How DocketBEO works.

What is DocketBEO?

DocketBEO runs the whole room in one login. It covers:

• Reservations and online booking from your own website, with no per-cover fee
• The host stand: floor plan, waitlist, seating
• Floor: servers take the whole table's order, and courses fire when you're ready
• Kitchen: each station sees only its own tickets
• Private events and catering: inquiries, BEOs, client portal, deposits and invoices
• Online payments through your own Stripe account, QuickBooks Online sync, Reports and staff scheduling

It runs in a web browser on devices you already own: tablet, laptop or phone. There is also an Android app, and an iPhone app is coming soon.

Try it without signing up: docketbeo.app/try. Pick a role (work the pass, work the floor, or run the room) and you land in a private sandbox with sample data. It resets after 48 hours.

Plans and pricing

Pricing is per location, not per person. Every plan includes unlimited team members and every feature. Reservations, floor, kitchen, events and BEOs, the client portal, online payments and QuickBooks sync are all included.

• Founding pricing is available to the first 25 restaurants that subscribe. After that, new signups pay the standard price. The homepage shows how many founding spots are left.
• If you subscribe at the founding price, you keep that rate as long as your subscription continues, even after prices go up.
• There are no per-cover reservation fees, no hardware rental, and no setup fees.
• DocketBEO doesn't take a cut of payments your clients make to you. Stripe's normal processing fees still apply.

How the free trial works

• Sign up at docketbeo.app with your name, work email, business name, business type and a password.
• You'll be asked for a card through Stripe. Nothing is charged for 14 days. Billing starts on day 15.
• Stripe emails you a reminder before your trial ends.
• To cancel before you're charged, go to Settings → Billing & Payments → Manage Billing → Cancel subscription.
• Want to look around first? The demo at docketbeo.app/try needs no signup and no card.

Getting started: what to set up first

After you sign up, your dashboard has a Getting Started guide. If you plan to use DocketBEO for service (Docket LIVE turned on), the steps are:

1. Add your tables. Add them in bulk: how many 2-tops, 4-tops, and so on.
2. Map your floor. Drag tables into the shape of your actual room.
3. Route your stations. Choose which kitchen station each menu category goes to.
4. Set up online reservations. Add the booking button to your website.
5. Build your menu. Paste your menu or upload a photo or PDF, and the AI Menu Uploader builds it for you.
6. Invite your team.

If you only use DocketBEO for private events, the guide is just Build your menu and Invite your team.

You can seat a walk-in or take a reservation the same day you sign up.

Turning on Docket LIVE (service mode)

Docket LIVE is the service side: Host, Floor, Kitchen and Reports. It's free on every plan.

• Owners and managers turn it on in Settings → Venue → Docket LIVE → Turn On.
• When LIVE is on, a Docket LIVE tab appears in Settings, with Kitchen Stations, Tables, Floor Plan, Course Timing, Online Reservations, Reservation Pacing and No-Show Protection.
• Leave LIVE off if you only want events and BEOs.

Building your menu (AI Menu Uploader)

Settings → Menu → AI Menu Uploader

• Choose Paste text or Upload photo or PDF (JPEG, PNG, WEBP, GIF or PDF, up to about 3 MB), then press Build My Menu.
• Review the list before publishing:
  • edit any item
  • confirm each dietary flag it suggests
  • enter a price for anything marked "market price" (it never makes up a price)
• Press Publish when you're done.

You can also add items by hand with Add Menu Item. Each item has:

• name, food or beverage, category, price, and per-guest or per-item pricing
• whether it's available for live service (Floor), events and catering (BEO), or both
• an optional "Ask server for temperature" prompt

For event packages, "What the package includes" sets how many items a client can choose per category, such as "Choose 2 appetizers." The client portal enforces the limit.

Tables, floor plan and kitchen stations

Once Docket LIVE is on, these are all under Settings → Docket LIVE:

• Tables → Manage: add tables in bulk.
• Floor Plan → Manage: drag tables to match your room.
• Kitchen Stations → Manage: pin a menu category to a station (Pantry, Pasta, Grill, Pastry, Bar, Kitchen, or your own name).
• Course Timing → Manage: choose whether each category fires right away or waits for the server to fire it.

Automatic station routing uses words in the category name:

A category named "Cocktails" or "Drinks" goes to Kitchen unless you pin it to Bar in Kitchen Stations.

Online reservations on your website

Settings → Docket LIVE → Online Reservations (owners and managers)

1. Copy the one-line code snippet.
2. Paste it into your website. It adds a "Reserve a Table" button in the bottom-right corner.
   • Works with Squarespace, Wix, WordPress, Shopify, Webflow, GoDaddy and others.
   • "Not sure where this code goes?" gives step-by-step instructions you can hand to your web person.
3. Use Preview the widget to check it, then click I've Added This To My Site.

