What is a point-of-sale system for an Australian restaurant?
POS stands for point of sale: the terminal or till where staff record a table's order and take payment. A management system covers bookings, the menu, kitchen orders, stock and reports.
Short answer
- A point-of-sale (POS) system is the terminal or till where staff record orders and take payment.
- A restaurant management system covers bookings, the menu, kitchen orders, stock and reports.
- Check in writing what each supplier covers, and what sits outside it.
- Table orders go to the kitchen from the application, not on handwritten tickets.
- Reports by day, by dish and by waiter show what sold.
What a restaurant system is made of
The components of a restaurant system in a venue with a kitchen
| Component | What it does | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Table order | Records table orders and sends them to the kitchen | On the floor, on the device the team uses |
| Kitchen | Receives orders sent from the tables | In the kitchen |
| Payment and receipts | Takes payment and issues the customer's receipt | On your own till, outside the application |
| Stock levels | Shows the stock level of each ingredient | In the same application as the menu |
| Reports | Sales by day, by dish and by waiter | In the management panel |
What the rules say
- Receipts follow ATO rules. Check with your accountant what your till must show.
- The application does not take payment; your own till does.
- Menu prices and allergen information must be clear to customers (Food Standards Code).
- Keep sales records for the period your accountant advises.
Practical example
Example: table 12 orders two pasta dishes. The waiter sends the order, and the kitchen receives both dishes.
At payment, your own till records the sale. The daily report shows sales by dish and waiter.
Common mistakes
- Choosing a system that does not match the till you already use.
- Not noting each order's table and time, so you cannot trace what left the kitchen.
- Dishes without a recipe card hide which ingredients each sale uses.
- Not noting the reason for each cancellation, so a cancelled order is hard to trace.
How 4restaurants.net helps
- The table order is sent to the kitchen from the same application.
- Recipe cards, stock and orders share one account.
- Stock levels sit in the same application as the orders.
- Reports by day, by dish and by waiter show each service's sales.