Cashier Panel Guide: Payments, Tables, and Receipt Printing

The cashier panel is the payment and table management interface of RestaurantManage — used by cashiers to view active tables, process payments, split bills, print receipts, and close orders. It connects to the kitchen display and waiter app in real time via WebSocket, so the cashier always sees the latest order status. This guide covers the full cashier workflow from opening a table to printing the final receipt.

How Does the Cashier Panel Work?

The cashier panel displays a grid of all restaurant tables with their current status: empty, occupied, or awaiting payment. Tapping a table shows its full order history — every item ordered, quantities, prices, and the current order status. The cashier can add items, remove items, apply discounts, and initiate payment. When the customer is ready to pay, the cashier selects the payment method, processes the transaction, and prints a receipt. Once payment is confirmed, the table is automatically released and marked as available for the next customer.

Table Grid View and Color Coding

The main screen of the cashier panel shows every table in your restaurant as a card in a responsive grid. Each card displays the table name or number, the current status, and — when occupied — the running total of the order. Color coding makes it easy to read the entire floor at a glance: green means the table is empty and available for new guests, orange means the table is occupied and an order is in progress, and red means the customer has requested the bill or the order is ready to be paid. This real-time color map eliminates the need to walk the floor just to check availability and helps cashiers prioritize which tables need attention next.

Viewing and Editing an Active Order

Tapping any occupied table opens the order detail view. Here you see every menu item that has been ordered, grouped by course or arrival time, along with each item's quantity, unit price, and line total. If a waiter made an error or a customer changed their mind, the cashier can remove items directly from this view — provided the kitchen has not yet started preparing them. The cashier can also add new items on behalf of walk-in customers who prefer to order at the counter rather than using the QR menu. Every addition or removal is instantly broadcast to the kitchen display and waiter app via SignalR, so all stations stay in sync without any manual communication.

How Do I Process a Payment?

1. Select the table: Tap the table card on the main screen to open its order details.
2. Review the order: Verify all items and their quantities. Make corrections if needed.
3. Choose payment method: Select cash, credit card, or other payment methods configured for your restaurant.
4. Confirm payment: Process the payment and the system records the transaction.
5. Print receipt: A thermal receipt is sent to the connected printer automatically, or print manually.
6. Release table: The table status resets to 'available' and is ready for the next guest.

Supported Payment Methods

RestaurantManage supports multiple payment methods that can be configured by the restaurant administrator. The most common options are cash and credit/debit card. Administrators can also add custom payment types — such as meal vouchers, mobile wallets, or house accounts — from the admin dashboard. When the cashier selects a payment method, the receipt and transaction log record the chosen method, making end-of-day reconciliation straightforward. If your point-of-sale hardware integrates with a card terminal, the payment confirmation can trigger the terminal directly, reducing manual entry errors.

Applying Discounts and Adjustments

Before confirming payment, the cashier can apply a discount to the order. Discounts can be entered as a percentage (for example, a 10% loyalty discount) or as a fixed amount (for example, a €5 promotional voucher). Discounts appear as a separate line on the receipt so the customer can clearly see the savings. The system also supports item-level adjustments — the cashier can change the price of a specific item if a manager override is needed, provided the user role has that permission. All adjustments are logged with the cashier's user ID for accountability.

Tax Calculation and Breakdown

RestaurantManage automatically calculates tax based on the tax rules configured for your restaurant and country. The system supports multiple tax categories — for example, a reduced VAT rate for food and a standard rate for alcohol. Tax is calculated on the net total after any discounts are applied. The receipt displays an itemized tax breakdown showing each tax category, its rate, and the corresponding tax amount. This level of detail is required for VAT-registered businesses in most countries. Tax rates are configured once in the admin dashboard under Restaurant Settings and apply automatically to every transaction without cashier intervention.

How Do I Split a Bill Between Customers?

Bill splitting is a common request in restaurants and the cashier panel handles it directly. Open the table's order, then select the items that belong to each portion of the split. You can split by individual items — assigning specific dishes to specific customers — or split the total evenly by a number of people. Each split generates its own receipt with only the relevant items and total. The system tracks which items have been paid so you can process partial payments throughout the meal without losing track of the remaining balance.

Splitting by Item

Item-based splitting is the most flexible way to divide a bill. The cashier opens the split view and selects which items belong to the first customer's portion. The system instantly calculates the subtotal, applicable taxes, and discounts for that selection. Once the first payment is processed and the receipt is printed, the remaining unpaid items stay on the table and the cashier repeats the process for the next customer. This method is ideal when a group of colleagues or friends each want to pay only for what they personally ordered. The cashier can create as many splits as needed — there is no limit on the number of partial payments per table.

