Square for Restaurants Now Supports Bar Code Scanning

[cbenson]

I got an email from Alex at Square pointing out that Square for Restaurants now supports bar code scanning (thanks for remembering I wanted that Alex!.) 

This is great for my operation (quick-service sandwiches/salads) so it can move the line by scanning drinks, chips.  Anyway...  I've ordered a couple "Zebra (Symbol) LS2208" scanners to test it all out.  If anybody has experience with scanners they like/don't like with Square I'd love to hear it.  I'm assuming the support for models in the "... for Restaurants" is the same as retail Square.

Cheers.

[puka · Accepted solution]

Hey @cbenson - So glad we could provide a feature that you needed! I've moved your post to another board to make it more visible to other Sellers within the Community.

Hopefully they'll be able to chime in with their barcode scanner experiences!

[lastchance12]

Is there a way to print bar code labels with Square for restaurant?  Items --> Action -->  Print Labels (doesn't exist)

[Joe]

Hi there, @lastchance12 👋 I can step in on this one! The ability to print bar code labels is a function available in Square for Retail! You can learn more here.

Don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!

[lastchance12]

I have square for restaurants.  Do I have access to square retail and would it sync?    I prefer not to maintain another list of items and login information.   Can retail and restaurants run in conjunction?   Am I better off creating bar codes outside of the square system?

[Joe]

Hi there again, @lastchance12! Both Square for Retail and Square for Restaurants are subscription based services that can be used in conjunction with your regular Square account, which means that no extra login credentials needed. Both can be run in conjunction, you would simply need to run each app on your iPad or tablet.

[lastchance12]

please correct me if I am mistaken:    In order to print bar codes I would need to pay separately for square retail.   In addition I would need to run 2 separate apps at my operation.  

We are primarily a restaurant but have some merchandise and swag that we sell.   Often customers would want to put merchandise on there restaurant tab.   What would be the best practice in the case of that situation?

[Joe]

You are correct here, @lastchance12 - Square for Retail and Square for Restaurants would be two separate subscriptions which would be billed separately. These apps would be separate on your tablet or point of sale, but could be used interchangeably. 

Based on what you are describing - being a Restaurant with a few different physical items to sell - I would create the items to sell on regular Point of Sale in lieu of purchasing an using Retail in order to utilize barcodes. While the barcode flow is undoubtedly more seemless during checkout, the subscription is designed for Sellers with hundred of items to organize. 

[lastchance12]

Joe -   Thank you for your input.   Lastly if I still wanted barcodes and unable to use a 3rd party program to generate.  The. Use those with square.   Or if an item had an existing barcode could I use that with square for restaurant.    Thank you

[Joe]

Hi again, @lastchance12 - not sure what you mean here, would you mind clarifying? Are you asking if you can use barcodes created outside of Square with Square for Restaurants specifically?

[Diane60]

Hi, how do I add inventory with the barcode scanner? I also have Square Restaurant but sell bottles if wine and merchandise. 

[JJ_]

Welcome to the Seller Community 👋

While Square for Restaurants offers Barcode Scanner support at this time Adding inventory with a barcode scanner in Square for Restaurantes would be considered a feature request at this time, @Diane60.

[islander1]

Hi Joe,

I have a similar question. I am working with a brewery/restaurant that has table service and food orders (for which we need to track table orders and print orders to the kitchen) as well as having a retail outlet for alcohol (which would be useful to have barcodes for).  We also need to track our inventory of the different wine bottles we sell.  What is the best solution for this?  Thanks!

[Diane60]

I have the same question as Islander. Please respond,thanks!

[gobrandongo]

I have the same question as Islander and Diane as well.  We are using Square for Restaurants, but we have thousands of bottles of wine we need to label with a barcodes and sell with a barcode scanner (We are using the Square Register).  Is there a way to do this without adding another Square for Retail account?  Even if we pay for another subscription for Square for Retail, it's not clear to me if we can scan bar codes created with Retail in the restaurant using Register to check out.  It's not really feasible for us to try to use another platform just for wine bottle tags.  

[JJ_]

Hey there @gobrandongo

In order to create and print barcodes that you would be able to scan on Square for Restaurants,  you would need Square for Retail. Thank you for taking the time to share your interest in this feature. I recommend you submit a Feature Request here. This will help our product team get visibility and track other Sellers' interest in your request.

Important: When submitting a request, make sure to include the desired feature, and provide the details of how this feature will help your business succeed (how would you use it and what you expect from it).

[gobrandongo]

Hi JJ, 

If I purchase a Square for Retail subscription, and we print barcode labels for all our wine, can we scan those barcodes to add items to checks in the restaurant, using our Square for Restaurants account, which is operating on Square Register?  In other words, are the barcodes able to be shared across two separate accounts?

[JJ_]

Square for Retail would be needed on the same that Square for Restaurants is used for the Barcode Labels to work when Scanned on the Square for Restaurants Point of Sale application. Keep in mind that when I mean account I am not referring to a particular device like the Square Register, but on your Square Dashboard when accessed from a Web browser.

I hope this information is helpful!

[gobrandongo]

It's still not clear to me, even if I pay for the Square for Retail subscription, are the barcode labels going to work using our Restaurant POS, or do the Square for Restaurants app and the Square for Retail app have to be operated separately?   

If I buy a Square for Retail subscription, can we label all the wine, and then scan it in the restaurant during service at the register using the Restaurant POS, and keep track of inventory in the restaurant without using another app that operating Square for Retail?

The cost of $60 a month is not a problem for us, but we cannot use two separate square interfaces just to deal with wine sales.  

Thank you for your reply!

[JJ_]

Yes once barcodes are created and printed in Square they are usable on Square for Restaurants.  Sorry for the delay in my response @gobrandongo

[JeniRUS]

Hello,

I just upgraded to a Square Register and Square for Restaurants POS system from an iPad/Square Stand and Square Point of Sale.  I own a fast casual diner with lots of convenience store items for sale ie. sodas, candy, etc.  I need the ability to take food orders with lots of modifiers, send the orders to kitchen printers and also be able to scan bar codes on the convenience store items.  Using Square Point of sale and a usb barcode scanner allowed me to enter the items and scan their barcodes to add to my item library. Very easy but the food ordering system was a little clunky.  I made sure my usb scanners are compatible with my new square register.  I was just wondering if I will still be able to scan the bar codes on the convenience store items to add them to my item library using the Square for Restaurants system.  Thank you for your time, Jeni