Order Taking
The Order Taking screen is where every order on every table comes together. It’s the menu on the left, the running ticket on the right, and all the buttons to send the order to the kitchen at the bottom. You’ll spend most of your shift here.
You’ll land on this screen automatically after you:
- Open a table from Restaurant view
- Create a walk-in in Reception
- Open a new Quick Tab (counter / bar service — see Quick Tabs)
- Tap Order Taking in the bottom tab bar to pick up where you left off
The screen is split into two halves:
• Left (2/3): the menu — search, categories, and product cards
• Right (1/3): the sidebar — whichever table or tab you’re working, the draft items you’ve added, and the buttons to fire or pay
Tapping a product on the left adds it to whatever is showing on the right.
The top bar
Three controls sit along the top of the menu side:
- Left — menu switcher: the three-lines icon plus the current menu name (e.g. Dinner, Brunch, Late Night). Tap it to switch menus if your venue has more than one.
- Middle — search: “Search menu” bar. Type any part of an item’s name to jump straight to it. Results show as a scrollable 4-column grid. Tap the × on the right of the bar to clear the search.
- Search bar left — allergen filter: the small i (info) icon. Tap it to hide any item that contains allergens you pick (great when a guest has an allergy). The icon turns amber while the filter is on.
Categories and the product grid
Under the top bar is a row of category tabs (Starters, Mains, Drinks…). Tap a category to show its items in the grid below. The first category is selected automatically when you arrive.
Items appear as colour-coded cards in a 4-column grid. Each card shows:
- The item name
- The price
- A quantity badge in the top-right (appears once you’ve added one or more to the current order)
- A red prohibit icon overlay if the item is 86’d (see 86’d items)
- An amber warning overlay if the item matches your current allergen filter
Adding an item
Tap a product card
If the item has no modifiers, it’s added to the current order right away and you’ll see the quantity badge on the card tick up.
If the item has modifiers, the modify screen pops up
Pick the modifiers, set the quantity, and optionally add a note. Required modifier groups are marked Required in red; the Add to table button stays dimmed until every required group has enough picks.
Tap “Add to table [table]”
The modal closes and the item lands in the sidebar draft. The button also shows the running price for what you just selected.
Tap the same card again to add another one — no modifier pop-up the second time, it just increments the quantity in the sidebar. Tapping the card three times fast adds three — the iPad handles rapid taps cleanly.
The modifier screen
- Each modifier group is a section with its name, whether it’s Required or Optional, and a hint underneath like “Select one option” or “Select up to 2 options (minimum 1)”.
- Tap a modifier to toggle it. Single-select groups auto-swap (tap one, the previous one is deselected). Multi-select groups grey out once you hit the max.
- Tick marks appear on selected modifiers.
- Bottom-left: a quantity control with −, the current count, and +. When the count is 1, the left button becomes a red bin — tap it to cancel.
- Bottom-right: the Add to table [table number] button with the live total. It stays dimmed and labelled “Complete required selections” until every required group is satisfied. Tapping it early scrolls to the first missing group and flashes it red.
- Top-right × closes without adding.
The quantity screen (items without modifiers)
If an item has no modifiers, tapping an existing item in the sidebar opens a smaller quantity-only popup: −, a number, +, and a blue Update Quantity button (only shown if you actually changed the number). When the quantity is 1, the − turns into a red bin — tap it to remove the item instead.
The sidebar — your current order
Everything about the table or tab you’re working is on the right. What it looks like depends on whether you’ve selected one yet.
When nothing is selected — “New tab”
You’ll see a “No tab selected” wine-glass icon and one or two big option cards, depending on your iPad’s mode:
- New Tab (Full service) — Create a tab with ticket fulfilment. Guests pay later. Tap it to go back to Restaurant view and pick a table. A banner appears there — only empty tables are tappable while you’re in that flow.
- New Quick Tab (Quick service) — Create a tab with ticket fulfilment. Guests pay now. Opens a numbered counter tab (see Quick Tabs).
In Quick Service mode, a Quick Tabs button sits in the top-right of this view for jumping into the grid of all open counter tabs.
When a table is selected
The sidebar swaps to the table order sidebar:
- Top-left: the table label (e.g. T11, or T5/T8 if tables are joined) plus a small Change pill for switching to a different open table without losing your spot
- Top-right: two icons with numbers — the receipt icon (ticket count for this table) and the people icon (guest count). Tap either to jump to that view.
