Vendor Help

Run your kitchen, not our app.

Quick answers to the questions vendors ask most. Can't find what you need? Use our contact form (Vendor signup / payouts) and a real human will reply within one business day.

Onboarding & approval

From signup to approved listing in 7 steps. The links from your welcome email jump straight to the right section below.

1. Verify your email

After signup you'll get either a 6-digit code (current default) or a magic link in your inbox. Codes expire in 10 minutes; magic links last 24 hours. If you don't see the email within 5 minutes, check your spam folder — addingno-reply@biryanihub.co to your contacts helps future emails land in your inbox.

If the verification expires, log in and request a fresh one from the verify screen.

2. Complete your profile

Your dashboard shows an Onboarding checklist at the top of the Settings page. It pulls a live list of what's still needed straight from our completeness checker — the same list admins see. When every item turns green, you're cleared to submit for approval.

The bar is intentionally simple:

Restaurant name + address + phone
At least one restaurant photo
A manager/kitchen email (different from your owner login) so orders never get missed
At least one menu item with a real description (20+ characters), price, and photo
Owner ID + food license uploaded

3. Validate your address

We auto-validate the address you enter against Google Maps to make sure customers can find you and delivery distances are accurate. If our lookup can't match your address (rare for established restaurants), try the closest landmark or shopping-center address — you can fine-tune the pin on the map afterwards.

Cities outside our currently-active service area can still sign up; you'll be marked pending city activation and notified when we launch in your area. Texas-wide launch is our current focus.

4. Set your business hours

Open the Business Hours editor on Settings. Customers see your status (Open / Busy / Closed) auto-derived from these hours. You can also force- close for the day from your dashboard if the kitchen is overwhelmed — new orders pause without affecting your published schedule.

Tag the regional style — Hyderabadi, Lucknowi, Kolkata, etc. Customers search and filter by style, so untagged items are nearly invisible.
Use a real photo, natural light, no filters that change the food's color.
Write a real description — at least 20 characters, ideally 1–2 sentences. "Slow-cooked basmati rice layered with saffron-marinated chicken, finished dum-style" is great. "Chicken biryani" is not.
Set portion sizes honestly — under-portioning is the #1 cause of negative reviews.
Halal / vegetarian flags matter for customer discovery filters.

6. Upload your documents

Required at submission time:

Owner government ID — driver's license or passport, matching the name on your account
Food service license — state- or county-issued health/food permit

Optional but encouraged (unlocks tier features later):

EIN or Tax ID document
Bank verification letter (required before your first payout)

All documents are encrypted at rest and only visible to BiryaniHub admins reviewing your application.

7. Submit & wait for approval

When every checklist item is green, click Submit for approval. Admin review typically happens within one business day. You'll get an email either way:

Approved — your listing goes live within minutes. We pre-fill four draft biryani menu items as starting points; you can edit prices, swap photos, then publish.
Needs more info — you'll get a specific list of what to fix, deep-linked to the right settings page. Make the fixes and submit again — no deadline.

If you don't hear back in 2 business days, message support with your business name and signup email and we'll find out where you're stuck in the queue.

Getting started (the older way)

How do I list my restaurant?

Go to /register, paste your Google Maps link, and we auto-fill most of your business details. Verify by OTP, upload your food service license + EIN, and your application enters the admin queue. Approval typically takes 1–3 business days.

What documents do I need?

Food service license (state or county-issued)
EIN or Tax ID document
Owner government ID (driver's license or passport)
Bank verification letter (for payouts)

All documents are encrypted at rest and only visible to BiryaniHub admins reviewing your application.

Menu management

What makes a great biryani listing?

Honest spice level — customers trust you more than algorithms. Mark "extra-spicy" only if it really is.
Real photos — natural light, no filters that change the food's color.
Tag the regional style — Hyderabadi dum, Lucknowi pukki, Kolkata, etc. Discovery rewards specificity.
Set portion sizes accurately — under-portioning is the #1 cause of negative reviews.

Why is my menu item flagged as "non-biryani"?

Our system auto-flags items whose category or description doesn't match a biryani profile. This isn't permanent — items in flagged state still show on your menu, just with reduced visibility in featured lists. Add the missing tags (biryani style, meat type) and the flag clears automatically.

Orders

How fast do I need to accept an order?

Within 5 minutes during open hours. After that the order auto-cancels and the customer is refunded. Repeated auto-cancellations affect your search ranking.

What if I run out of an item mid-day?

Toggle the item to "unavailable" from the menu page — it disappears from customer browse instantly. When you restock, toggle back. Don't delete the item.

Can I close the kitchen early?

Set kitchen status to "Closed" from your dashboard. New orders stop immediately. Existing accepted orders still need to be fulfilled.

Payments + payouts

When do I get paid?

Weekly bank transfers, every Tuesday for the prior week's completed orders. Refunded orders are deducted from the next payout.

Why was a transaction refunded?

Common reasons: customer cancellation before acceptance, vendor auto-cancellation (timeout), item unavailable at time of fulfillment, customer-reported quality issue resolved in their favor. All refunds are visible in your portal under Settings → Payouts.

Reviews

Can I respond to a review?

Yes — open the review and click "Respond." Your response is public. Only customers who actually placed and received an order can leave reviews.

How do I report an unfair review?

Click "Flag" on the review with a reason. Our moderation team reviews flagged items within 24 hours. We remove reviews that violate our guidelines (off-topic, profane, demonstrably false).