How booking works

• Guests enter name, phone, optional email, date, time, party size and notes.
• Bookings are checked against your capacity (and your Reservation Hours, if you've turned them on) and appear on the Host screen instantly.
• There's no per-cover fee and no booking network in between. They're your guests.

Reservation Pacing (same tab)

• Set a maximum number of covers within a time window (default 90 minutes).
• If you leave the cover limit blank, DocketBEO uses your total table seats.
• When a time is full, the guest sees "That time is fully booked."

Reservation Hours (same tab)

• Off by default: until you turn it on, guests can pick any date and time.
• Tick Only accept online bookings during these hours, then set each day: closed, or one or more services (for example lunch and dinner), each with a first seating and last seating time. Last seating is the last time a guest can book.
• Choose Time slots every 15, 30 or 60 minutes. Guests then pick a time from a list instead of typing one. Today's times that have already passed aren't offered.
• A closed day shows as Closed in the widget, with a shortcut to the next day you're open.
• Services can't run past midnight. For a late service, add an early window on the next day (for example 12:00 AM to 1:00 AM).
• Times follow your venue's timezone (Settings → Venue → Timezone), not the guest's.
• Guests changing a booking from their email link get the same list. A booking made before you set your hours can keep its time, but it can only be moved to a time inside your hours.
• Hosts aren't limited. On the Host screen, a booking or edit outside your hours shows a warning, and Save anyway saves it.

Closed Dates (inside Reservation Hours)

• Add a date, like a holiday or a private buyout, with an optional note. No online bookings are taken that day.
• The note is only visible to your team. Guests just see that you're closed.
• Closed dates only apply while Reservation Hours are turned on.

Reservation confirmations, reminders and cancellations

• Confirmation email: a guest who gives an email gets "You're booked at [your restaurant]" with the details and a link to view or cancel. You get a "New online reservation" email too.
• Reservations entered at the host stand: if you add the guest's email, they get the same confirmation email, without the cancel link.
• Reminder email: the day before, every confirmed reservation with an email gets a reminder with the cancel link.
• Guest changes and cancellations: from the link in their email, guests can change the date, time, party size or notes, or cancel. Changes go through the same availability check as a new booking, and both you and the guest get an "updated" email. If the date moves, the reminder is sent for the new day. You're notified of cancellations too.
• Host edits: on the Host screen, tap Edit on an upcoming reservation to change any detail. If the new time is over your pacing limit you'll see a warning, and Save anyway overrides it.
• Text messages: reservation confirmations by text aren't available yet. Texting is currently for the waitlist ("your table is ready").

No-show protection (card on file)

Require a card to hold online reservations, and charge a fee if a guest doesn't show or cancels late.

Setup: Settings → Docket LIVE → No-Show Protection (owners and managers). Stripe must be connected first (see "Accepting online payments").

• Fee per guest: default $25.
• Cancel window: default 24 hours.
• Parties of at least: optional, e.g. only require a card for parties of 6 or more.

How it works

• The guest enters a card and ticks "I agree to this no-show policy." Nothing is charged at booking. The card is saved to your own Stripe account.
• The fee and window are locked in when the guest books, so changing your settings later doesn't affect existing bookings.
• You decide whether to charge. Nothing is charged automatically. On the Host screen, mark the reservation No-show, or Cancel it if the guest cancelled inside the window. A "Charge $X fee" button appears, and you confirm before anything is charged.
• The fee is the per-guest fee × party size. It can only be charged once per reservation.
• If the guest's bank requires extra approval, the charge may not go through.
• Reservations entered at the host stand never require a card.

The Host screen and waitlist

Host shows:

• your floor plan: open, seated, or needs bussing
• tonight's reservations: Seat, No-show, Cancel
• the waitlist

A reservation's notes carry over to the table, and from there onto the kitchen tickets.

Waitlist

• Add a party with name, size, quoted wait, and an optional phone number.
• The list shows how long each party has waited against their quote, and flags anyone running over.
• Text them sends: "Hi [name], your table is ready at [your restaurant] — come on back to the host stand. Reply STOP to opt out."
  • Texts go from DocketBEO's number, with your restaurant's name in the message.
  • US and Canadian mobile numbers only.
  • If a text can't be sent, your device's own messaging app opens with the message ready to go.
• Seat at [table] seats them; Left removes them.

Drop the check closes a table and marks it for bussing until it's cleared.