- Middle: the list of items in the current draft ticket, grouped by menu category. If no items yet, you’ll see “Start adding items” and an Unselect Table pill at the bottom.
- Bottom (footer): Allergies, Note, Discount, Total, and the Fire ticket + Pay buttons.
If your venue uses Reception mode and you’ve selected a table that hasn’t been seated yet, the sidebar shows “[Table] is available — To seat guests, go to Reception and create a new walk-in.” You can’t add items until the table is seated through Reception. See Seating guests when Reception mode is on.
When a quick tab is selected
Same layout, simpler header:
- Top-left: a back arrow (to return to the Quick Tabs grid), the tab label Q#5, and a small bin icon for clearing everything from the draft
- Top-right: the Quick Tabs button to jump back to the grid
- Footer: no Fire ticket button — quick tabs use Fire & Pay instead (see Quick Tabs)
- A To go toggle in the footer (quick tabs default to whatever your venue’s Quick Service setting says)
Working with items in the sidebar
Each line in the sidebar shows:
- Quantity and item name (e.g. 2 × Truffle Fries)
- Modifiers listed underneath in grey
- The item price on the right
- A yellow discount pill under the item if a discount is applied
Swipe an item left for three actions
Swipe the item to the left
Three buttons slide in from the right edge.
Choose an action
- Lightning (Rush) — marks the item as rush so the kitchen bumps it up the queue. The icon fills in when it’s on.
- Tag (Discount) — opens the discount screen for just this item (see Discounts).
- Bin (Delete) — removes the item. If the item is already on a fired ticket, a reason screen pops up first (Walkout, Comp, Staff error, Customer complaint, Other).
The swipe actions don’t include edit — tap the item row itself to re-open its modifier and quantity screen.
Tap an item to edit it
Tapping a line opens the modifier or quantity screen again, pre-filled with what’s already on the item. Change quantity, modifiers, or notes and tap Update.
Notes, allergies and discounts
Three rows sit at the top of the sidebar footer — each is either a ”+ Add…” link or, once filled in, a summary with a small grey × to clear it.
Add Note (per ticket)
Tap + Add note to open a small text box. Type anything the kitchen needs to know — “Table in a rush”, “VIP, send drinks first”, “Birthday — plate the dessert with a candle”. Tap Save. The note prints on the kitchen ticket and is shown on the Kitchen Display.
Allergies (per ticket)
The + Add allergies link only shows up if at least one item in the draft has allergens logged against it in your menu. Tap it and you’ll see every allergen that applies to the items currently on the ticket — tick the ones the guests are avoiding and save. The flagged allergens print on the kitchen ticket in amber and are shown on the Kitchen Display.
Two different things, both using allergens:
• Allergies in the footer — tells the kitchen what the guests at this table are allergic to. Doesn’t hide anything from you.
• Allergen filter (the i icon in the search bar) — hides menu items from the grid so you can’t accidentally ring one up for an allergic guest.
Turn both on for a guest with a serious allergy: the filter stops you adding the wrong item, the ticket note warns the kitchen.
Discounts
Tap + Add discount in the footer to apply a discount to the whole ticket, or use the Tag action on a single item (swipe left → Tag) to discount just that item.
- Presets (configured in the Dashboard) show as big buttons — tap one to pre-fill the amount and type. You’ll get a screen to optionally add a reason, then Apply.
- Custom Amount lets you key in any value and pick % or $. This needs manager permission in most venues.
Applied discounts show:
- A yellow pill under each discounted item with the discount name
- A rolled-up Discount −$X.XX line under the footer Total, with each preset listed under it
To remove a discount, swipe the item left → bin, or tap the pill to re-open the discount screen.
Firing the order to the kitchen
Items you add sit in a draft ticket until you fire it. Draft items are visible in the sidebar list (so you can see what you’ve staged), but the kitchen hasn’t seen them yet — nothing prints, nothing shows on the KDS, nothing counts toward the bill total.
Draft tickets don’t count toward the table total. Tapping Pay with unfired items shows a warning: “Order has draft tickets that haven’t been fired yet. Draft tickets are NOT included in order total.” Always fire first — or the guest won’t be charged for those items.
Tap “Fire ticket” in the sidebar footer
The sidebar slides to the Fire order view.
(Optional) Pick a course
A row of four tabs — Starter, Main, Dessert, Drinks. Tap one to tag the ticket with a course; tap again to clear it. The kitchen uses the course to plan timing (e.g. hold dessert until mains are clear).
