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Go-live checklist

Work through this before your first real service. Each line is something that has caused somebody a bad opening night.

Menu​

  • Every item has a price
  • Every item has a sales category — items without one vanish from reports
  • Every item is routed to a prep station — an unrouted item never reaches the kitchen and nothing errors
  • Required modifier groups are genuinely required, and no more
  • Menu published
  • One item of each type rung in on a real till and seen on the line

Staff​

  • Everyone who works opening night exists as an employee
  • Everyone has a job title, and the titles carry the right permissions
  • At least two people can approve a void and a refund — one manager on shift is a single point of failure
  • Everyone has clocked in once, on a real till, successfully

Payments​

  • Processing mode is live, not test
  • A real card taken on every reader, then voided
  • Tip collection mode decided — before service, because it decides whether tips can be corrected later
  • Batch close time set to when you actually close

Hardware​

  • Every till registered, named for where it physically is, and online
  • Every printer prints a test
  • Cash drawers open
  • Kitchen display shows a test ticket
  • Gateway on a wired connection, ideally on a UPS

Off-premise, if you are using it​

  • Online ordering hours set — they are separate from dining-room hours
  • A test online order placed and followed to the kitchen
  • Marketplace menu selection set and not empty
  • A marketplace item checked in the marketplace's own app

The last one​

  • Put a full order through end to end — order, course, fire, split, pay by card, pay by cash, print the receipt, close the day.

Doing this once on a quiet afternoon is worth more than every other line on this list.