What Is OpenTab Self-ordering?

OpenTab by Arryved empowers guests to browse your menu and place orders as they please via QR code technology. OpenTab’s self-ordering feature eliminates cumbersome steps in the service process, allowing more guests to be served with less staff while also elevating the guest experience. This article provides instructions for setting up OpenTab for the first time in your establishment through your Arryved Portal. 

Prerequisites 

• To complete the steps in this guide you must be an Arryved Portal Super Admin or an Admin with one of the following Permissions: 

• ALL ACCESS

• FULL ADMIN

• VENUE CONFIGURATION & INVENTORY (need both)

• You have read the OpenTab Service Model Considerations and the OpenTab Overview guides and decided that OpenTab for self-ordering is the best method for your business. 

• If you plan on printing tickets from OpenTab orders, you’ll need an Arryved Print Controller to route those orders to your printers. Please contact Arryved Support to place a hardware order: support@arryved.com

• Arryved Print Controller Overview

• Arryved Print Controller Setup Guide

• The alternative to a Print Controller is to digitally display orders from OpenTab using the ORDER Screen in Arryved Service instead. Keep in mind that any failsafe printing or print on bump with KDS will require a Print Controller. 

Limitations 

• Because guests will be using their smartphones to order through OpenTab, It’s strongly recommended to have a separate WiFi network for your guests to use so the bandwidth doesn’t interfere with the network your POS devices are on. 

• OpenTab requires guests to close out digitally. Collecting signatures on paper receipts is not supported with OpenTab. 

• When a guest wishes to pay with cash or with a different card than the one initially entered, they’ll need to find a staff member to close their tab via Arryved Service. 

• Tips can’t be adjusted once the guest has placed a tip through OpenTab. If there is an issue regarding tips, contact Arryved Support. 
  

How It Works

Order Flow

The infographic below gives you a good idea of how OpenTab’s self-ordering flow takes place. You can also check out the OpenTab Order Flow guide to see each OpenTab screen from the guests’ point of view. 

Setup Guide

Follow the steps below to get OpenTab set up in your Arryved Portal. 

Steps To Follow

1. Create The Master OpenTab Venue And Menu

2. Sync Your On-Premise Venues With OpenTab

3. Create QR Codes

4. Customize OpenTab Settings

5. Print QR Codes

6. Create The CHECK ID Tab Tag

Step 1: Create The Master OpenTab Venue And Menu

• For example, let’s say you offer your full menu in your patio Venue when you have full-service staff. But at times when guests are ordering from an OpenTab QR code on the patio, you just want them to see a drink menu and exclude the food menu.

• Also, maybe you want to offer more menu items via OpenTab at a different Venue (just not the patio). That’s doable too! 
  

Here’s how it works:  

1. You’ll create a master OpenTab Venue and create a master OpenTab menu. This Venue is simply used to configure OpenTab. It does not represent a physical Venue you’d have on-premise. 
2. The menu in the OpenTab Venue will include all the items you want to offer in OpenTab across any Venue. 
3. Now, let’s say you want to place OpenTab QR codes in your patio Venue… 
   

• Any Inventory Items that live on both your regular Patio menu and your OpenTab master menu will be available via the QR codes on the patio. 

• Any items that only live on the patio menu (but missing from the OpenTab menu) will only be available to order through Arryved Service. 

• Any items that only live on the OpenTab menu but no other Venue menus, won’t be available to order anywhere. 
  

The Venn Diagram below provides a visual representation of this concept. 

• Notice that any items both on the master OpenTab menu and the regular Venue menu will be available on the OpenTab menu specific to that Venue. For example, when a guest scans an OpenTab QR code on the patio, they’ll see the Hazy IPA, Hazelnut Stout, Cheeseburger, BLT, and Taco Flight because those items live both on the patio menu and the master OpenTab menu. 

• Notice that the Kid’s Meal on the regular Patio menu is not offered on the patio via OpenTab because it is not on the master OpenTab menu. But the Kid’s meal can be ordered on the Patio via Arryved Service. 

• Notice that the Rice Lager, Blueberry Sour, and Yuzu Seltzer are not offered on the patio via OpenTab because they are not on the regular Patio menu. 
  

Creating The Master OpenTab Venue

First, you need to create a new Venue labeled ‘OpenTab’. This Venue works differently, it’s simply used to create a master OpenTab menu. It won’t represent an on-premise Venue like your other Venues do. 

1. Log into your Arryved Portal. 

2. From the left-side navigation, click Venues. 

3. Click on the Plus Sign (+) at the bottom of the Venue list to create a new one.

4. Name the Venue ‘OpenTab’ in the Venue Description and Short Form. 

• You can name the Venue anything you want, as long as you can recognize it as your OpenTab Venue.

5. Click Create to finalize.
   

Important! 

• DO NOT add any tables to this OpenTab Venue. 

• Venue Configuration does not matter here. This Venue is only used to create a master OpenTab menu. 

Creating The Master OpenTab Menu

You’ll create the master OpenTab menus to categorize your menu items. (For example, Appetizers, Entrees, Draft Beer, N/A Bevs, etc.). 

• This is different from how you created your regular menus. (Dinner Menu, Happy Hour, etc.). 

• We do this because guests will have a better ordering experience if the menu items are categorized for them.

