Food Ordering System in ASP.NET Core MVC [Part 2] : Project Setup & Architecture (2026)

In Part 2 of this series, we are diving deep into the Project Setup and Architecture for our Food Ordering System in ASP.NET Core MVC. We’ll configure the folder structure, set up the initial dependencies, and prepare our solution for a scalable, professional build.

Part 2 Chapters:

• Intro & Project Overview
• Choosing the ASP.NET Core MVC Template
• Configuring Project Name & Location
• Modern Project Structure Explained (Folders & Files)
• Setting Up the Solution & Architecture
• Managing NuGet Packages & Dependencies
• Configuring Program.cs for Development
• Running the App for the First Time

Use .NET 8 LTS (Recommended for stability)

.NET 8 is the current Long-Term Support version with better stability:

🚀 Setup Instructions

1. Create Project:

dotnet new mvc -n FoodOrderingSystem
cd FoodOrderingSystem

2. Install Packages:

# Clean existing packages
dotnet clean

# Remove old package references and add correct versions
dotnet remove package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer
dotnet remove package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Tools

dotnet add package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer --version 7.0.20
dotnet add package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.Tools --version 7.0.20
dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json

# Restore and build
dotnet restore
dotnet build

Need Some Configuration > Open Program.cs
add the below code. 
// Add Session support
builder.Services.AddDistributedMemoryCache();
builder.Services.AddSession(options =>
{
    options.IdleTimeout = TimeSpan.FromMinutes(30);
    options.Cookie.HttpOnly = true;
    options.Cookie.IsEssential = true;
});


app.UseSession();