Make Order

Use Make Order to build a new order, add dishes, and send it to the kitchen. Sign in on the iPad first. Clock in unless Turn Off Clock In is enabled in the Back Office.

To log in, tap Log in in the lower-left of the Make Order screen.

The Make Order toolbar

Across the top of the order summary:

If the order has a gift card sold on a PAX terminal, the trash icon shows Please void gift card first instead of clearing the order.

Tap an order type to open Order Setting, where you enter the order time, name, phone number, and party size or address. Drive Thru and Retail go straight to the menu. So does Dine in when Quick Service is on or your business has no tables.

Under the buttons, the order summary shows what’s set so far:

• The order time, followed by the tag number if there is one. For Pick Up and Delivery orders, the Type chosen in Order Setting (such as Walk-in) follows too.
• The customer’s name and phone number.
• The member’s points or visits, when a member is attached.
• The table and party size, for Dine In.
• The delivery address, for Delivery.
• The car selector instead of the time, for Drive-Thru.

The menu view’s toolbar has buttons for the name, phone number, tag, Rush, barcode scanner, and menu search. See The menu toolbar. For an incoming call, use the Caller popup and tap Apply to Order. See Caller ID.

The menu toolbar

The buttons across the top of the menu view set details on the order without leaving the menu. They’re the same on the iPad and the iPhone. The person, phone, tag, barcode, and search buttons turn green while their panel is open. Tap the button again to go back to the dishes.

When you open the menu from Add Items on a sent order, the name, tag, and Rush buttons change the sent order right away. See Add an item. If the change can’t be saved, the POS shows the reason and the order keeps its old value.

Enter the name or tag

Name. Tap the person button, type the name in Customer Name, and tap Done. The name shows in the order summary.

Tag. Tap the tag button. Under Enter Tag Number, type the number on the keypad, up to 10,000.

• On a new order, the tag is set as you type. Tap Done to go back to the dishes.
• On a sent order, the button says Save. Tap it to save the tag.

The tag number shows after the order time in the order summary.

Mark the order Rush

In Selflane POS 7.5.7 or later, tap the bolt button to mark the order Rush. The bolt fills in and turns green. Tap it again to take the Rush off. A Rush order moves to the front of the Kitchen Display. See Mark an order Rush.

In Selflane POS 7.5.9 or later, the bolt shows only when your business has the Kitchen Display. An order that’s already Rush still shows it, so you can take the Rush off. The bolt is hidden on canceled orders, and on closed orders that aren’t already Rush.

Search the menu

Find a dish by name instead of paging through the menus.

1. Tap the magnifying glass. A search box replaces the menu tabs.
2. Type part of the dish’s name, SKU, or UPC in Search Name/SKU/UPC. Upper and lower case don’t matter.
3. Tap a dish in the results to add it, the same as tapping its tile.

The results include every dish in your business, in name order. A dish that’s 86’ed or has reached its daily limit is grayed out, and a dish whose stock has run out shows Out of stock, the same as on its tile. See What a dish tile shows.

The search stays open after you add a dish, so you can search for the next one. Tap Cancel or the magnifying glass to go back to the menu.

If nothing matches, the POS shows No Matching Dishes. Try a shorter part of the name, or check the dish’s SKU or UPC in the Back Office.

Tapping a dish that isn’t on any menu available right now does nothing.

Menu layout

Tap the gear button in the top-left of the menu view to change how dishes show. The POS remembers your choices on this device.

• Block View — a tile for each dish.
• Blocks with Image — tiles with the dish photo on top.
• List View — a row for each dish with its photo, SKU, UPC, and description. The price shows only when it’s above $0.

Under those, pick Display by Menu to see each menu’s courses on one screen under course headings, or Display by Course to get a row of course tabs.

The gear menu also opens two screens:

• 86 Items — mark dishes, modifier groups, and choices unavailable. It’s in Selflane POS 7.7.2 or later. Staff without manager access need a manager’s approval each time they open it. See Job Roles.
• Stock — record deliveries and counts. It’s in Selflane POS 7.8.1 or later, and anyone can open it. See Stock.

