Bar Mode

Bar mode is a POS workflow for venues where guests pay at the counter: coffee shops, bars, fast food, and restaurant retail shops. Unlike dining area mode, there is no link to a table or a waiter — select menu items, accept payment, done. The POS immediately resets for a new receipt.

There are three service modes on the POS, and the switch in the ticket header has three positions:

"Bar" and "Counter" are both about paying at the counter; the only difference is that open tabs are available exclusively in bar mode.

"Counter" has its own POS appearance toggles designed to speed up sales: "One-tap payment" (instead of a "Pay" button — direct "💵 Cash" and "💳 Card") and "Quick round amounts" (buttons with preset denominations for change). Both are located in ⚙ POS appearance settings, see POS.

For venues with both a counter and a dining area, the mode can be switched on the fly during a shift — each terminal is configured independently.

To open: Admin Panel → POS → mode switch in the ticket header.

How to enable bar mode#

The mode operates at two levels.

Location default#

Sets the mode in which the POS opens on any device at this location:

1. Go to Admin Panel → Locations → [your location] → Settings.
2. Find the "POS Mode" section and select Bar (instead of "Dining Area"). This is a three-button segmented control: Dining Area / Bar / Counter.
3. Save. All employees who open the POS at this location will see bar mode by default.

Don't confuse this with the "Service Mode" section — that is a completely different setting used to pause receiving orders on the storefront (inventory count, renovation, seasonal closure).

If no setting is specified, the mode is derived from the venue type:

Bars don't need to enable anything: the bar POS opens right away.

For ten business types — store, beauty salon, pickup point, online store, appointment services, professional services, blog, corporate website, widgets, and chat — the POS opens without the mode switcher, dining area panel, or table assignment: the screen immediately displays without "restaurant" attributes. Meanwhile, one-tap sales are enabled by default only for stores, pickup points, and online stores — for salons and the rest, you need to enable it manually.

Important: these are starting defaults, not restrictions. An outlet can enable any toggle manually — for example, a store with a cafe area can bring back the mode switcher and dining area panel — and its choice will be saved.

Switching on a specific device#

If one terminal operates in dining area mode and another in bar mode:

1. Open the POS.
2. In the ticket header, click the Dining Area / Bar / Counter switcher.
3. The choice is saved on this device for this location and does not affect other devices or other chain locations: "Dining Area" selected at the restaurant will not carry over to the store.

Working with Open Tabs#

An open tab is a named bill to which items can be added until payment. It is ideal for situations where a guest orders multiple drinks throughout the evening or sits at the bar counter for several hours.

In the bar vertical (and in hotels, where the tab is linked to a room), the tab is persistent: multiple orders throughout the evening are added to it, the list shows the current balance and how long the tab has been open, and it is closed with a single payment. In other venue types, a "tab" is simpler — it is a saved open order to which additional items can be added and then closed upon payment.

Create a New Tab#

1. In bar mode, enter the tab name or label (for example, guest name, bar stool number, "Table 2").
2. Add dishes and drinks from the menu tiles.
3. Click "Open Tab" — the ticket is saved, and the POS resets for the next guest.

Add Items to an Open Tab#

1. Click the open tabs list icon (📋) in the POS header.
2. Select the desired tab from the list. Open tabs are marked with a colored 🍸 marker.
3. Add menu items and save again.

Close a Tab with Payment#

1. Open the desired tab from the list.
2. Click "Pay" and select a payment method.
3. The tab is closed and moves to Orders and the POS shift.

After payment, the "Next Guest" button instantly opens a blank ticket.

Mixed mode: bar and dining area simultaneously#

If the venue has both a counter and tables with waiters, configure different devices differently:

• Counter terminal → "Bar" mode (via local toggle).
• Waiter terminal → "Dining area" mode linked to a table and QR code.

In bar mode, optional table binding is also available — the "➕ Table" button allows you to add a table to the bill if needed. By default, the table and waiter fields are hidden to avoid cluttering the counter screen.

What you need to get started#

• The POS — the mode is switched with a three-position toggle in the ticket header; bar mode has no section of its own.
• Venue type "bar" makes this the default mode and turns on the open-tab views; for a cafe or restaurant you pick the mode manually.
• Tab names — an open tab lives under a guest name or a number; without them you will not collect "the whole evening on one tab".
• The bridge and a printer — for the receipt and the pre-bill (Printing).

Limitations#

• Open tabs are a POS contract, not tables. The floor plan and reservations have nothing to do with bar mode: the guest pays at the counter.
• Counter mode keeps no tabs at all — ring up, take payment, the ticket resets. That is deliberate: a canteen or a fast-food counter has nothing to "keep open".
• Pour control works as analytics only. The "Pour" view counts against bar sales; connecting flow sensors and dispensers to the bridge has not been done, so reconciling "poured vs. sold" on real hardware is not possible yet.
• Refunds are processed in the receipt registry, and it runs on the AWS contour — on cenaly.ru there is no receipt history (Receipts and refunds).

Troubleshooting#

There is no mode toggle. It sits in the POS ticket header; if you only see one position, check the venue type and the POS settings.

A tab cannot be found by name. Open tabs belong to a location: make sure you are on the same location where the tab was opened.

An order went straight to payment instead of staying open. The POS is in counter mode — tabs are not kept there by design.

Pour data never appeared. The "Pour" view counts against bar sales; there is no sensor data in it and there will not be until dispenser hardware is connected.

Related Sections#

• POS — general POS interface, creating orders, service types
• POS Shift and Z-Report — opening/closing a shift, revenue reconciliation
• Tips — adding tips to bar orders
• Orders — monitoring all orders, statuses and payment

Frequently Asked Questions#

Do bar orders go to the kitchen?#

Yes. Orders from bar mode are sent to the kitchen display (KDS) just like orders from the dining area. If you run a bar without a kitchen, simply do not open KDS.

Can you operate without open bills?#

Yes. If a guest pays immediately, simply tap "Pay" without saving the bill first. Open bills are only needed when a guest continues ordering throughout the evening.

Are bar orders visible in the main order list?#

Yes — all orders appear in a single feed on the Orders page. Bar orders are tagged with a mode badge.

Can you switch modes in the middle of a shift?#

Yes — the switcher in the ticket header is accessible at any time. For ten "counter-service" business types (retail store, salon, pickup point, online store, and others), it is hidden by default, but this is merely an initial POS layout setting rather than a restriction: a venue with a hybrid format can enable it manually, and its choice will be saved. Already created orders and open bills remain in the system regardless of the device's current mode.

Does bar mode affect the Z-report and finances?#

No, financially the orders are equivalent. Bar mode is only a POS UX change. All revenue is recorded in the POS shift and in the "Finances" section as usual.