A restaurant POS is more than a billing machine. It decides how fast orders reach the kitchen, whether bills are correct, and whether you can see where food cost and cash are leaking. Choosing the wrong one means slow service on the busiest night and numbers you cannot trust. Here is how to choose well, whether you run a cafe, a family restaurant, a dhaba or a cloud kitchen.
Start with your service style
Different outlets need different things. Write down which of these apply to you:
- Dine-in with tables: table layout, waiter ordering, KOT, split bills.
- Quick service or cafe: fast counter billing, token numbers, combos.
- Takeaway and delivery: phone orders, customer addresses, delivery status.
- Cloud kitchen: orders from several channels on one screen, prep time tracking.
- Hotel restaurant or banquet: room billing, events and advance bookings.
Features to check
Order taking and KOT
- Quick item entry with modifiers (less spicy, no onion, extra cheese) and notes.
- KOT (kitchen order ticket) printed at the right station, for example tandoor, Chinese and beverages, or shown on a kitchen display screen.
- Waiter ordering from a phone or tablet so they do not walk back to the counter.
- Clear handling of cancelled and changed items, with a reason, to stop misuse.
Billing and payments
- Split, merge and transfer tables and bills.
- Discounts with user rights, service charge only as permitted, and correct GST on the bill.
- UPI, card, cash and part payments, with a cash closing report at shift end.
- Bills on WhatsApp or SMS if the guest prefers no paper.
GST rules for restaurants depend on the type of outlet and premises, and rates can change, so set them up with your CA rather than relying on a default. Our GST billing checklist explains the general invoice requirements.
QR menu and self-ordering
A QR code on the table lets guests browse the menu with photos and, if you allow it, place orders that go straight to the kitchen. It reduces waiting at peak hours. Make sure QR orders are linked to the table, staff can approve them, and the menu updates instantly when an item runs out.
Recipe-based inventory
This is where most restaurants lose money without noticing. With recipes set up, each dish sold deducts its raw materials automatically. Comparing expected stock with actual stock shows wastage, over-portioning or theft. Look for low-stock alerts, purchase entry and a daily or weekly variance report.
Online orders
If you take orders from food delivery apps and your own website, a central order screen saves you from juggling several tablets. Integration depends on what each aggregator allows, so ask the vendor exactly which platforms are connected today, not "coming soon". Orders from your own website or WhatsApp have no commission, which is why many restaurants add their own ordering page.
Reports owners actually use
- Daily sales and cash closing.
- Item-wise sales and margins: which dishes make money, which only fill the menu.
- Peak hours, to plan staff.
- Waiter-wise sales, discounts and cancellations.
Hardware checklist
| Item | What to check |
|---|---|
| Billing terminal | Works on a normal Windows PC, Android tablet or both |
| Printers | Thermal bill printer and separate KOT printers per kitchen station |
| Kitchen display (optional) | Replaces paper KOT, shows order age and priority |
| Waiter devices | Phones or tablets on the same Wi-Fi |
| Cash drawer and scanner | Needed mainly for bakeries and quick service |
What if the internet goes down?
Ask this in every demo. A good POS keeps billing and KOT working on the local network during an outage and syncs to the cloud when the connection returns. A system that stops billing when the internet drops will cost you sales and goodwill.
Ready-made POS or custom POS?
Subscription POS products are fast to start and fine for a standard cafe or restaurant. A custom POS makes sense when you have several outlets, a central kitchen, special menus or pricing, your own delivery fleet or a need to connect the POS with accounting, CRM or loyalty programmes. You also avoid per-outlet fees growing every year. Read custom vs off-the-shelf software to decide.
Questions to ask before you buy
- Show me a full order: table, KOT to two stations, a change, a split bill and payment.
- How does it behave without internet?
- Which delivery apps are connected today?
- What is the total yearly cost per outlet, including support, updates and hardware?
- Can I export all my sales and stock data any time?
Next step
See our restaurant POS software and work for travel and hospitality businesses. If you want an honest opinion on what your outlet needs, book a free consultation.