Once you have completed the other setup steps, such as adding items and creating a menu, you can begin processing orders through the Lightspeed Restaurant POS app.

This article covers two common order types, direct sale and table service, showing how to handle them from start to finish. Before processing orders at your POS, remember to first clock in and open a sales period.

By default, your new Lightspeed Restaurant account will be in setup mode until you are ready to go live. This allows you to run practice sales without affecting your reports, as any orders processed during this time will be deleted once you decide to go live.

Creating table service orders

Orders in Table Service mode get assigned to tables on your floor plan, allowing you to track open and occupied seats. This type of ordering is common in sit-down restaurants and bars where waiting staff serve customers.

This section only covers the basics. For more detail on table service ordering, see our full Adding orders in Table Service mode article.

1. Navigate to the Tables screen or the Register screen to start a new order:
   • From the Tables screen, select a table on the floor plan to begin an order from that table.
   • From the Register screen, enter a table number using the keypad and tap the Tables button to assign an order to that table. If there are no available tables, you can tap the Tab Name button to save the order until a table is open.

   If you enter a table number that does not exist, you’ll have to access the order from the Order management screen to make changes.

   

2. (Optional) Add courses and/or seats for organization. Courses tell the kitchen what order to prepare dishes in, and seats remind the server who ordered what.
   • Courses: Tap Add a course in the order view. Select a course to highlight it, then tap a menu item to assign to it.
   • Seats: Tap the + button above the menu. Select a seat number, then tap an item to assign to it. 
3. Add all items to the order by selecting them from the menu on the right-hand side.
4. Tap Send to send the order to the kitchen. It will be placed on hold and considered an open order until it is closed out.

   If there are multiple courses, navigate back to the order and tap Fire to notify the kitchen when it's time to make the next course.

   

Creating direct sale orders

In Direct Sale mode, customers pay for their order immediately. Direct sales are not assigned to a table or tab, making this workflow ideal for quick-service restaurants, cafes, and food stalls where waiting staff are not involved.

This section only covers the basics. For more detail on direct sales, see our full Adding orders in Direct Sale mode article.

1. Navigate to the Register screen.
2. Add all items to the order by selecting them from the menu on the right-hand side.
3. (Optional) Add a discount, assign a customer, edit the order, or perform other Register screen actions.
4. Tap Pay to process the order’s payment.

Paying for orders

Once your customers are ready to receive their bill and pay, you can retrieve their order from the Tables screen or Order management screen.

This section only covers the basics. For more detail on order payments, see our Processing payments article.

1. For table service orders, select the order from the Tables screen or Order management screen to open it on the Register screen.
2. Review the order details on the Register screen and make any changes needed before proceeding.

   For example, you may need to add a discount, assign a customer, or edit the order before completing it.

3. (Table service only) Tap the Print check button to print a bill for your customer from your receipt printer.
4. Tap Pay to continue to the Payment screen.
5. Select the method of payment and amount received. If your customer has given a tip before paying, you can enter that here.

   For table service orders, you can split the bill by tapping Items, Covers, or Seats in the Order Summary. From there, you can select an item, cover, or seat to process its payment.

   

6. Tap Pay to complete the transaction.
7. If paying by card, have the customer tap, insert, or swipe their card or supported contactless payment method on your payment terminal.

   Depending on your tip settings, customers can leave a tip during payment on the terminal itself or on a paper receipt. With tipping on paper receipts, you must manually add the tip to the order before the next morning when the payment is automatically captured.