To Create A Menu:

1. Click on the OpenTab Venue again from the Venue list on the left. 

2. Change the Venue Type, at the top, to Online.

3. Click the Plus Sign (+) under Menus to create a new OpenTab menu. 

4. If you’re unfamiliar with creating menus, reference How To Create Menus. 

5. To create another menu after you have just created one, click on the Venue name from the left side again to get back to the main landing page. 

You can use the Sort Menu Items feature to sort the categorized menus into a user-friendly order that the guest will see. You can also sort the items within each menu however you’d like. Sorting the menus will appear properly in OpenTab, but will not rearrange on the Venue screen in Arryved Portal, but trust us, it’s working! 

Step 2: Sync Your On-Premise Venues With OpenTab

In this step, you’ll configure any of the physical on-premise Venues you want to offer OpenTab in. Consider which Venues you would like to place QR codes in to allow guest self-ordering. 

Giving one of your physical on-premise Venues a Public Table Name is how the Arryved system knows to sync that Venue with OpenTab. It’s referred to as the ‘public’ table name because the name will be visible to your guests when they scan a QR code placed in that Venue. 

1. In your Arryved Portal, navigate to the Venue section.
2. Select the first Venue that you want to offer OpenTab self-ordering in.
3. Click Edit Configuration on the upper right side.
4. Enter a Public Venue Name.
5. Make sure the Enable Digital Signature box is checked. OpenTab doesn’t support paper signature receipts. 
6. If you want to collect tips from OpenTab orders, check the box next to Enable Venue Tips. 
7. We recommend checking the box next to Enable Order Screen. This creates a new screen in Arryved Service that displays orders placed from this Venue. This is a good backup method for when there’s a printing failure. 
8. Click Save at the bottom of the screen!
   

Step 3: Create QR Codes

A QR code is generated when a table is given a Public Table Name and that QR code is unique to that table. This is so that when an order is placed from that QR code, the table number is attached and the order can be delivered to the guest’s proper location. 

1. In the same Venue you just gave a Public Venue Name, scroll down to the tables section.

2. Enter a Public Table Name with any table you’d like to generate a QR code for. 

3. Click Save when finished. 
   

P.S. If your tables for this Venue were added via the Floor Plan, you can enter Public Table Names that way too. 

IMPORTANT! Do not add tables to your master OpenTab Venue. Public Table Names should only be added to your regular on-premise Venues where you want to offer OpenTab QR codes. 

Step 4: Customize OpenTab Settings

In this step, you have the opportunity to customize the OpenTab feature to best meet your business needs. 

1. In your Arryved Portal, navigate to Location Settings.

2. Click OpenTab Settings.

3. At the top of the settings, find OpenTab Menus & Ordering and select Enable Menus & Ordering.

4. Under Select your customer/guest Venue, select your “OpenTab” Venue. 

5. Read OpenTab Settings In Arryved Portal to customize the rest of the optional settings to best fit your needs.

6. Click Save when finished adjusting the settings. 
   

Step 5: Print QR Codes

On the OpenTab Settings page in Portal, towards the bottom, you’ll see the chart titled Tables with Valid QR codes. 

• This chart lists all the tables that have Public Table Names and are also in a Venue with a Public Venue Name.

• The Tables with QR Code Errors chart will show any tables that have a Public Table Name, but the Venue they live in doesn’t have a Public Venue Name, and therefore a QR code was not generated for that table. 

• The tables on the valid chart have automatically generated QR codes. Print those QR codes and place them on their respective tables or locations so guests can access the OpenTab feature from their phones. 
  

• Remember that each QR code is unique to a table number, and the menu offering is unique to the Venue.
  

Above the chart, you will see the three ways you can download and print the QR codes. Read How To Print OpenTab QR Codes for full instructions, if needed.

Step 6: Create The CHECK ID Tab Tag

Because guests will be placing their own orders through OpenTab, it’s important to remember to check IDs for alcoholic purchases. The CHECK ID Tab Tag will print on every OpenTab order ticket to remind staff to ask for identification. 

To Create The Tab Tag:

1. From your Arryved Portal, navigate to Location Settings.

2. Click Tab Tag Type.

3. Scroll to the bottom of the list to create a new tag. 

4. Enter “CHECK_ID” in the Name field. This must match exactly as it appears here.

5. Enter “CHECK_ID” again in the Label field. 

6. Under Special Tab Processing, choose the CHECK_ID option.

7. Click Save next to this Tab Tag.

Gut Check!

Let’s review the steps in this guide to double check everything was completed.

1. Have you created a master ‘OpenTab’ Venue that is set to the ONLINE type? 

2. Have you created a master OpenTab menu in the OpenTab Venue?

3. The on-premise Venues you want to place QR codes in, have you given them a Public Venue Name?

4. Is the Digital Signature Screen enabled for all Venues with a Public Venue Name?

5. Have you given the tables within those Venues a Public Table Name? (Remember, you don’t want to have any tables added to the master OpenTab Venue). 

6. Have you configured the OpenTab Settings in Arryved Portal to your liking?

7. Have you printed and placed the QR code on their respective tables? 

8. Have you created the CHECK_ID Tab Tag?

9. If you plan to print tickets from OpenTab orders, have you placed a hardware order for an Arryved Print Controller? 

Next

The final piece to the OpenTab setup process is to route orders from OpenTab to their intended printers or KDS devices. This will take place in your Arryved Portal, under Location Preferences, using the Peripheral Matrix. 

• Please review the Default Peripheral Setup Guide to learn how. This task may seem complicated. Don’t hesitate to reach out to Arryved Support for any assistance.