What New Bar Staff Should Check at Handover: Prep Tickets, Guest Bills and Reprints

When handing over to a new bar staff member, first identify whether each piece of paper is for preparing an order, checking charges or confirming payment. Then check which order it belongs to and what remains to be served. Don’t arrange preparation just because you see a paper ticket, and don’t assume a printed bill has been paid. The departing staff member should make sure the person taking over can explain the next step and whom to ask for help, rather than simply handing over a stack of papers.

Three types of ticket, and what each one tells you

• Prep ticket: sends preparation details to the relevant station. Check whether the station has received the task, whether preparation is complete or whether the items are awaiting handover. A prep ticket is not proof of payment.
• Guest bill: used to check the items and amount currently due. Printing a bill does not mean payment has been received, nor does it prove that the kitchen received the same details.
• Payment record: check it against the actual payment result and the relevant order. A prep ticket or reprinted bill is not a substitute.

The manager should show the person taking over where the bar, kitchen order-receiving point and order handover area are. Explain who handles drinks, who handles food and whom to ask if anything is unclear.

A role card for new staff: clarify the role and its limits first

• Receiving points: Note where the bar, kitchen and order handover area are, which stations check the screen and which receive paper tickets.
• Permitted actions: The manager should explain which requests the staff member may handle and set up their individual account with the appropriate permissions. Changes to dishes, refunds and device settings should be handled by an authorised colleague; don’t share accounts.
• Unfinished tasks: Sort tasks by table and original order, distinguishing drinks to be mixed, hot food, items made and waiting to be collected, and requests awaiting a reply. Record the actual status.
• Who to ask: List the person currently responsible, their location and who takes over when they are away. Don’t just write “ask someone if there’s a problem.”
• Handover check: Ask the person taking over to say who they’ll check with first, which table the items go to and what still needs checking. The departing staff member should correct any misunderstandings in person.

New staff should start by taking over tasks they already know how to handle. The manager can gradually add responsibilities according to their actual capabilities. If they are not yet familiar with payment or exception handling, an authorised colleague must remain responsible; don’t leave new staff to figure it out during a rush.

MenuSnap’s kitchen guide explains KDS and paper tickets separately. When both are used, they are different ways of presenting the same task, not separate tasks to be carried out twice. Their availability depends on the plan, compatible devices and actual configuration. At handover, explain which information each station receives under your restaurant’s setup.

When an order includes both drinks and hot food, the bar and kitchen may finish at different times. Front-of-house staff need to know whether items will be served in stages; the bar finishing its part does not mean the whole order is complete. Nor should anyone assume a drink was missed and send it through again just because it is not listed on the kitchen’s paper ticket. If this is unclear, new staff should check the current division of responsibilities first, and the order handover lead should explain the actual status.

If a paper ticket is missing, check what may have happened first

• The ticket has been picked up or the station has started work: Follow the original task to check where it is and what remains to be served. Don’t send it again as a new task.
• A reprint is genuinely needed: First confirm the original order and its status with the responsible station, then explain why the ticket is being reprinted. Receiving a second paper ticket does not mean another portion should be made.
• There may be a printing fault: Have the person in charge check the ticket type, rules, template, printer, operating mode, online agent and task status, and contact support. Don’t change the configuration yourself.

During service, don’t repeatedly print guest orders to troubleshoot a fault. Information appearing at one station does not mean another station has received it; trace the original order to find where it stopped being passed along.

A handover is about unfinished tasks, not duplicating work

The departing staff member and the person taking over should check the current orders together and go through what is being prepared and what has already been handed out. A paper ticket being moved may simply mean the station has been cleared; on its own, it does not prove that the guest received the food. The restaurant can prepare a brief handover sheet that lists follow-up items alongside the person responsible, so new staff can pick up tasks that are ready to continue.

A guest may first ask a new staff member for another round of drinks, then ask a different employee to add a dish. Each person handling the request should check whether a colleague has already dealt with it before sending it to the right station. Don’t pass the whole old bill back to the kitchen and expect them to find the new item themselves. Nor should an item already being prepared be entered again as a new task because of a handover.

Before a senior staff member goes to the back to collect supplies, they should say who will handle questions from new staff in the meantime and hand any ongoing tasks to that colleague. If a new staff member encounters an unclear note, they can tell the guest they are checking, then ask the responsible station for an update. Allow time in the schedule for handovers and questions, especially when the bar and kitchen are both busy, so new staff can clarify things before acting rather than making promises on their own about preparation times or refunds.

If the network or kitchen screen is down, the manager should first check which tasks have been received, then hand over unfinished items using the existing procedure. QR-code ordering through a webpage, cloud syncing and online payments depend on a network connection. Offline availability for the native client depends on the official version and configuration. When service is restored, compare the actual preparation, orders and payments, and check what was arranged verbally. New staff need only report uncertain items to the designated colleague; the manager should contact support about technical faults.