This really frustrates me

[capsicum]

Since upgrading to Square for Restaurants Plus in order to take advantage of the multiple POS and KDS that we use in our small counter-service burrito shop, I absolutely hate the reports. I used to be able to look at any report, on any device, and it would tell me how we were doing that day at that time. Now, due to closed checks and other stuff, apparently, I can only see some of the reports after doing an End of Day closing. We do not use open checks at our restaurant. Why is there not a way to turn that off so every transaction processes when it is run, like it did before when using Square for Restaurants Basic level?  Am I just doing something wrong? I have made sure that the "Open Check" option is not selected anywhere that I can find it, but everything remains open. And if I am not there at the end of day, or if we accidentally forget to run the thing, I only get paid the money from our online orders until I run the EoD the next day.  I understand the need for this in a bigger restaurant with many servers keeping their tips and all of that, but for me, this is just a huge hassle and disappointment.

[TheRealChipA · Accepted solution]

Hi @capsicum.  Your question comes up regularly here.  The solution, while not obvious at all, is actually pretty simple.  Here’s what’s going on.

Square for Restaurants allows you to reopen checks without losing the payment method.  Unfortunately, this has the unadvertised side effect of delaying the posting of payments until they are settled — either manually or by default.  If you aren’t running close of day every night, they will still eventually settle automatically — after 36 hours, I believe, or maybe 48.  And, as you’ve learned, your reports (and if you use the Dashboard app, that too!) won’t be accurate.

Go to your Online Dashboard >  Device Management > Service Settings > Reopen Checks.  You’ll find the the “default” reopen method is to “reopen and keep payment method.”  Change it to “reopen and remove payment method.”  Then, click the Save button.

Now, all transactions once closed will immediately show up in your balance.  The one drawback to this is that if you do need to reopen a check, you’ll lose the payment information and have to get it from the customer again.  Most of us don’t need this, I don’t think, and it baffles me that Square engineers consider this the “default” setting, or that they even have a default setting for a critical setting such as this.  But, it is what it is.

Doing this should fix your problem.  In my ice cream shop I, too, have no need to reopen checks after they are closed.  This will fix your issue and frustration.