Launching a bar or restaurant operation requires meticulous attention to detail, rapid execution, and an exceptional customer journey, and Odoo 19’s Point of Sale (POS) module is specifically designed to provide these capabilities. With its improved interface and specialized features for the hospitality sector, setting up a bar or restaurant in Odoo 19 is both effective and highly adaptable. From overseeing floor arrangements and table management to simplifying kitchen orders and accommodating split bills, this version introduces tools that empower hospitality businesses to enhance every facet of their service workflow. In this post, we will guide you through the process of configuring and personalizing the POS system for bars and restaurants in Odoo 19.
Managing a restaurant entails balancing numerous responsibilities, such as taking orders, serving guests, and coordinating effectively with the kitchen. During busy periods, this complexity can lead to delays and misunderstandings. To tackle these operational issues, many restaurants are embracing innovative POS systems that do more than just handle transactions; they optimize the entire dining process.
Odoo 19 brings a significantly enhanced Point of Sale system tailored for the unique needs of bars and restaurants. Its intuitive interface and comprehensive features enable you to efficiently manage floor layouts, handle multiple orders simultaneously, and boost overall service productivity. To access the specialized tools for restaurants, navigate to the POS settings and activate the “Is a Bar/Restaurant” option, providing a customized experience for dining establishments. Below is an image showcasing the POS configuration settings.
Enabling the Bar/Restaurant configuration in Odoo allows for effective management of your venue's layout, including floors, tables, and seats. This helps hosts balance capacity and reduce congestion during peak times. Table mapping connects orders to specific locations, enhancing service speed and accuracy. Detailed seat management improves coursing, supports split billing, and accommodates guest requests, streamlining table status tracking and ensuring smooth kitchen and bar coordination.
Within the Configuration menu illustrated above, the ‘Floor Plans’ feature enables you to oversee floors and their corresponding settings. As indicated by the highlighted selections, you have the ability to create additional floors and assign specific POS systems to each one.
Once you have established a floor in Odoo 19, you can customize each table to reflect your actual setup. Specify the number of seats, select the shape and color of the table, and modify dimensions such as height and width for an accurate fit.
By clicking on View, Odoo will display the detailed form of the table, allowing you to modify all aspects such as appearance, positioning, shape, color, seating capacity, and dimensions (width and height) to ensure that the floor plan accurately reflects your actual layout. After creating the floors in the configuration, we can assign each POS to its respective floor in the settings.
This is the front-end interface of the POS system displaying the floor plans we have created.
Floor plans can be modified directly through the POS interface. Just go to the options menu and select ‘Edit Plan’ to switch to edit mode.
While in floor edit mode, you have the flexibility to adjust the layout instantly: introduce a new floor, alter the background color, rename the floor, or completely remove it. Within each floor, you can add tables, modify their seating arrangements, colors, and shapes, or quickly replicate similar tables for a more efficient setup. Tables can be repositioned and resized to accurately represent the actual room layout, ensuring the on-screen map is a true reflection of the physical space. When you’re satisfied with the layout, save your changes to update the POS session.
Floor edit:
Table:
Let’s explore how the ordering process functions within the Bar/Restaurant POS system. To begin taking orders for a specific table, simply tap on it from the floor plan. Alternatively, you can quickly access a table by entering its number, which is particularly useful during busy periods. By tapping the “+” icon, Odoo will generate a new order and automatically link it to an available table, allowing staff to open tabs swiftly without searching for a location. Once you’re at a table, you can add items, notes, and quantities just like you would in a standard POS, ensuring everything is organized according to the correct table and seats.
This is the interface for entering table numbers.
Let’s review the additional functionalities in Odoo 19’s Bar/Restaurant POS. It offers predefined kitchen notes, a simple toggle to distinguish between dine-in and takeaway, early receipt printing, and precise bill splitting. Furthermore, it supports merging tables, expedited multi-printer routing for both kitchen and bar, tipping during payment, and flexible payment methods to enhance the guest experience. You can access these features in the POS interface by clicking the “Actions” button.
Kitchen/bar instructions: Include specific notes for each order line (such as “No onions” or “make it extra spicy”) and direct them to the appropriate printer or kitchen display, ensuring that staff receive clear preparation guidelines without overwhelming the customer receipt.
Split bills: Divide the bill by guests, items, or amounts; allow various payment methods for different individuals without altering the order. Allocate specific items to designated seats to streamline the ordering process and ensure precise splits for each guest.
Splitting the quantities among the customers so that they will split orders.
Early receipt/bill printing: Generate a provisional invoice or customer receipt upon request prior to payment (for example, for expense claims or to enhance the speed of checkout).
When the user clicks on the Bill button, Odoo allows printing the current bill without payments.
Dine-in vs. takeaway: Specify whether orders are for dine-in or takeaway to ensure the accurate application of taxes, adherence to packaging regulations, and efficient kitchen routing.
Tips: Gather tips at the point of sale or beforehand (This can be set in the preferences).
Table transfers and merges: Shift an order to a different table or merge/split tables as parties change, maintaining alignment between tickets and production.
The order is placed for table 7. Now, let’s discuss how to proceed with the transfer of the table. Click on “Transfer / Merge” in the Actions section.
Now, go ahead and pick the table that you think will work best for you
Next, let's explore the process of combining two orders. We will be merging the orders from table 7 and table 6:
Kitchen printer options: Implement a kitchen display system or use conventional printers, ensuring tickets are organized clearly and include bump actions.
You can configure the printers in the configuration Orders > Preparation Printers
In Odoo 18’s Bar/Restaurant POS system, the integration of a Kitchen Printer can be seamlessly achieved through an IoT Box or by establishing a direct network connection with an Epson/ESC/POS printer. To initiate the setup, simply enter the printer's IP address and specify the relevant product categories for printing, such as Food directed to the kitchen and Drinks sent to the bar. The IoT Box serves as a centralized hub for device management, supporting both USB and Ethernet printers, while the direct Epson configuration facilitates efficient and reliable ticket routing across the local area network.
Odoo 19 POS offers essential features for bars and restaurants that streamline the entire process from seating to payment. With tools for managing floor plans, tables, and seats, along with the in-POS “Edit Plan” feature, staff can operate from a layout that accurately reflects the venue, enhancing seating efficiency and minimizing mistakes. The system supports precise production with kitchen/bar notes and multi-printer routing, while functionalities such as dine-in versus takeaway, early receipt printing, bill splitting, tips, and table transfers effectively address real-world service situations. Additionally, you can connect kitchen printers through IoT Box or a direct network for dependable ticketing.