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Kitchen Display

Set up and use the kitchen display system

Kitchen Display System Overview

The Kitchen Display System (KDS) replaces paper tickets with a real-time digital screen that shows your kitchen team exactly what needs to be prepared. Orders appear instantly on the display as they are accepted, and kitchen staff can mark items as ready with a single tap. The KDS tracks preparation times, highlights delayed orders, and ensures nothing gets missed during busy rushes.

Accessing the Kitchen Display

  1. Open a browser on your kitchen screen (tablet, monitor, or TV) and navigate to your restaurant's kitchen display URL.
  2. Log in with an employee account that has the kitchen role, or any role with kitchen access (admin, manager).
  3. Select the branch if the employee is assigned to multiple locations.
  4. The display loads in full-screen mode showing all active orders for that branch.

For the best experience, use a dedicated tablet or screen mounted where kitchen staff can easily see and tap it.

Understanding Order Cards

Each order on the kitchen display appears as a card containing:

  • Order number — A unique identifier shown prominently at the top of the card.
  • Order type — Color-coded badge showing takeout, dine-in, delivery, or curbside.
  • Timer — A running clock showing how long since the order was accepted. The timer changes color as time passes (green → yellow → red) to highlight orders that need attention.
  • Items list — Each item with its name, quantity, selected options, and any special notes from the customer.
  • Customer notes — Any special instructions for the order are displayed prominently.
  • Table number — Shown for dine-in orders.

Cards are ordered by time — the oldest orders appear first so the kitchen processes them in sequence.

Order Flow

Orders move through these states on the kitchen display:

  1. Accepted — The order has been accepted (manually or via auto-accept) and appears on the display. The kitchen team can see what needs to be prepared.
  2. Kitchen — The order has been acknowledged by the kitchen and preparation is in progress. Tap the order card to move it to this state.
  3. Ready — All items are prepared. The order is marked as ready for pickup or delivery. It moves off the active display.

Marking Items as Ready

For orders with multiple items, you can track preparation at the item level:

  1. Tap on an individual item within the order card to mark it as prepared.
  2. Prepared items are visually crossed off or highlighted, making it clear which items are still pending.
  3. When all items in the order are marked as prepared, the order can be moved to the ready state.

Marking Entire Order as Ready

  1. When all items are prepared, tap the Ready button on the order card.
  2. The order is removed from the active kitchen display and appears in the ready queue.
  3. For delivery orders, this signals the dispatch system that the food is ready for a driver.
  4. For takeout and curbside orders, the customer receives a notification that their order is ready.

Filtering Orders

During busy periods, you can filter the display to focus on specific order types:

  • Filter by order type: show only delivery, takeout, dine-in, or curbside orders.
  • Filter by status: show only accepted, in-kitchen, or ready orders.
  • In multi-station kitchens, filters help each station focus on the items relevant to them.

Sound Notifications

The kitchen display uses audio alerts to keep the team informed:

  • New order sound — A notification sound plays when a new order appears on the display. This ensures the kitchen team notices new orders even during a busy rush.
  • Delayed order alert — A different alert sounds when an order has been on the display longer than the configured threshold. This helps prevent orders from being forgotten.
  • Sound settings can be adjusted from the display settings. Volume can be increased for noisy kitchen environments.

Timer Alerts

Each order card has a running timer that tracks preparation time:

  • Green — Order is within the expected preparation time. No action needed.
  • Yellow — Order is approaching the time limit. The team should prioritize this order.
  • Red — Order has exceeded the expected preparation time. The card flashes to draw attention.

Time thresholds are configurable per branch in the admin settings. Typical settings are 10 minutes for yellow and 20 minutes for red, but you can adjust based on your kitchen's speed.

Kitchen Printer Integration

Kitchen printers work alongside the display to provide a physical backup:

  • When an order is accepted, a kitchen ticket is automatically printed if a kitchen printer is configured and auto-print is enabled.
  • You can reprint a kitchen ticket from the order card at any time.
  • Each ticket can be configured to print at a specific station based on item tags.

Kitchen Ticket Format

A kitchen ticket includes:

  • Order number and order type
  • Time the order was placed
  • Item names with quantities (e.g., "2x Chicken Burger")
  • Selected options (e.g., "Large, Extra Cheese, No Pickles")
  • Special notes from the customer or cashier
  • Table number for dine-in orders

Tag-Based Routing

In kitchens with multiple preparation stations, tag-based routing sends items to the correct printer and display:

  1. Create tags in the admin panel (e.g., "Grill", "Fryer", "Bar", "Dessert").
  2. Assign tags to menu items (e.g., burgers get "Grill", drinks get "Bar").
  3. Assign tags to kitchen printers (e.g., the grill printer gets "Grill", the bar printer gets "Bar").
  4. When an order comes in, each printer only prints the items with its assigned tags.

This means the grill station only sees grill items, the bar only sees drinks, and so on. It reduces clutter and speeds up preparation by ensuring each station gets only the items they are responsible for.