Restaurant software: POS, orders & kitchen handoffs — buying checklist
From: https://www.iwantmywebsitenow.com/industry/food/restaurant/
Workflow sources checked: 2026-10-01. Prices have separate capture dates.

Use this with a vendor or a builder. These are proposed evaluation tests, not claims that any product passed them.

YOUR BUSINESS
Current software:
What must work differently:
Records to bring across:
Budget and timing:

QUESTIONS TO TEST
1. One menu across channels
Ask: Do sold-out items, modifier rules, prices and taxes stay aligned?
Demonstrate: Change a sample item and modifier; submit dine-in and online orders and compare kitchen tickets and receipts.
Observed result:
Follow-up:

2. Kitchen routing and timing
Ask: Does each ticket reach the right station at the right time, including future orders?
Demonstrate: Place immediate and scheduled tickets with different prep items; verify destination and fire time.
Observed result:
Follow-up:

3. Payment closeout
Ask: Can staff reconcile discounts, tax, tips, refunds, fees and deposits?
Demonstrate: Run synthetic transactions across channels, issue a partial refund and compare POS reports with processor settlement.
Observed result:
Follow-up:

4. Failure and recovery
Ask: What happens if the network, hardware or an integration fails?
Demonstrate: Ask the vendor to demonstrate documented failure and recovery behavior; check how duplicate tickets are prevented.
Observed result:
Follow-up:

DEMO SCENARIO (SYNTHETIC)
Use a Friday rush with a scheduled pickup
1. Build a small menu with a modifier and sold-out item; compare dine-in and online behavior.
2. Submit an immediate order and a later pickup; verify kitchen ticket timing and channel.
3. Apply a discount, tax, tip and partial refund to synthetic transactions.
4. Reconcile day closeout with settlement and inspect how a failed or duplicated order is caught.

MIGRATION
Migrate menus, gift balances and guest records carefully
Inventory menus, modifiers, tax rules, employee roles, gift cards, loyalty, reservations, open checks, online-order settings, domain, guest consent and payment devices. Ask which balances transfer and who owns the domain. Validate sample tickets, gift totals and closeout; coordinate the processor, hardware and kitchen cutover.

A POSSIBLE FIRST BUILD
A custom site may solve a narrow need while the POS remains authoritative. Live ordering and payments require supported connections, duplicate-order protection, refunds, accessibility, privacy and support; price those obligations against the current stack first.

SOURCES
Toast: Schedule future orders
https://support.toasttab.com/en/article/Scheduling-Future-Orders
Documents scheduled-order limits and kitchen fire settings.

Toast: Start online ordering
https://support.toasttab.com/en/article/Getting-Started-Online-Ordering
Explains menu visibility, approval, device configuration and order flow.

Square for Restaurants
https://squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/restaurants
Vendor overview; verify plan-specific ordering and processing terms.

Research by Don, I Want My Website Now.
A product description is not hands-on testing. Verify the plan, current price and export access before committing.