When you’re adding items to a sent order, Cancel takes the gear’s place. See Add an item.

What a dish tile shows

Each tile shows the dish name and price. It can also show:

• Today’s count against the dish’s daily limit, such as (18/20). See Daily limits.
• combo — the dish is a combo’s main dish. See Combos.
• A green book icon — the dish has a Dish Guide. Tap it to read the recipe without adding the dish. In List View, the button says Recipe. It’s in Selflane POS 7.5.0 or later.
• 86'ed — the dish is 86’ed, has reached its daily limit, or has a required modifier group with every choice 86’ed. The tile is grayed out, and adding it needs a manager’s approval. See Daily limits.
• Out of stock — in Selflane POS 8.0.0 or later, the dish is linked to a tracked Stock item whose amount is 0 or below. You can still add it. If the dish is also 86’ed, only 86'ed shows.

Scan a barcode

Add a dish by scanning the barcode on its package.

1. Tap the barcode button at the top right of the menu view. The camera view replaces the menu.
2. Point the camera at the barcode.
3. When the barcode matches a dish’s SKU or UPC, the POS adds that dish, the same as tapping its tile, and shows <dish name> is added. The camera stays on for the next scan.
4. Tap the barcode button again to go back to the menu.

The scanner reads common product barcodes, such as UPC-E, EAN-8, EAN-13, Code 39, Code 93, Code 128, and ITF. It doesn’t read QR codes.

If no dish matches, the POS shows the scanned code and No matching item found. Check the dish’s SKU or UPC in the Back Office, then tap Rescan.

The first time, the POS shows Camera Permission. Tap Continue and allow camera access. If camera access was denied before, turn it on in the iPad’s Settings > Selflane POS.

Order types

Order numbers reset to 1 each day. To pick the order type, tap the matching box in the upper-left of the screen.

Dine In

Two modes — Table Service and Quick Service.

Table Service. Select the number of guests, then pick a table. To ring up a quick in-house sale (a drink at the bar, for example) without a table, turn on Skip select seat for dine-in order in the Back Office.

Quick Service. Set up first in More > Settings. If your business requires a tag number, enter it before tapping into the menu. Tag mandates are configured in Back Office → POS Settings .

Pick Up

Any order the customer collects in person (not online).

1. Choose the pickup type (Call-in, Walk-in, or another option configured in the Back Office).
2. Enter the customer’s name.
3. Enter the customer’s phone number.
4. Choose the committed time (5 or 10 minutes, for example).
5. Tap Menu in the upper-left center to start adding items.

Delivery

Choose self delivery for your own driver. Selflane POS 7.8.0 or later also supports Third-Party Delivery couriers; the courier fee is paid from your restaurant’s prepaid account.

1. Enter the customer’s name.
2. Enter the customer’s phone number.
3. Enter the customer’s address.
4. Choose the committed time.
5. Tap Menu to start adding items.

For courier booking, pricing, tracking, or changing an online Pick Up order, follow Courier delivery on the POS.

Order Setting

Order Setting holds the order’s time, customer, and table or address. On a new order, each change applies to the order as you make it.

The top row has:

• Menu — open the menu. It shows only on a new order. A Dine In order still needs a table first, as described under Send the order.
• Fee: and the amount — the delivery fee. It shows on Delivery orders and on any order that already has a fee. Tap it, enter the amount, and tap Save.
• The date and time picker — the order time. It can’t be set earlier than now. For a Third-Party Delivery courier, it can’t be earlier than the courier’s earliest drop-off.
• Party Size — for Dine In, once a party size is chosen.
• Delay — for Pick Up, Curbside, and Delivery. Tap a delay, from 5' to 2h in 5-minute steps, to set the order time that far from now.

