Bar tabs are a running total of charges that your customer generates during their stay at your bar or restaurant. When opening a bar tab, you pre-authorize a customer’s card for a minimum amount, and add items to their order. Once your customer is ready to close out, you can settle their tab through the POS app.

Opening a bar tab

Start a new bar tab from the Register screen of the Restaurant POS app. Once a bar tab is opened, you can add items and modify the order based on your needs.

Note: If the setting Allow direct sales to be placed on hold is enabled in the device configuration, you may add items to the order before preauthorizing your customer’s card.

1. Navigate to the Register screen by tapping Register in the lower navigation menu of your POS.
2. Tap Open a tab.
3. Tap Continue to pre-authorize the customer's card, or tap Skip pre-auth to open a bar tab without pre-authorization
   • If pre-authorizing the customer's card: Manually enter a name for the bar tab and tap Continue to open it. Proceed to step 6 in this section.
4. Change or confirm the default pre-authorization amount, then tap Open tab.
5. Insert or swipe your customer’s card when prompted on the terminal to preauthorize their order.
6. Add items to the order as needed.
   Note: If the card doesn't have a chip in it, swipe it through the terminal instead. When inserting or swiping, the cardholder's name will be captured to use as the name of the bar tab. Avoid tapping a contactless card on the terminal as this won't capture the cardholder's name.
7. Tap Send to save the bar tab and send items from the order to the kitchen.

About opening bar tabs

Pre-authorization guarantees payment of the pre-authorized amount, not necessarily the order total. If a pre-authorization is not approved, a generic Decline error will appear when attempting to complete the payment.

Once preauthorization has been approved, the card status will remain visible in the order details.

• Green: The preauthorization has been approved and the order total is lower than the amount approved.
• Yellow: The order total is larger than the preauthorization amount. 

Viewing and editing open bar tabs

Visit the Order management screen in the Restaurant POS app to view all open bar tabs, search for a specific tab, and modify open tabs.

1. In the Restaurant POS app, tap Orders to open the Order management screen.
   Accessing this screen requires an open sales period and user shift.
2. Select Bar tabs to view all open bar tabs.
3. (Optional) Enter the name of a cardholder or bar tab in the search field to locate a specific tab.
4. (Optional) Tap a bar tab to open it on the Register screen and make changes, such as adding items or discounts.
   To learn more about modifying orders, see Editing and reviewing orders.

   

Transferring bar tabs to tables

When seating a customer with an existing open bar tab, transfer the tab to their table to mark the table as occupied. Once transferred, manage the tab directly from the Tables screen.

1. In the Restaurant POS app, tap Orders to open the Order management screen.
   Accessing this screen requires an open sales period and user shift.
2. Tap an open bar tab to view it on the Register screen.
3. Tap Actions, then select Transfer to another table.
4. Enter a table number and tap Transfer, or tap Browse tables and select an open table.
   

   

Renaming bar tabs

Modify the name of a bar tab from the Register screen to change it. When initially opened, bar tabs receive either the cardholder's name (if a credit or debit card was pre-authorized) or the name entered by the user opening the tab (if pre-authorization was skipped).

1. In the Restaurant POS app, tap Orders to open the Order management screen.
   Accessing this screen requires an open sales period and user shift.
2. Tap an open bar tab to view it on the Register screen.
3. Select Actions.
4. Tap the Tap to rename order field.
5. Enter a new name for the bar tab, then tap Close to save changes.
   

   

Closing bar tabs

Close an open bar tab to process payment for a customer’s tab when they are finished ordering. Use the customer's pre-authorization payment method or select an alternate payment method to complete the order.

1. In the Restaurant POS app, tap Orders to open the Order management screen.
   Accessing this screen requires an open sales period and user shift.
2. Tap a bar tab to open it on the Register screen.
3. Tap Pay to process payment for the order.
4. Follow the specific set of steps that reflects whether the customer wants to use their pre-authorization payment method or a different payment method to pay for the order.
   

   To pay with the pre-authorization payment method:

   1. Tap Complete payment.

      

   2. If prompted, tap Proceed to charge the order total to the pre-authorized credit or debit card.
   3. Finish processing the order as usual.

   To pay with a different payment method:

   1. Tap Remove pre-authorized amount.
      

      

   2. Tap Remove again to confirm.
   3. Tap Pay to return to the order payment screen.
      

      

   4. Select a payment method to use for the order.
   5. Finish processing the order as usual. 

What's next?

• Learn how to interact with a floor plan and tables in Understanding the Tables screen.
• Learn more about searching for orders on the POS in Understanding the Order management screen.