Expeditor (the pass)

The pass is where a whole order comes together. The kitchen boards each show one station’s part of an order; the Expeditor screen shows the whole order — the rolex from the Hot Kitchen, the mojito from the Restaurant Bar — on one card, with the state of every line and what is still missing. The person at the pass (a supervisor, a head waiter or the chef) releases the order when everything is ready, gives it to a runner and confirms when the guests have it.

At the end of this manual, the manager’s guide explains Stations & routing: the stations of the branch and the rules that decide where each item is made.

The screens show the demo business, Jupita Restaurant Demo, Kampala — Kololo, on a Friday lunchtime.

One card per order

The lanes: In progress (something is still missing), Ready to go (everything is ready, or it is packed) and Released (it has left the pass and waits to be confirmed collected). The pass shows the orders of the last 24 hours.

When an order is paid. A table’s order leaves the pass when it is paid, and so does any order that was already Ready to go or Released. A takeaway, pickup, delivery, counter or café order paid first, while its food is still being made or packed, stays on the pass until you tap Collected.

Run the pass: release and hand over

Purpose

Send each order out complete and at the right moment — no table gets its mains while a side is still in the fryer — and know who took it.

Role / permission required

Supervisors, head waiters, chefs and managers. Seeing the pass needs expeditor.view (every floor and kitchen role has it); releasing, assigning a runner and confirming collection need expeditor.dispatch, which waiters, cashiers, supervisors, chefs and managers have (cooks do not).

Prerequisites

• Orders have been sent to the kitchen and bar (see Start a table order).
• The stations are working their tickets (see Accept a new ticket).

Steps

1. Open Restaurant, Café & Bar › Preparation Screens › Expeditor from the menu (/production/expeditor), or tap Expeditor on the stations page. The screen is headed Pass.
2. The In progress lane (1) shows the orders still being made. Read each line’s state: the Rolex is READY (2), the Mojito is still PREPARING (3). Missing: (4) lists what the order waits for.
3. Wait for the missing items. Do not tap Release anyway (5) unless the guests asked for their food to come as it is ready (the missing items follow later).
4. When the last line is ready, the order moves to Ready to go (1) and shows All ready (2).
5. Choose who takes it in Runner (3), for example Fatuma Nakimuli.
6. Tap Release (4). The order moves to Released (1); every ticket still showing Ready on the boards is bumped.
7. When the guests have their food, tap Collected (2). The card leaves the pass and the order’s lines show served on the waiter’s till.

Expected result

Table 7’s Rolex and Mojito arrive together. The card goes In progress → Ready to go (runner Fatuma Nakimuli) → Released → gone. The Hot Kitchen and Restaurant Bar tickets are completed, and on the till both lines are served.

Screenshot

Common mistakes

• Releasing an order with items missing. The table eats the rolex while the mojito is still being made. Use Release anyway only on purpose.
• Forgetting Collected. A released order stays in Released until someone confirms it; the waiter’s till still shows the lines as ready.
• Bumping at the stations instead of releasing. When your kitchen runs a pass, let the cooks tap Ready and let the pass release: the pass then knows what has gone out.

Troubleshooting

• An order is not on the pass. Nothing of it has been sent yet, or it was already collected. Orders appear the moment their first items are sent.
• A paid takeaway is still on the pass. It was paid before its food was ready; it stays until you hand it over and tap Collected.
• The buttons are missing. You can see the pass but not work it (expeditor.dispatch). Ask your manager.

FAQ

Does Collected close the bill? No. It records that the food reached the guests. The bill is paid at the till as usual.

Fire the next course from the pass

Purpose

Start the kitchen on a table’s next course when the table is ready for it — the mains when the starters are cleared.

Role / permission required

Supervisors, head waiters and waiters — anyone with expeditor.dispatch or sales.edit.

Prerequisites

• The order was sent with a later course held (see Send to the kitchen and fire courses).

Steps

1. On the pass, find the table’s card. The held course’s lines show WAITING (2) with their course (C2).
2. The first course is served: its lines show READY or DONE (1).
3. Tap Fire course 2 (3).

Expected result

The message Course 2 fired shows. The Whole fried tilapia’s ticket on the Hot Kitchen board turns from a dashed C2 · held ticket into a New ticket and its timer starts; the button leaves the card.

Screenshot

Common mistakes

• Firing too early. The kitchen cooks the mains while the guests are still on their starters, and the food waits under the lamp.
• Firing from two places. The waiter can also fire from the till; a course fires once, so agree who does it.

Troubleshooting

• There is no Fire course button. The order has no held course, or it was already fired.
• The kitchen does not see the course. Tap Refresh on the board; the fired ticket appears with New on it.

Pack a takeaway, add a note and release it

Purpose

Check and close the bags of a takeaway or delivery order, tell the runner what matters (no cutlery, call on arrival) and send it out complete.

Role / permission required

Supervisors, cashiers and waiters — anyone with expeditor.dispatch.

Prerequisites

• A takeaway, pickup or delivery order was sent (see Ring up a counter order). Such orders also send a copy to the Delivery Packing station.

Steps

1. On the pass, open Ready to go and find the order (its type shows next to the headline, for example Takeaway).
2. Tap the note button on the card. Type the note in Dispatch note (1), for example Extra napkins, no cutlery, and tap Save (2).
3. Check the card (1): the note (2) is under the headline.
4. Put everything in the bag, close it and tap Packed (3). The card shows Packed.
5. Give the bag to the customer or the rider and tap Release (4).
6. When the customer or the rider has it, open Released and tap Collected.