Taking orders and firing courses (Floor)

• Open a table, set the party size, and tap Take Order.
• Enter the whole table's order at once, with seat numbers and courses 1–9.
• Course 1 fires when you send the order. Later courses (entrées by default) wait until you fire them from the table card.
• Items marked "ask for temperature" prompt the server.
• Made a mistake? Recall undoes an accidental fire.

The Kitchen screen

• Lanes: Not fired yet — don't start, On the rail, In the window.
• Each ticket has one button that moves it along: Working → Pick Up → Run It. Once it's run, it leaves the kitchen screen.
• Filter to one station, or open the single-station screen for a tablet at the grill. The filter is remembered on each device.
• Tickets show Table note, Guest profile, and BEO note strips, so allergies and requests reach the line.
• Event courses and regular tables share one rail and are easy to tell apart.
• Ticket times are learned from each station's own history.
• Wi-Fi drops: the Kitchen screens keep working offline. Every tap is saved on the tablet and syncs when you reconnect. (Host and Floor need a connection.)
• There's a practice ticket for training new cooks.

Checking out a table and taking card payments

On Floor, Check Out becomes available once everything at the table has been served.

• Tip: none, 15%, 18%, 20% or custom, calculated on the pre-tax subtotal.
• Paid by:
  • Cash, Comp or Other: tap Mark Paid & Close.
  • Card: Enter Card (typed in) or Use Reader (a Stripe card reader). Card payments need Stripe connected, and the guest can get an emailed receipt.
• Split Check: split evenly (2–20 ways) or by seat. Shared items are divided across seats, and you can tap an item to move it to another guest. Each part gets its own tip and payment method, and the table closes when the last part is paid. A split can be undone until someone pays.
• Refunds aren't available in the app yet. Refund through your Stripe dashboard.
• Printing a check: use Print Check. For a split table you can print one guest's check or all of them. See "Printing."

Card readers

• DocketBEO works with Stripe's own readers: WisePOS E ($249) and Reader S700 ($349). Order them from your Stripe Dashboard under Terminal → Shop.
• After Stripe is connected, add the reader in Settings → Billing & Payments → Card reader with its registration code (owners and managers).
• You can always type a card in with no reader at all.
• Readers from other processors (Square, Clover, etc.) can't connect to Stripe. They're locked to their own processor.

Printing

• You can print the BEO menu, the event timeline, and table checks.
• Printing uses your device's normal print dialog, so the printer must support AirPrint (iPhone/iPad) or Mopria (Android) and be on the same Wi-Fi.
• Check the printer's spec sheet for AirPrint or Mopria by name. Many "POS receipt printers" don't support either.
• Kitchen ticket printers: Settings → Docket LIVE → Kitchen Printers → Manage (owners and managers). Works with Star printers that support CloudPRNT (e.g. mC-Print3, TSP143IV) and Epson printers that support Server Direct Print (e.g. TM-m30III, TM-T88VII). The printer only needs a network connection, with no computer or driver.
  • Add the printer, choose which station's tickets it prints (or all stations), and paste the web address shown into the printer's own setup page. Treat that address like a password.
  • Tickets print automatically when a course is fired, with table notes and allergies highlighted. A course that's fired again prints a "FIRED AGAIN" copy.
  • Settings shows whether each printer is online, and Print test ticket checks the setup.
  • Tickets older than 20 minutes are skipped, so a printer that was off overnight won't flood the kitchen.

Private events: inquiries, BEOs and the client portal

Inquiries

• Add the inquiry form to your website from Settings → Venue → Embed on Your Website.
• Inquiries land in Inquiries with the stages New, Quoted, Held, Won and Lost.
• Reply with a quote emails the client.
• Book it opens a pre-filled new event.

Creating an event (owners and managers)

• New Event walks through four steps: client, date/time/room, guests and deposit, then menu.
• A BEO is drafted automatically. Your default tax, gratuity and payment schedule are applied.
• If the room is already booked that day, you'll be warned.

The BEO

• Has sign-offs for Kitchen, Floor, Bar and GM Final Review.
• Only owners and managers see pricing. Everyone else sees the menu, timeline and setup notes.

The client portal (no login for your client)

• Clients can adjust the guest count, choose menu items within your limits, see the live invoice, message you, and pay online if Stripe is connected.
• The portal is English only for now.

Menu lock

• Client menu changes lock a set number of days before the event (Settings → Venue → Billing Defaults, default 5).
• Clients get a reminder email before the lock.
• You can also Lock Menu Now from the event page.

Day-of staff access

• A QR code on the event page opens a no-login page showing the menu and setup notes, with no prices.