Set the ticket options
Five toggles:
- Rush ticket — bumps the whole ticket up the queue. Off by default.
- Print ticket — prints a paper ticket at the kitchen printer(s) you’ve configured for this course. On by default.
- Send to Kitchen Display — shows the ticket on the KDS screens. On by default.
- To go — marks the order as takeaway rather than dine-in.
- Schedule ticket — delays the fire by 10 / 20 / 30 / 40 / 50 minutes. Tap it to expand the time picker. Use for a party that wants mains delivered later.
Tap “Fire order”
The ticket flips from Draft to Fired. The kitchen printer prints (if on), the KDS displays it (if on), and the sidebar empties and is ready for the next course. The ticket now counts toward the table total.
• Drinks first: pick Drinks as the course and fire. Bartender gets it immediately.
• Starters and mains together: fire starters with course Starter, then build the mains order without firing. Once starters are served, fire mains.
• Desserts later: build the dessert order and use Schedule ticket or just hold the fire until the table’s ready.
The Tickets view — everything already fired
Tap the receipt icon at the top of the sidebar (the one with the ticket count) to see every ticket for this table — not just the current draft. Each ticket is a collapsible card showing its items and one of these statuses:
| Status | Colour | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Draft | Red | Not fired yet — still editable. |
| Pending | Orange | Fired but not yet picked up by the kitchen. |
| Fired | Grey | Sent to the kitchen. |
| In progress | Yellow | Kitchen is actively cooking. |
| Prepared | Green | Ready for pickup. |
| Served | Green | Delivered to the table. |
Tap a card to expand and see the items. Depending on the status, different action buttons appear at the bottom of the expanded card:
- Draft ticket: Edit ticket (loads it back into the sidebar for editing) and Fire ticket
- Pending / Fired / In progress: Served (skip straight to served if you delivered without waiting for the KDS) and Unfire to edit (pulls it back to draft — asks for a reason like Walkout, Comp, Staff error, Customer complaint, or Other)
- Prepared: Mark as served (green button)
- The split / move icon (Full service only) opens the Move ticket flow
Swipe any item in a ticket left to void that single item — the same five reason options apply.
Why you’d unfire a ticket
Guests change their mind, the kitchen hasn’t started yet, or a server rang up the wrong item. Unfire to edit sends a void note to the kitchen, pulls the ticket back to Draft in your sidebar, and you can edit and re-fire it. The reason you pick is stored on the ticket and shows up in reporting.
Unfiring a ticket whose food is already cooking wastes food and annoys the kitchen. Check with the kitchen before unfiring anything that’s In progress or Prepared.
Multiple tickets on one table (split bills)
Every table can hold many tickets — one per bill. By default, new items go onto whichever draft ticket is active. To start a separate ticket on the same table (so it can be billed on its own card), fire the current draft first. The next item you add will start a new draft ticket alongside the fired ones.
You’ll see all the tickets in the Tickets view with numbers 1, 2, 3… and can fire, pay or move each one independently.
Moving a ticket to another table
If you accidentally rang a ticket on the wrong table (it happens), or a guest wants to pay on a different tab:
Open the Tickets view
Tap the receipt icon at the top of the sidebar.
Find the ticket and tap the split icon
The small icon in the bottom-right of the ticket’s action row.
Pick the destination table
A list of all other open tables appears. Tap one.
Confirm
The ticket moves. Its items go with it. The original table stays open (in case it has other tickets).
Changing the table or guest count
Change table (Full service)
The small Change pill next to the table name lets you switch the whole sidebar to a different open table without losing your current draft. Useful if you realise you’re on the wrong table mid-order — no need to walk back to the floor plan.
Change guest count
Tap the people icon (with the current guest count) at the top of the sidebar. A grid of numbers 1–14 plus Custom slides in. Pick the correct number and tap Change guests — X guests.
Unselect table
At the bottom of the empty-state sidebar (when no items have been added yet), an Unselect Table pill lets you drop the table so you can pick a different one. Only shows when the draft is empty.
86’d items
When the kitchen runs out of something, 86 it so nobody rings it up. 86’d items show with a red prohibit icon overlay on their product card and are unclickable — tapping does nothing.
Press and hold the product card
After about a third of a second, a small menu pops up with the item’s name and its allergens.
Tap “86 Item”
The card instantly grey-outs across every iPad in the venue. Search also respects it.
