DeccanPro · Chennai restaurant guide
https://deccanpro.com/guides/restaurant-menu-setup/
Updated
Choose one source list
Bring the menu currently used by your restaurant, then identify who can confirm prices and dish names. Start with a small representative selection rather than moving every historical item into a test. Include a popular dish, a long name, a drink and any portions that are easy to confuse.
The downloadable menu-planning CSV is a worksheet for this discussion. It is not a guaranteed import format for DeccanPro or another POS. Confirm the supported import or entry process during setup before moving a production catalogue.
Write variants so staff can tell them apart
Give separate portions or variants names that remain recognisable on the order screen, KOT and receipt. Avoid two entries whose distinguishing word disappears at the end of a narrow printout. Have a cook and cashier read a sample ticket independently.
Record categories and the preparation team’s terminology. If you need custom modifiers, special instructions or a particular combination-meal structure, list the requirement and ask to see it demonstrated. A menu worksheet helps make those questions explicit without assuming a feature exists.
Rehearse mini and full meals on the same order
Use a fictional training menu with Mini meals at Rs.90, Full meals at Rs.140 and Filter coffee at Rs.25. Order two mini meals, one full meal and one coffee. The intended item subtotal is Rs.345: Rs.180 plus Rs.140 plus Rs.25, before any configured adjustments. The kitchen needs two mini portions and one full portion, not simply a total of three meals.
Ask a second cashier to find both meal entries from the names shown in the actual interface. Then ask the cook to read the printed ticket without being told which portion was selected. If a name wraps, the portion word must remain associated with its quantity. Use the supported menu-entry method demonstrated on your installation; this exercise does not require or promise a variant-selector feature.
Scroll sideways if needed to see all columns.
| Menu name | Quantity and sample price | Expected item amount |
|---|---|---|
| Mini meals | 2 × Rs.90 | Rs.180 |
| Full meals | 1 × Rs.140 | Rs.140 |
| Filter coffee | 1 × Rs.25 | Rs.25 |
Catch a wrong portion even when the total quantity looks right
Repeat the exercise after deliberately selecting three full meals instead of two mini and one full. There are still three meals and one coffee, but the item subtotal is now Rs.445. The Rs.100 difference comes from the two mistaken portion selections. A correct count of dishes therefore does not prove that the menu entry is correct.
Compare the saved line names and quantities with the approved source menu before changing prices to make a total agree. Correct the selected items through the demonstrated workflow, then check the kitchen update and final order again. Keep this on training data so the intentional mistake cannot become an instruction to prepare real food.
Approve names on the smallest display and paper you use
Read the same sample on the captain phone, counter screen, actual KOT paper and customer receipt. Keep useful distinguishing words near the beginning of a name. If staff use an abbreviation, agree it with the kitchen and verify that it cannot be confused with another dish or portion. Do not rely on price alone as the kitchen’s portion identifier.
Keep a short list of the ambiguous entries you corrected, the approved replacement names and the person who checked them. Repeat the sample order after the change. Expand the catalogue only after the representative entries are clear; the linked menu-change guide covers planning later edits during service.
Check prices and invoice settings separately
Confirm the intended selling price for each sample item. Have the appropriate business adviser confirm the tax and invoice configuration; do not copy a demonstration’s settings simply because the bill looks familiar. Keep the approved source list for comparison.
Enter the representative menu, place an order, print the kitchen ticket and review the final bill. Correct ambiguous names before expanding the catalogue. After the full setup, spot-check the items the team sells most often and note who is responsible for future changes.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
Your checklist
- A current menu source and responsible person
- Distinct names for similar portions
- Mixed-portion sample checked by cashier and cook
- Wrong-portion case detected despite unchanged meal count
- Names readable on actual phone and KOT paper
- Prices and invoice configuration confirmed
- Sample order, KOT and bill compared
