Opening & Closing Checklist
Opening & Closing Checklist runs the structured task walkthrough every shift needs — a department-organized task list (Front of House, Bar, Kitchen, Management) that a manager or senior team member works through, ticking off and initialing each task, before signing off the whole sheet as complete.
Overview
Each daily instance combines a Date, Shift (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Late Night) and Type (OPENING or CLOSING); starting a new instance begins from the default task template for that type.
Default Opening tasks cover FOH (tables set, menus out, reservation list, music, lighting, toilets), BAR (stocked, coffee machine, wine list, glassware, ice), KITCHEN (specials confirmed, mis en place, fridge temps logged, HACCP records, dry goods, allergen info) and MANAGEMENT (cash float, reservations confirmed, staff briefing, 86 board cleared, fire exits, first aid kit).
Default Closing tasks cover FOH (guests out, furniture reset, floors, candles, toilets, linen), BAR (secured, spirits locked, POS closed, wastage recorded), KITCHEN (equipment off, walk-in secured, waste disposed, cleaning log) and MANAGEMENT (takings balanced, safe secured, alarm set, MOD log completed).
Each task can be ticked, initialed (who completed it) and given an optional note; progress bars track completion both per-department and overall for the day's instance.
Manager sign-off locks the instance as SIGNED_OFF, after which it becomes a historical record rather than an editable working sheet.
The task list itself is a customizable template — tasks can be added, removed or reordered independently of daily instances, and archived instances can be reviewed with a date-range filter.
Before You Start
- You must have the Billing feature enabled on your plan.
Step-by-Step Guide
1 Start today's opening or closing checklist
- Open Operations & Compliance → Opening & Closing Checklist.
- Start a new instance, choosing the Date, Shift and Type (Opening or Closing) — it loads from the current task template for that type.
- Work through each task, ticking it off and adding initials (and a note if something needed attention) as it is completed.
2 Sign off a completed checklist
- Once every task is addressed, use the sign-off action to lock the instance as SIGNED_OFF — this should be done by the manager or senior team member responsible for the shift.
3 Customize the task template
- Open the template management view (gear/settings icon) to add, remove, or reorder tasks within each department.
- Changes to the template affect future checklist instances, not ones already started or completed.
4 Review history
- Use the date range filter to look back at past opening/closing checklists — useful for verifying a task was actually done on a specific date, or for a compliance review.
Every Field & Button, Explained
| Field / Button | What it does |
|---|---|
Type | OPENING or CLOSING — determines which default task set an instance starts from. |
Shift | Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, or Late Night. |
Task (tick / initials / note) | Each task can be checked off, initialed by whoever completed it, and given an optional note (e.g. an issue found while checking). |
Progress | Calculated per department and overall from the ratio of ticked tasks to total tasks in the instance. |
Status | IN_PROGRESS (default on creation) until manager sign-off locks it as SIGNED_OFF. |
Tips & Best Practices
- Assign one person to own the full walkthrough rather than splitting it across several staff — it is easier to know it was actually completed end-to-end.
- Use the Note field for any task that could not be fully completed (e.g. "wine chiller not at temp — called maintenance") rather than leaving it unticked with no context.
- Review the customizable template periodically — as your restaurant's procedures evolve, the checklist should evolve with them rather than staying static from day one.