Splitting Evenly by Number of People

When a group agrees to divide the total equally, the cashier can use the even-split option. Enter the number of people and the system divides the order total — including taxes and any applied discount — into equal portions. Each portion gets its own receipt showing the original order summary and the per-person share. Even splitting saves time when the group does not care about individual item attribution, such as when a company team is paying together. The cashier can still process each person's payment separately, printing individual receipts while the system keeps track of how many portions remain unpaid.

Partial Payments During the Meal

Some customers prefer to pay as they go rather than waiting until the end of the meal. The cashier panel supports partial payments at any point during the dining session. A customer can pay for their starter and drink early, and the system marks those items as paid. The remaining items stay on the active order and will appear in the final settlement. This is also useful for large events where guests may leave at different times. The cashier can always see the total paid, total remaining, and a full audit trail of every partial transaction for the table.

How Does Receipt Printing Work?

RestaurantManage supports ESC/POS thermal receipt printing through a dedicated print agent. The backend generates the complete receipt layout — including restaurant name, table number, itemized order, prices, tax breakdown, total, and payment method — as ESC/POS byte commands. These are sent via the PrintHub WebSocket connection to the RestaurantPrintAgent running on a Windows PC connected to your thermal printer. The print agent supports network printers (TCP port 9100), USB printers, and Windows spooler connections. Receipts print within two seconds of payment confirmation.

What Is Included on the Receipt

Every receipt generated by RestaurantManage contains a complete set of information for both the customer and accounting purposes. The header shows the restaurant name, address, and tax identification number. Below that is the table number and the date and time of the transaction. The body of the receipt lists every ordered item with its quantity, unit price, and line total. If a discount was applied, it appears as a separate deduction line. The footer shows the subtotal, an itemized tax breakdown by category and rate, the grand total, and the payment method used. For split bills, each receipt clearly shows which items are included in that portion and the amount paid by that customer.

Setting Up the Print Agent

Receipt printing requires the RestaurantPrintAgent to be installed on a Windows PC that is connected to your thermal printer. The agent is a Windows Service that maintains a persistent SignalR connection to the backend's PrintHub. Configuration is done via a config.json file that specifies the API base URL, your restaurant ID, and the agent secret key generated from the admin dashboard. Once installed and started, the agent registers itself with the backend and begins receiving print jobs immediately. For detailed installation steps, USB and network printer configuration, and troubleshooting, see the dedicated print agent help article.

Printing Without a Thermal Printer

If your restaurant does not have a thermal receipt printer, there are alternative options. The cashier panel can generate a PDF receipt that can be saved or sent digitally. For customers who prefer an electronic receipt, the PDF can be downloaded directly from the browser and shared via email or messaging. This option is useful for delivery orders, online payments, or small venues that do not want to invest in dedicated printer hardware. Note that the PDF receipt contains the same information as the thermal receipt — itemized order, taxes, total, and payment method — and is suitable for official accounting purposes.

How Do I Manage Tables from the Cashier Panel?

The cashier panel provides a real-time view of all tables in your restaurant. Each table card shows its status with color coding: green for available, orange for occupied, and red for awaiting payment. You can see how long each table has been occupied and the current order total. The cashier can also manually open a table for walk-in customers who don't use the QR menu, add items to any active table, move items between tables, and merge tables when groups combine. All changes sync instantly across the kitchen display, waiter app, and customer tracking page.

Manually Opening a Table

Not every customer uses the QR menu to place orders. Walk-in customers, large groups, and guests who prefer to order verbally can have their order entered manually by the cashier or waiter. To open a table manually, tap an empty table card and select "Open Table". Once the table is open, the cashier can add items from the full menu catalog directly within the panel. This creates the same order structure as a QR-menu order — the kitchen receives the items via the kitchen display, and the cashier panel tracks the running total. Manual table opening is also used when a power outage or network issue prevents customers from scanning QR codes.

Moving and Merging Tables

Restaurants frequently need to accommodate group changes — a couple who started at a small table may be joined by friends and need to move to a larger one, or two separate groups may combine. The cashier panel supports both moving items from one table to another and merging two active tables into one. When tables are merged, all items from both tables appear on a single combined order, and the original tables are released. The merged table then follows the normal payment workflow. This flexibility ensures the billing always matches the actual seating arrangement, preventing confusion at payment time.

Viewing Table Occupancy Duration

Each occupied table card in the cashier panel displays a timer showing how long the table has been in use. This occupancy duration is visible to the cashier at a glance and helps with floor management decisions — for example, identifying tables that have been occupied for an unusually long time, or checking whether a table that requested the bill is taking too long to complete payment. The timer starts when the first order item is added to the table and resets automatically when the table is released after payment. Floor managers and cashiers can use this information to improve table turnover and customer flow during peak hours.

Related Guides

• Kitchen display: How orders flow from kitchen to cashier
• Admin dashboard: Configure restaurant settings, users, and reports
• Billing software article: In-depth look at restaurant billing systems