Point of sale systems for full service restaurants in Arkansas
Table service runs on small decisions made fast. This page covers how we set up coursing, checks, tips and shift close for Arkansas dining rooms.
Full service restaurants in Arkansas need a point of sale that handles seat numbers, coursing, split checks and server banking without slowing a server down. Both Shift4 SkyTab and Clover do this, and the real difference is in how the menu gets built and who answers when it breaks. We program your menu, install in person, and stand in the dining room on go live night.
In this article
01How do split checks actually work on SkyTab and Clover?02Can my servers course a table and fire the entrees when they want?03What does server banking and shift close look like?04What happens when the internet goes down in the middle of dinner service?05How long does it take to get a full service restaurant live?06Questions restaurant owners ask
“We are not mosquitoes. You will not be swatting us away. But we are not disappearing after the install either.”
How do split checks actually work on SkyTab and Clover?
A server can split a check by seat, by item or evenly across the table. On SkyTab that happens at the terminal or on the handheld, so nobody walks back to the station to redo it. On Clover the dining app handles the same job, though moving individual items between checks takes a few more taps.
The part that goes wrong is rarely the software. It is a menu where items were never tied to seats, so every split turns into a hunt through a ticket. We build seat assignment into the ordering flow during programming, then run your servers through a live table before you open.
Can my servers course a table and fire the entrees when they want?
Yes. Items carry a course, appetizers print on send, and entrees hold until the server fires them. That keeps a four top from getting salads and steaks in the same minute. Kitchen printers or a kitchen display can be split by station so the grill and the fry side only see their own tickets.
Neither platform is a fine dining coursing engine with seat by seat pacing and several fire holds inside one course. If you run a tasting menu or a chef counter, tell us early and we will say straight out whether this is the right fit or whether you need something else.
What does server banking and shift close look like?
You pick one of two models. Server banking means each server carries a bank, closes their own checks and drops at the end of shift. Cashier banking means a single drawer and one person reconciles everything. Both run on SkyTab and Clover, and you should decide before we program rather than after.
A real person calls you back within two hours, Monday to Saturday, 8am to 7pm Central.
What happens when the internet goes down in the middle of dinner service?
Orders keep reaching the kitchen because the terminals talk to each other over your local network. Card payments are where the risk sits. Both platforms can capture cards offline and submit them when the line returns, which means a decline surfaces after the guest has walked out the door.
There are caps on how much you can capture that way. Ask any dealer for that number before you sign. We put it in writing for whichever platform you choose and we walk your closing manager through the screens, so the first time it happens is not also the first time anyone has seen it.
How long does it take to get a full service restaurant live?
Menu programming happens before hardware ships. You send the menu in whatever form you have, we build items, modifiers, prices, tax and printer routing, then you review it on a screen share and we correct it. Hardware arrives already configured for your floor plan.
On install day we mount, cable and test, then train the closing crew and the opening crew separately because they need different things. We are in the building on go live night. Judd Alsup runs the Arkansas installs and you will have his number, not a ticket queue.
Where SkyTab and Clover hold up in a dining room, and where they do not
Both systems run table service properly, and both carry limits you deserve to hear before you sign anything.
What works
- Handhelds take the order and the payment at the table, so a server never leaves the section to run a card.
- Splits work by seat, by item or evenly, from the handheld or the terminal.
- Coursing with hold and fire, plus kitchen routing split by station.
- Menu, tax groups and printer routing are built and tested before the hardware ships to you.
What does not
- Processing is tied to the platform. You cannot shop your card rate later without changing systems.
- Neither offers the seat by seat pacing and multiple fire holds that a dedicated fine dining platform does.
- On Clover, several dining features are separate apps with their own monthly fees, so the real monthly cost sits above the headline price.
- Reservations and waitlist are not native to either one. You add a third party and manage a second login.
- Custom reporting is limited on both. Anything unusual ends up as a spreadsheet export.
Questions restaurant owners ask
Can I keep my current credit card processor?
Not on either platform. SkyTab runs on Shift4 processing, and Clover devices are bound to the merchant account they were sold under. That is a genuine trade off. It is also the reason to compare total monthly cost instead of hardware price alone, and we will put that full monthly number in writing before you decide.
Do I have to program the menu myself?
No. Menu programming is part of the install, not a homework assignment you finish alone at midnight. Send the current menu in any form you have it, including a photo of a printed one. We build items, modifiers, prices, tax groups and printer routing, then you review it before hardware ever ships.
What happens if a terminal dies on a Saturday night?
You call and a real person calls you back within two hours, Monday through Saturday, 8am to 7pm Central. For hardware failure we keep spares in state, so a swap does not wait on a freight carrier in another time zone. Judd and the Arkansas team handle the swap in person when it needs hands.
Can servers clock in and out on the point of sale?
Yes. Both platforms include a time clock with roles, pay rates and cash tip declaration at clock out, and the reports export for payroll. Neither is a full scheduling platform. If you build schedules in a separate tool today, plan on keeping that tool after the switch.
How does the system handle tip pooling?
The point of sale records charged tips by server and cash tips as declared. Distribution rules for a pooled house still run outside the system, because neither platform includes a full pool calculator. Arkansas tipped wage and tip pooling rules matter a great deal here, so read our Arkansas page before you set policy.