Expected result

Moses Kato’s takeaway — Chips and Chicken wings — shows the note Extra napkins, no cutlery, then Packed, Released, and leaves the pass after Collected. A takeaway that was paid at the counter before it was ready stays on the pass until Collected too: paying does not take it off.

Screenshot

Common mistakes

• Tapping Packed before the bag is checked. Packed tells everyone the order is complete. Check the items against the card first.
• Writing the note on the bag only. The runner reads the card; put it in Dispatch note.

Troubleshooting

• There is no Packed button. Packing is for takeaway, pickup and delivery orders; a dine-in order goes straight to Release.
• The delivery does not show in Delivery. Assign the rider under Delivery (see Assign a delivery to a rider).

Send a dish back to the kitchen from the pass

Purpose

Stop a wrong or badly plated dish at the pass and have the station make or finish it again, so the order goes out right.

Role / permission required

Chefs and sous chefs: seeing the pass needs expeditor.view; recalling a ticket on the station’s board needs kitchen.complete (or bar.complete for a drink).

Prerequisites

• The order is on the pass with the dish marked READY.

Steps

1. On the pass, open Ready to go (1) and check the order. The Katogo is READY (2) but the plate is wrong.
2. Open Preparation Screens › Stations and tap the station that made it, here Hot Kitchen.
3. Tap the Ready lane (1) and, on the order’s ticket, tap Recall (2). If the dish must be cooked again, use Re-fire instead (see Recall a ticket, or cook it again).
4. Back on the pass, the order is In progress (1) again, the dish shows PREPARING (2) and is listed under Missing: (3).
5. When the station marks it ready again, release the order as usual.

Expected result

Table 9’s Katogo goes from READY back to PREPARING; the order moves from Ready to go to In progress until the kitchen marks it ready again.

Screenshot

Common mistakes

• Releasing and asking the waiter to bring it back. Once released, the pass cannot pull the order back; stop it before Release.
• Shouting the recall across the kitchen. The recalled ticket appears on the station’s board; the cook sees it without being told.

Troubleshooting

• There is no Recall on the station’s ticket. The ticket is still active (the station has not marked it ready), or it was bumped more than 30 minutes ago.
• I cannot open the station’s board. Your role can see the pass but not that station. Ask the station’s cook to recall it.

Set up stations and routing

Purpose

Decide where each item is made — pizzas to the pizza oven, cocktails to the Restaurant Bar, takeaways also to the packing station — so every ticket lands on the right board without anyone moving it by hand.

Role / permission required

Branch managers, chefs and owners — anyone with production.manage.

Prerequisites

• The branch’s outlets exist (see Outlets and stations).
• The menu’s categories and items exist (see Add a menu item).

Steps

1. Open Stations & routing from the sidebar (/production/stations). The Stations table lists the branch’s stations with their kind, display, target and flags; the Routing rules below list the rules.
2. Tap New station (1). (Tap a station’s row (2) to change it.)
3. Enter a short Code (1), such as PIZZA, and the Name, Pizza oven.
4. Choose the Kind (2), Pizza. Display (3) follows the kind (kitchen kinds use the kitchen display, bar kinds the bar display, barista, juice and smoothie the barista display, expeditor, packing and pickup the pass); leave it on the default.
5. Enter Target prep (seconds) (4), 720 for 12 minutes. The timers on the board turn amber at 70 % of it and red when it is passed. Leave Flag delayed after (seconds) (5) empty to flag tickets delayed at 150 % of the target.
6. Switch on Auto-accept new tickets (6) only for a station that skips the Accept step, like a barista.
7. Tap Save station (7).
8. Under Routing rules, tap New rule. Enter the rule’s Name (1), Pizza → Pizza oven.
9. Keep Action (2) on Route, choose the Station (3), Pizza oven, and the Category (4), Pizza. Leave the other criteria on Any.
10. Enter a Priority (5): among equally specific rules the higher one wins. The demo already has Pizza → Hot kitchen at 100; 150 makes yours win.
11. Tap Save rule (6). The new rule (2) joins the demo’s rules (1) in the table.

Expected result

Station saved and Rule saved show. The Stations table lists Pizza oven (PIZZA, Pizza · kds, 12 min, active), and the Routing rules table lists Pizza → Pizza oven: when category Pizza, then Route to Pizza oven, priority 150. From now on a Margherita sent from the till appears on the Pizza oven’s board instead of the Hot Kitchen’s.

Screenshot

Common mistakes

• A rule that matches everything. Every criterion left on Any matches every item; the form asks for at least one. Choose the item, category, modifier, production kind or order type the rule is for.
• Two rules fighting at the same priority. The most specific rule wins (item › modifier › category › order type or branch › production kind), then the higher Priority. Give an override a higher number.
• Using Route for a copy. Route moves the item to that station. To send a copy as well — takeaways also print at the packing station — choose Also route (copy). Skip (no production) sends nothing, for items like bottled water.

Troubleshooting

• “Code PIZZA is already used at this branch.” Codes are unique per branch, archived stations included. Choose another code.
• Items still go to the old station. Check the rule is active, its station is active, and no more specific rule matches the item (an item rule beats a category rule). Rules apply to items sent after you save them; tickets already on a board stay where they are.
• A station’s card is missing on Preparation Screens › Stations. The station is switched off (Active off) or archived.

FAQ

What happens without any rule? An item goes to its own station (set on the item), else its category’s station, else the first station whose kind makes that kind of item (kitchen, bar, barista, bakery), else the first kitchen. Items whose production is none make no ticket.

How do I remove a station? Open it and tap Archive. Its tickets keep their history; rules pointing to it stop working, so change them too.