Restaurant Glossary

Orders and Fulfilment

Abandoned Basket

An online basket that a customer starts but does not complete as an order.

Menus and Products

Add-on

An optional extra that can be added to a menu item, such as a side dish or additional topping.

UK Hospitality

Allergen Information

Information identifying ingredients or substances that may cause allergic reactions. Hospitality businesses remain responsible for accurate information and applicable UK requirements.

Technology and Integrations

Application Programming Interface(API)

A defined way for software systems to exchange requests and data.

Menus and Products

Availability

Whether a menu item, service, location or ordering time can currently be selected.

Finance and Reporting

Average Order Value(AOV)

The average amount customers spend per order during a selected period.

Restaurant Operations

Back of House(BOH)

The parts of a hospitality operation usually hidden from guests, including kitchens, storage and preparation areas.

Orders and Fulfilment

Basket

Also: Cart

The collection of items a customer has selected before confirming an order.

Restaurant Operations

Booking

Also: Reservation

An arrangement reserving a table, service or time for a guest.

Customers and Marketing

Brand

The recognisable identity of a hospitality business, including its name, design, tone and customer experience.

Orders and Fulfilment

Branded Storefront

A customer-facing website or ordering experience presented using a restaurant’s own identity.

Finance and Reporting

Business Intelligence(BI)

The use of organised business data to understand performance and support decisions.

Restaurant Operations

Busy Period

Also: Peak period

A time when order, booking or customer volume is higher than usual.

Payments

Card-not-present Payment(CNP)

A card payment made without the physical card being presented to the business, such as an online checkout.

Payments

Cash on Delivery(COD)

A payment arrangement where the customer pays when a delivery arrives.

Payments

Cash Payment

A payment completed using physical notes or coins.

Orders and Fulfilment

Click and Collect

Also: Collection ordering

An ordering journey where a customer orders remotely and collects from the restaurant or takeaway.

UK Hospitality

Cloud Kitchen

Also: Dark kitchen, Ghost kitchen

A food business designed mainly to prepare orders for collection or delivery without a traditional dining room.

Orders and Fulfilment

Collection Order

An order prepared for the customer to collect from a restaurant or designated collection point.

Finance and Reporting

Commission

A fee commonly calculated as a proportion of a transaction or order value.

Payments

Contactless Payment

A payment made by tapping a supported card, phone or device on a compatible reader.

Finance and Reporting

Conversion Rate

The proportion of visitors who complete a chosen action, such as placing an order.

UK Hospitality

Covers

The number of guests served or expected during a service period or booking.

Customers and Marketing

Cross-selling

Suggesting a complementary item, such as a drink or side, alongside a customer’s selection.

Finance and Reporting

Customer Lifetime Value(CLV)

An estimate of the value associated with a customer relationship over time.

Customers and Marketing

Customer Relationship Management(CRM)

The organised management of customer information and interactions for authorised business purposes.

UK Hospitality

Dark Kitchen

Also: Cloud kitchen, Ghost kitchen

An alternative name for a delivery-focused cloud kitchen without a conventional dining area.

Technology and Integrations

Data Controller

The organisation that determines why and how personal data is processed under data-protection law.

Technology and Integrations

Data Processor

An organisation that processes personal data on a controller’s documented instructions.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Delivery Aggregator

A service that brings orders or delivery activity from multiple sources into one interface or workflow.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Delivery Area

Also: Delivery zone

The geographic area within which a restaurant offers delivery.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Delivery Fee

An amount charged for delivering an order, subject to the business’s pricing and service rules.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Delivery Marketplace

A third-party platform where customers browse participating restaurants and place delivery or collection orders.

Orders and Fulfilment

Delivery Order

An order prepared for transport from the restaurant to a customer’s delivery address.

UK Hospitality

Dine-in

Food or drink ordered for consumption at the hospitality venue.

Orders and Fulfilment

Direct Ordering

Orders placed through channels owned or controlled by the restaurant rather than through a third-party delivery marketplace.