Under it, enter the customer:

• Name — the customer’s name.
• Phone — tap the pencil to open the keypad. On a Pick Up, Curbside, or Delivery order, the keypad stays open until the number has 10 digits.

With a Member Program, a 10-digit phone number looks up members with that number. A card shows the matching member, with their balance or visits, and the member’s name fills in Name. When several members share the number, the POS picks the most recent visitor.

Dine In. Pick the party size, then tap a table on the floor plan. On a new order, the menu opens after you pick a table. When Default party size is set in POS Settings, the POS fills it in and goes straight to the floor plan.

Other order types. The rest of the screen shows:

• Type — the to-go type, such as Walk-in. These are the custom to-go types from the Back Office. With none set, the POS offers Call-in, Walk-in, Grubhub, DoorDash, UberEats, and Postmates.
• Utensils? — on a new Pick Up, Delivery, or Drive-Thru order. See Record utensils for to-go orders.
• The address form — for Delivery, with a note field. Entering the address sets the delivery fee from the distance. See Delivery fee. Tap show map to see your business (star) and the address the order had when you opened the screen (pin).
• Delivery by — on a new Delivery order, when your business offers Third-Party Delivery. Choose Own driver or Third-party. See Courier delivery on the POS.

Change a sent order’s setting

1. Open the order and tap Edit.
2. Tap Edit Table, Time, Type.
3. Change the order type at the upper-left (Dine in, Pick up, Delivery, or Curbside), or change the time, name, phone, table, or fee.
4. Tap Save.

Edit Table, Time, Type isn’t offered on online, kiosk, or Third-Party Ordering orders, closed orders, or orders with split checks.

After you change the order type, the lower part of the screen follows the new type. The top row (Fee:, Party Size, or Delay) follows the saved type until you tap Save.

In Selflane POS 8.0.0 or later, a new Type choice, such as Call-in instead of Walk-in, is saved too. Changing the order to Dine in clears its Type. Earlier versions don’t save a Type change on a sent order.

When the order has a Third-Party Delivery courier that’s booked or still confirming, the screen shows This order has a third-party driver, so its time, address and type can't be changed here. The time, address, and order type are locked. You can still change the name, phone, Type, and fee, but the name can’t be empty. If the delivery company refuses the new phone number, the POS shows Phone number not changed. The order keeps the old number, and your other changes are saved. To move the courier, follow Change the time or address after booking.

Drive-Thru

Drive Thru appears in the order-type selector when your plan includes the Drive-Thru Module. In Selflane POS 7.9.2 or later, it also appears whenever Drive-Thru Mode is on, with or without the module. To make it the default on an iPad, turn on Quick Service Mode and Drive-Thru Mode in More > Settings. Record the car’s body style and color in the order header so the window can match it. For the full setup with a second iPad at the window, follow Drive-Thru Display.

Online

Customers place orders themselves at selflane.com or through links you share. They pay online, and the order auto-prints a customer receipt and a kitchen ticket at the assigned printers.

Online orders show up on the Orders screen color-coded:

• Blue — new, not processed
• Yellow — processing
• Green — ready
• No color — done and gone

Third-Party Ordering

Orders from DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats, and similar services. By default these come in on a separate tablet, and staff re-key them into the POS.

If you subscribe to Third-Party Ordering, those orders flow into the POS automatically and print to your kitchen printers without re-keying. See Selflane pricing  for details.

Enter the order

The Make Order screen is organized by Menu (top row), Course (second row), and Dishes (under each course). Tap a dish to add it.

Modifiers

When you add a dish that has modifiers, a modifier panel appears on the right.

• Required modifier — the circle above is solid. You must pick a choice.
• Optional modifier — the circle is open. You can skip it.
• Default modifier — highlighted by default; tap an alternative to change it.
• Matrix Modifier — applies cross-cutting changes (No, Lite, Add, Extra, On Side) to any dish. Configure these in the Back Office. Tap the upper-right of the modifier screen to choose.

