How To

What is Waiter Management?

Waiter Management lets you create waiter accounts, group tables into sections, manage shifts, and assign waiters to tables — all with live updates across every connected device. It works together with ordering.tools, where waiters and sections are created, and Reservation.Tools, where shifts and table assignments are managed on the visual floor plan.

Step 1: Sync Your Account with ordering.tools

Before using the waiter feature, you need to sync your Reservation.Tools account with ordering.tools:

1. Open ordering.tools in your browser
2. Log in using your Reservation.Tools credentials (same email and password)
3. This one-time login syncs your account and venue data between the two systems

You only need to do this once. After that, the two systems stay in sync automatically.

Step 2: Create Waiters in ordering.tools

Waiter accounts are created in the ordering.tools administration:

1. In ordering.tools, go to Settings → Waiters
2. Click "Add Waiter"
3. Fill in the waiter details:
   • Username — the display name (e.g., "Ivan")
   • Email — for the waiter's login
   • Password — for the waiter's login
4. Optionally grant access to multiple venues if the waiter works across locations
5. Save the waiter

Repeat for each waiter you want to add. These waiter accounts will automatically appear in Reservation.Tools once the feature is enabled.

Step 3: Create Sections in ordering.tools

Sections are reusable, color-coded zones that group tables together (e.g., "Patio", "Bar", "Main Room"):

1. In ordering.tools, go to Waiter Admin → Sections
2. Click "Add Section"
3. Set a name and color for the section
4. Assign tables to the section
5. Save

Note: Each table can belong to only one section at a time. Sections make it easy to assign an entire zone to a waiter in one click instead of selecting tables individually.

Step 4: Enable Waiters in Reservation.Tools

To use waiters in Reservation.Tools, the feature must be enabled for your venue:

1. Open the Administration panel
2. Go to Venues and click edit on your venue
3. Open the "Reservation Settings" tab
4. Enable the "Waiters" feature flag
5. Save

Once enabled, the "Waiters" option will appear in the application menu.

Step 5: Start a Shift

Shifts define the active service period. Only one shift can be active per venue at a time:

1. In the application, go to Menu → Waiters
2. Click "Start new shift"
3. If a shift is already open, you will be asked to confirm — starting a new shift automatically closes the previous one
4. The shift starts immediately with the current time

Step 6: Assign Waiters to Tables

Once a shift is active, you can assign waiters to tables directly on the floor plan:

1. From Menu → Waiters, click "Assign tables"
2. The floor plan enters assignment mode with two options:
   • Tables mode — assign individual tables by clicking them
   • Sections mode — assign entire sections in one click
3. Select a waiter chip (each waiter has a unique color)
4. Click on tables or sections on the floor plan to assign them to the selected waiter
5. Repeat for other waiters
6. Click "Assign" to confirm all changes

All assignments update in real time across every connected device. You can reassign tables mid-service at any time by entering assignment mode again.

How It Works with Reservations

When a reservation is seated at a table that has an assigned waiter, the system automatically stamps the waiter on the reservation. This means:

• The waiter's name appears on the reservation in the table popup and reservation form
• The assignment persists even after the shift ends — it stays on the reservation record
• This helps track which waiter served which guests

Summary

The complete setup in order:

1. ordering.tools — log in once to sync your account
2. ordering.tools — create waiter accounts and sections
3. RT Administration — enable the Waiters feature flag on your venue
4. RT App — start a shift and assign tables from Menu → Waiters

Everything syncs automatically between the two systems in real time.