Accepting online payments (Stripe)

Settings → Billing & Payments → Accept online payments → Connect Stripe (owners and managers)

• Finish Stripe's onboarding. When it's done you'll see "Connected — clients can pay online."
• Clients can then pay deposits, installments, or the full balance from their event portal. Money goes straight to your Stripe account, and DocketBEO takes no cut.
• Your dashboard updates as soon as a client pays, and the client gets a payment confirmation email.
• Stripe is also required for card payments at checkout, card readers, and no-show protection.
• Set default payment schedules in Settings → Venue → Payment Schedule.

QuickBooks Online

Settings → Billing & Payments → Sync to QuickBooks → Connect (owners and managers)

• Event payments: when a client pays online through the portal, DocketBEO creates the matching Customer, Invoice and Payment in QuickBooks. (The event needs a client email. Deposits you record by hand aren't synced.)
• Daily dining sales: if Docket LIVE is on, each morning yesterday's closed-table sales go to QuickBooks as one Sales Receipt. The amount excludes tax and tips.
• If the connection expires, you'll get an email. Use Reconnect QuickBooks in Settings.

Reports

Reports (owners and managers, Docket LIVE on)

• Pick 7, 30 or 90 days or a custom range. Results are compared with the previous period.
• Revenue is split between the dining room and private events.
• "What changed, and what to do":
  • your slowest kitchen station
  • what no-shows cost you (no-shows × your average check)
  • how events compare with the dining room
• Covers, per-cover spend, average check, average table time, busiest day, and online bookings.
• Breakdowns: by day, by service period, kitchen time by station, and top items.
• Export CSV, or Send to my accountant, which opens a pre-filled email in your mail app.

Your team: invites, roles and scheduling

Unlimited team members on every plan.

Inviting people

• Settings → Team → Invite Team Member (owners and managers): name, email, and a job title.
• They get an email (and there's a QR code) to create their account with that same email.

Roles

• Owner and Manager can:
  • invite and remove people
  • create events
  • see pricing and Reports
  • manage billing, payments and online reservations
• Team members use the service screens, BEOs, menu and messages, without financial details.
• Promote someone with Make Manager after they've logged in once.

Schedule

• A weekly grid: click a cell to add a shift with time, role and notes.
• Copy Last Week repeats a schedule.
• Shift swap requests aren't available yet.

Messages

• Internal team channels, plus a channel for each event that's shared with that client. Clients see those messages in their portal and get an email.

Email notifications

• Settings → Team → My Notifications: get an email when a teammate books an event.

Devices and hardware

You don't need to buy hardware from us. DocketBEO runs on devices you already have.

• The full guide is at docketbeo.app/answers.
• DocketBEO's own check presenter and kitchen bump bar are in design, not for sale yet. You can sign up for updates at docketbeo.app/hardware.

Mobile apps and languages

• Android app: available now.
• iPhone/iPad app: coming soon to the App Store. Until then, DocketBEO works in Safari on any iPhone or iPad; you can add it to your home screen. When the app launches, create your account at docketbeo.app first, then sign in.
• Languages: the staff app can be switched to English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Arabic, Japanese, Korean or Chinese from the language menu in the sidebar. The setting is per device.
  • Some screens are still being translated.
  • The client portal is English only for now.
• Appearance: Dark or Paper, also per device.
• Calendar sync: Settings → Venue → Sync to Your Personal Calendar gives you a link for Google, Apple or Outlook Calendar. Events show up with a link to the BEO.

Moving from another system (importing clients)

• Clients → Import Clients (owners and managers): upload a CSV exported from your old system.
• Match its columns to Name, Email, Phone, VIP, Segment, Referral source and Notes.
• Existing clients are matched by phone or email. Only empty fields are filled in, so nothing you already have is overwritten.

Referral program

• Find your referral link in Settings → Billing & Payments → Refer a Friend.
• When a venue you referred pays its first bill, you get a free month as account credit. There's no limit on how many you can earn.
• They get 20% off their first 3 months.

Billing, plan changes and cancelling

• Settings → Billing & Payments → Manage Billing (owners and managers) opens your Stripe billing page to update your card and see invoices.
• Cancelling: Manage Billing → Cancel subscription. You keep access until the end of the current billing period, and you won't be charged again.
• Changing plans: email hello@docketbeo.app and we'll switch you over.
• You'll get an email receipt for each payment.
• Adding a location: Settings → Venue → Add Venue. Your plan sets how many locations you can have.

Deleting your account and your data

• Email hello@docketbeo.app with the subject "Account Deletion Request."
• Say whether you want just your login deleted, or your whole venue and its data.
• We'll verify it's you and complete the deletion within 30 days.
• Billing records are kept as required by law.
• Details: docketbeo.app/delete-account.

Contacting support

• Email hello@docketbeo.app, or use the ? help button inside the app ("Message us"). You can ask for a call there too.
• The team replies by email.