Customers and Marketing

Discount Code

Also: Promo code

A code entered during ordering to apply an eligible offer or price reduction.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Driver Assignment

The process of allocating a delivery order to an available driver or courier.

Technology and Integrations

Electronic Point of Sale(EPOS)

Also: POS system

A digital till system used to record sales and support transaction or operational workflows.

Technology and Integrations

Email SMTP(SMTP)

A standard method used by systems to send email through a configured mail server or service.

Kitchen

Estimated Preparation Time

The expected time needed for a restaurant team to prepare an order.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Estimated Time of Arrival(ETA)

The estimated time when an order, driver or guest is expected to arrive.

Customers and Marketing

First-party Data

Information collected through a business’s own direct interactions with customers, subject to applicable privacy rules.

UK Hospitality

Food Hall

A venue containing multiple food or drink operators within a shared customer space.

UK Hospitality

Food Hygiene Rating

A rating issued following inspection by a relevant food-safety authority. Schemes and display rules differ across parts of the UK.

UK Hospitality

Franchise

A business arrangement where an operator uses an established brand and system under an agreement with the brand owner.

Restaurant Operations

Front of House(FOH)

Customer-facing areas and roles such as reception, tables, bars and service teams.

Orders and Fulfilment

Fulfilment

The process of preparing and completing an order through dine-in, collection or delivery.

Orders and Fulfilment

Fulfilment Type

The method used to complete an order, such as dine-in, collection or delivery.

Finance and Reporting

Gross Margin

Gross profit expressed as a proportion of revenue. Accounting treatment should be confirmed with a qualified adviser.

Finance and Reporting

Gross Profit

Revenue remaining after subtracting the direct cost of goods sold, before other operating expenses.

Orders and Fulfilment

Guest Checkout

A checkout that allows a customer to order without creating or signing into an account.

UK Hospitality

Hospitality

The sector providing food, drink, accommodation and guest services.

Payments

House Account

An account allowing approved charges to be recorded for later settlement under agreed business rules.

Technology and Integrations

Integration

A connection that allows separate systems or services to exchange supported information or trigger workflows.

Menus and Products

Inventory

The ingredients, products, packaging or other stock held by a hospitality business.

Menus and Products

Item Availability

Whether a specific menu product can currently be ordered for a location, channel or time.

Kitchen

Kitchen Display System(KDS)

A screen-based system used to present and manage orders in a kitchen or preparation area.

Kitchen

Kitchen Printer

A configured printer used to produce order tickets for preparation or fulfilment teams.

Kitchen

Kitchen Ticket

A printed or digital order summary showing the items and instructions needed for preparation.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Last-mile Delivery

The final part of delivery from a local hub or restaurant to the customer.

Customers and Marketing

Loyalty Programme

A structured scheme that rewards eligible customer activity according to published rules.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Marketplace Order

An order received through a third-party ordering or delivery marketplace.

Menus and Products

Menu Engineering

The analysis and organisation of menu items using factors such as sales, cost, margin and customer appeal.

Menus and Products

Menu Management

The process of maintaining menu categories, products, prices, modifiers and availability.

Menus and Products

Modifier

A selectable change or option for a menu item, such as size, cooking preference or extra topping.

Restaurant Operations

Multi-location Management

The coordinated management of settings, teams or performance across more than one business location.

Finance and Reporting

Net Sales

Sales revenue after recognised deductions such as refunds or discounts, according to the reporting method used.

Restaurant Operations

No-show

A guest who does not attend a booking and has not cancelled according to the venue’s process.

Orders and Fulfilment

Omnichannel Ordering

An approach connecting several customer ordering channels with coordinated menus, data or operational workflows.

Orders and Fulfilment

Online Ordering

A process that lets customers browse a menu and place an order through a website or other internet-connected experience.

Orders and Fulfilment

Order Acceptance

The step where a restaurant confirms that it will prepare and fulfil an incoming order.

Restaurant Operations

Order Dashboard

An operational view used to review and manage incoming or active orders.

Orders and Fulfilment

Order Status

A label showing the current stage of an order, such as new, preparing, ready or completed.