If a dish and its modifiers are identical to one already on the order, tap the duplicate icon at the top of the modifier screen to bump the quantity instead of re-entering it.

Seat assignment

For Table Service, use the Seat picker in the menu view’s bottom bar (or the top of the modifier screen) to assign a dish to a specific seat.

Order extras

The black bar at the bottom of the menu view gives you:

• Dish marker buttons — kitchen notes like To-Go, Do Not Make, or any custom note. Tap one to add it to the order as its own line. Configured in Back Office → Dish Markers .
• Seat — the seat for the dishes you add next. It stays until the order is cleared. It’s hidden when Quick Service is on.
• Star icon — open the Loyalty Center to attach a Member Program customer, who earns points or visits.
• Gift card icon — open the Gift Card Center to sell a Selflane Gift Card, issue a gift certificate, or manage a physical gift card.
• Book icon — open the Voucher Selector. Preset vouchers configured in Back Office → Discounts  appear at the top. Tap Custom Voucher for a one-off comp, or Scan Reward to redeem a Member Program reward. In Selflane POS 8.0.2 or later, scanning a reward that’s already on the order shows “This receipt has already been redeemed” on the scan screen. Earlier versions show Used Reward.
• Pencil icon — open Create Custom Item. See Add a custom item.

The Loyalty Center and Gift Card Center don’t ask for a manager. Vouchers need a manager’s approval when Apply Vouchers is checked under Manager Access Rules. Custom items need one when Customize Items/Modifiers is checked. The POS doesn’t ask when the staff member signed in on the order has manager access, or when no job role has manager access.

Add a custom item

Ring up something that isn’t on the menu, such as a special or a one-off charge.

1. Tap the pencil icon in the black bar. The Create Custom Item screen opens.
2. Enter the Name and Price. A blank price is $0.
3. Choose the Menu and Course the item belongs to. They start on the menu and course you’re viewing.
4. Set Quantity:, from 1 to 100.
5. Under Printer, tap each printer the item prints to. Kitchen is selected at first. Tap a selected printer to turn it off.
6. Choose the Seat. It starts on the seat picked in the black bar.
7. Tap Save.

Save does nothing until the item has a name.

Record utensils for to-go orders

In Selflane POS 7.7.4 or later, record the customer’s utensil choice on a new Pick Up, Delivery, or Drive-Thru order.

1. Open Order Setting, or tap the fork-and-knife button in the menu view.
2. Choose Yes, No, or Not asked.
3. Continue taking the order. The answer appears on the order and kitchen ticket.

Not asked leaves the question unanswered. It does not mean the customer declined utensils.

Review the order

Each line in the order summary shows the item, its price and quantity, and its modifiers and notes. Tags under the price show:

• Seat and the seat number, for Dine In orders when Quick Service is off.
• The guest name entered on the dish.
• Hold and the minutes, when the dish has a Hold and Fire delay.

A dish with a price of $0 or less shows on a red background. Vouchers show in purple with a negative amount, and gift cards sold on the order show in green. A dish discount shows in red under the dish.

To change the order:

• Edit a dish. Tap the dish to open its editor. Tap a combo to open the combo editor.
• Remove an item. Tap the red trash button on the line.
• Repeat an item. In Selflane POS 7.00 or later, tap the copy button at the upper-right of a dish or combo line. A copy with a quantity of 1 is added below it.
• Reorder the lines. Drag a dish line by its handle. In Selflane POS 7.00 or later, you can also move combo, voucher, and gift card lines.
• Make it a combo. Tap Combo on a dish line. See Combos.

Dish markers from the black bar show as their own lines with only a trash button.

An order discount shows as a blue bar under the lines, with its name and percentage off. Tap the bar, then tap Delete to remove the discount.

Add a gift card discount

In Selflane POS 7.5.4 or later, you can sell gift cards below their value. The card keeps its full balance. Only the price charged for it is lower.

When the order sells a gift card, + Add Gift Card Discount shows under the lines. A manager must always sign in to approve the discount, even when a manager is the one using the POS. See Job Roles.

