Ask any waiter or waitress about the hassle of splitting a check and you’re bound to hear some stories. Either the POS system won’t cooperate, or the party is paying with different methods, something always goes wrong when the check has to be split. For the wait staff though, there are steps that can be taken to reduce the instances of something going wrong when checking out.
The first thing that any manager should do is train their staff to ask if large parties want to split their checks. Approaching a large group with one check makes it difficult on both server and customer. The customers have to decide how to divide up the checks, while the server then has to run different credit cards. Asking the customers if they want to split the checks at the beginning of the meal will allow the server to keep an accurate record of who ordered what, which will save time when it is time to check out. Multipart checks are widely available, so order a bunch from Restaurant Discount Warehouse and go from there.
It also helps to have your wait staff trained on POS systems. Many POS systems are able to divide up the items that are going to a table. You can also program your POS to include suggested tip amounts. This will benefit customers who don’t want to spend time figuring out percentages at the table. Even if the table opts for one check, you can simply apply tip amounts to that check with ease as well. Having an intuitive POS system is beneficial for everyone.
Splitting check used to be one of the biggest headaches that a server had to go through. Thanks to modern advances though, it no longer has to be like that. Give you staff a break, and give them the tools they need to succeed!