page
Configure General Settings
In the left panel under General:
• Template name: Enter an internal name (e.g., "MS template"). This is for your reference only.
• Assign menu plans: Use the dropdown to attach one or more menu plans. The template will display menus from all assigned plans.
• How far ahead the menu shows: Choose to show the full cycle (default) or only the next several weeks of an assigned plan. This doesn't affect whether the plan is hidden or visible, only how much of its future is revealed.
Tip: You can assign multiple menu plans to a single template, or create separate templates for different grade groups. |
Styling Your Template
Week Layout: Display days a calendar grid or as a list
Color Theme: Choose from preset color themes by clicking any swatch. The selected theme applies to the header row of each day column.
Headline font: Select a typeface for menu, meal card. and custom section titles.
The live preview panel updates in real time. Use the controls at the top of the preview to switch between menu plans, Week and Month views, and Desktop and Mobile. Click Preview to open a full-screen view.
Configuring Meal Cards
The Meal cards section controls what information appears inside each day's card on the public menu. Use the toggles under Display Options to:
Show/hide category names (Main, Sides, etc.): Displays the category header above each group of items.
Show/hide sub-category names: Displays labels such as Entrée, Salads & Deli, Protein, Fruits. This applies to the weekly view, the monthly view, and the monthly export.
Show/hide serving sizes: Displays the serving size for each item.
You can also manage which menu offerings are visible by clicking the Sub-Category chip to show or hide it
Daily Offerings Section
Use the Daily offerings section to pull out items available every day and display them in a persistent sidebar, instead of repeating them on every meal card. Ideal for items like a fruit and salad bar, daily pizza, or standing grab-and-go options.
Toggle Enable daily offerings section on.
Set the Column position (Left or Right).
Under Daily Lunch Offerings, use the dropdowns to select the sub-categories to list in the panel.
Use + Add Category to add more sub-categories as needed.
How it works: Categories added here are excluded from individual day cards and shown once in the sidebar, freeing up space in the day columns for items that change day to day. |
Custom Section
A flexible panel for announcements, images, links, or other information for families.
Toggle Enable custom section on.
Set the Column position (Left or Right).
Enter a Panel title (e.g., "Welcome Back").
Add a featured image and any custom text or links as needed.
Troubleshooting: If you are having issues with your public menu, please determine if
The school menu has been published
That the menu setting has been switched to "Visible in Public Menu"
That if it is a cycle menu, the cycle has an end date