To bring an item back, press and hold it again and tap Mark as Available (now with a green tick).
Most venues set this as manager-only. If you don’t have permission, a manager PIN screen appears — just hand the iPad to a manager to override.
Quick Tabs
Quick Tabs are ticket-first orders that aren’t tied to a table — counter service, bar tabs, takeaway. Each one gets a number like Q#1, Q#2, etc.
You’ll only see Quick Tabs if your iPad has Quick service turned on in Devices.
Opening a quick tab
From the sidebar new-tab view, tap New Quick Tab. A new tab opens and its number appears at the top of the sidebar. In pure Quick service mode (no tables at all), tapping a product when no tab is selected automatically opens a new quick tab and adds the item to it.
The Quick Tabs grid
Tap the Quick Tabs pill in the sidebar header to see every quick tab in one screen, split into three tabs:
- Draft — built but not fired yet
- In Progress — fired, being prepared, or ready
- Completed — paid or served
Each card shows the Q# number, the items on the tab, the running time, and the status colour. Tap a card to jump into that tab; tap New in the top-right to spin up another one; tap the circular arrow to refresh the grid.
Fire & Pay
Quick tabs don’t have a separate Fire ticket button — the footer shows a Fire order & pay now button instead. Tapping it opens the same Fire order screen, and on Fire order & pay now it fires the ticket and sends you straight to the Payments screen with the total pre-loaded.
Clearing and unselecting
- The bin icon next to the Q# label in the header wipes the current draft of items (handy if a guest changes their mind).
- The back arrow keeps the tab open behind the scenes but returns you to the Quick Tabs grid to pick a different one.
Auto-completing quick tabs
If your iPad has Auto-complete quick tabs turned on (Settings → Quick Service), in-progress quick tabs move themselves from In Progress to Completed after the duration you picked — 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 45, 60 minutes, or End of day (close with the Z-report).
Handy when nobody’s manually closing out each tab — counter service during a rush, or bar tabs that run all service. You don’t need to do anything on this screen; the tab just slides over to the Completed column on its own.
Taking payment
When the guests are ready to pay:
Fire any remaining items first
Check the sidebar — if there are still items in the draft, tap Fire ticket before paying. Draft items don’t count toward the total.
Tap “Pay”
The blue Pay button at the bottom of the sidebar shows the current total.
Confirm if the warning appears
If you still have draft items, you’ll see an alert: “Order has draft tickets that haven’t been fired yet. Draft tickets are NOT included in order total.” Tap Cancel to go back and fire them, or Proceed to continue and come back for them later.
Complete the payment
You land on the Payments screen. See the Payments page for cash / card / split payment flows.
For Quick Tabs, skip steps 1–3 — use Fire order & pay now instead.
How other modes change the picture
| Modes on this iPad | What’s different on Order Taking |
|---|---|
| Full service only | Everything works as described above. New Tab card in the empty sidebar; Pay goes to checkout. |
| Quick service only | No tables. Tapping a product without a tab auto-opens a New Quick Tab. Sidebar footer shows Fire & Pay instead of separate Fire + Pay. |
| Full service + Quick service | Both New Tab and New Quick Tab cards appear on the empty sidebar. Switch between the two with the header arrows / Quick Tabs button. |
| Full service + Reception | Empty tables can’t be opened from here — sidebar shows “[Table] is available — To seat guests, go to Reception and create a new walk-in.” See Reception. |
Quick recap — the moves you’ll do every shift
- New items → tap a product card. If modifiers → pick them → Add to table. If not → it’s on the ticket instantly.
- Edit an item → tap its line in the sidebar.
- Remove an item → swipe it left → bin.
- Rush an item → swipe it left → lightning.
- Discount an item → swipe it left → tag.
- Discount the ticket → footer + Add discount.
- Note for the kitchen → footer + Add note.
- Allergies → footer + Add allergies (only if items have allergens logged).
- Fire to the kitchen → footer Fire ticket → pick course and options → Fire order.
- See every ticket on the table → receipt icon at the top.
- Wrong table → Change pill next to the table name.
- Takeaway sale at the counter → New Quick Tab → add items → Fire order & pay now.
- Item out of stock → long-press the product card → 86 Item.
Next steps
- Payments — Split bills, cash, card, Adyen terminal
- Kitchen Display (KDS) — How fired tickets show up for the kitchen
- Handheld Mode — Taking orders tableside on an iPhone