Restaurant Operations

Order Throttling

Temporarily limiting or delaying available order capacity during high demand.

Menus and Products

Out of Stock

A status indicating that an item or ingredient is not currently available.

Payments

Payment Gateway

A service that securely passes payment information between checkout and payment-processing systems.

Payments

Payment Processor

A provider that handles payment authorisation and transaction processing between relevant parties.

Payments

Payment Status

The recorded stage of a payment, such as pending, authorised, successful, failed or refunded.

Technology and Integrations

Point of Sale(POS)

The place or system where a customer transaction is recorded and payment may be taken.

Orders and Fulfilment

Pre-order

An order placed before the intended preparation or fulfilment time.

Kitchen

Preparation Time

The time taken or allocated to prepare an order before service, collection or delivery.

Customers and Marketing

Promotion

A time-limited offer or incentive governed by defined eligibility and redemption rules.

Technology and Integrations

QR Code(QR)

A scannable two-dimensional code that can open digital information such as a menu or ordering page.

Orders and Fulfilment

QR Table Ordering

A dine-in journey where guests scan a table QR code to browse and place supported orders.

Payments

Receipt

A record confirming a transaction and its relevant items, totals and payment details.

Finance and Reporting

Reconciliation

The process of comparing transaction, payment and accounting records to identify differences.

Payments

Refund

The return of some or all of a payment under the applicable business and payment-provider process.

Restaurant Operations

Reservation

An arrangement holding a table or service time for a guest or party.

UK Hospitality

Restaurant Group

An organisation operating or managing more than one restaurant location or brand.

Finance and Reporting

Revenue

Income generated from sales before relevant costs and deductions are considered.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Rider

Also: Courier

A courier who transports delivery orders, commonly by bicycle, motorbike or similar vehicle.

Technology and Integrations

Role-based Access(RBAC)

A method of assigning system permissions according to a user’s approved role.

Orders and Fulfilment

Scheduled Order

An order placed for an available future date or time.

UK Hospitality

Service Charge

An amount added to a bill for service. Treatment and distribution depend on the venue’s policy and applicable UK requirements.

Technology and Integrations

Short Message Service(SMS)

A standard technology for sending text messages to mobile telephone numbers.

Menus and Products

Stock Keeping Unit(SKU)

A unique internal code used to identify and track a particular product or variation.

Orders and Fulfilment

Storefront

The customer-facing digital experience where business details, menus and ordering options are presented.

Finance and Reporting

Subtotal

The combined item value before later adjustments such as delivery fees, service charges, discounts or tax treatment.

Customers and Marketing

Suggested Selling

Prompting staff or customers with relevant additional or alternative items during ordering.

Technology and Integrations

Synchronisation

Also: Sync

The process of keeping supported information aligned between systems or channels.

Orders and Fulfilment

Table Ordering

An ordering workflow connected to a guest’s table, often through staff devices or a QR experience.

Restaurant Operations

Table Turnover

How frequently a table is occupied by different parties during a service period.

UK Hospitality

Takeaway

Also: Takeout

Food or drink prepared by a hospitality business for consumption away from the venue.

Delivery and Marketplaces

Third-party Marketplace

An external platform that lists multiple businesses and facilitates customer orders under its own terms.

Finance and Reporting

Transaction Fee

A charge associated with processing or facilitating a payment or transaction.

Customers and Marketing

Upselling

Encouraging selection of a larger, enhanced or higher-value version of an item.

Technology and Integrations

User Role

A named set of responsibilities or permissions assigned to a system user.

UK Hospitality

Value Added Tax(VAT)

A UK tax applied to eligible goods and services. Restaurant treatment can depend on the product, fulfilment method and current rules.

UK Hospitality

Venue

A physical hospitality location where food, drink or guest services are provided.

Technology and Integrations

Webhook

An automated message sent from one system to a configured endpoint when a specified event occurs.

Technology and Integrations

White Label

A product or service presented using another business’s brand rather than the underlying provider’s identity.

Restaurant Operations

Workflow

A defined sequence of tasks or statuses used to complete an operational process.