1. Tap + Add Gift Card Discount, and have a manager sign in. The Gift Card Discount screen opens.
2. Enter a Reason, or tap one of the reason buttons. The buttons come from Custom Discount Names in the Back Office. Without a list, the POS shows Comp, Employee Meal, Military, and Student.
3. Pick a Discount Rate, from 0% to 100% in steps of 5%. Gift Subtotal shows the total of the gift cards on the order, and Discount shows the rate and the amount taken off.
4. Tap Submit at the top right.

The line then shows Gift Card Discount, the rate, and the amount off. The rate covers every gift card on the order. The amount updates when you add or remove a gift card. If you remove every gift card, the discount is removed too. A gift card you add after that needs a new discount and a new approval.

To change or remove the discount, tap the line. A manager signs in again. To remove it, pick 0% and tap Submit.

If you pick a rate above 0% without a reason, the POS shows Please enter the reason.

When you send the order, the POS adds the discount to the order’s action log with the rate, the staff member, the approving manager, and the reason. In Selflane POS 7.8.0 or later, if that record can’t be saved, the POS shows Order submitted, but the gift card discount audit was not recorded. The order is still sent with its discount.

To change the discount after you send the order, see Add Item and Pay an order.

Send the order

On the iPad, the bottom of the order summary shows the signed-in staff member, the order total, Send, and Pay & Send.

• Send creates the order and prints the kitchen tickets. For Pick Up and Delivery, it also prints a customer receipt when Auto print receipt for To-go orders is on in the Back Office. The order summary clears and the POS opens the new order on the Orders screen. With Quick Service and Drive-Thru Mode both on, the POS stays on Make Order for the next car.
• Pay & Send creates the order and opens the payment screen. Kitchen tickets print right away, unless Only print to kitchen after payment (used in Pay & Send) is on in the Back Office. If the order is already paid when it’s created, the POS shows Order is Paid instead of the payment screen. See Pay an order.

Both buttons show unless you turn one off in the Back Office with Use Send Order or Use Send & Pay order. At least one always shows.

If you’re not signed in, Log in appears in place of the staff name. Tap it to sign in. Tap the staff name to switch to another staff member. When you tap Send or Pay & Send without signing in, the POS asks you to sign in first.

If your business sets daily limits, the POS checks them before sending. See Daily limits. For a Third-Party Delivery courier, Send shows the courier price. See Courier delivery on the POS.

When the POS can’t send the order, it shows Rejected with the reason:

Order is submitting... means the POS is still sending the order. Wait for it to finish.

For Dine In with Table Service, opening the menu before picking a table shows Please select a table and number of seats first. Pick a table and party size in Order Setting. This check is skipped when your business has no tables. Turn on Skip select seat for dine-in order in the Back Office to skip it too.

On an iPhone

The iPhone’s Make Order tab has the same toolbar, order summary, and Order Setting screen as the iPad. The order summary works a little differently.

Send the order. The bottom bar shows the signed-in staff member and the order total on one row, with Send under them. The iPhone has no Pay & Send, and the Back Office Use Send Order and Use Send & Pay order settings don’t change this. To take payment, send the order, then pay it from the order. See Pay an order. Everything else about Send works as described in Send the order.

Change the lines.

• Repeat an item. Lines have no copy button. Add the dish again from the menu.
• Reorder the lines. Drag a dish line by its handle. Combo dishes, vouchers, and gift cards can’t be moved. Moving a dish onto a combo dish’s place shows Move from or to item with combo is not allowed, and the lines stay where they were.
• Combos. Each dish in a combo is its own line, with a bar on its left. Tapping one opens the dish editor, not the combo editor. Tap the trash button on any dish in a combo to remove the whole combo. The POS shows The combo is removed. To add or change a combo, see Combos on an iPhone.

Examples

Related links

• Order details
• Add an item
• Pay an order
• Member Program at checkout