What is an Item Route?

An Item Route is a named group of categories that tells Zeller POS which items belong to a station, so a printer or a kitchen display only shows the items that station is responsible for.

Without a route, every printer prints every item and every kitchen display shows every order. A route lets you send food to the kitchen and drinks to the bar.

Routes are shared. You build a route once and use it in two places:

• Printers — a kitchen printer set to use item routing only prints the items in its routes.
• Kitchen Display — a display set to use item routing only shows the items in its routes.

The same route can be used by several printers and a kitchen display at the same time.

What is a route made of?

A route has two things: a name and a list of categories. Items join a route through their category, so an item is in a route when its category is one of the route's categories. You do not add items to a route one by one.

Please note: because routes work on categories, your items need to be assigned to categories first. For how to assign items to a category, view here.

Worked example: a cafe with a kitchen and a bar

A cafe sells coffee, cakes, breakfast and beer. The categories are Coffee, Cakes, Breakfast and Beer.

The owner creates two routes:

• Food — categories Breakfast and Cakes
• Drinks — categories Coffee and Beer

They then use those routes in three places:

1. The kitchen printer uses the Food route, so it prints breakfast and cakes only.
2. The coffee machine printer uses the Drinks route, so it prints coffee and beer only.
3. The kitchen display uses the Food route, so the chef sees the same items the kitchen printer prints.

An order for a flat white and eggs on toast now prints the eggs in the kitchen, prints the flat white at the coffee machine, and shows the eggs on the kitchen display.

Worked example: One screen for everything

A small takeaway shop has one kitchen display and no stations to separate. They leave the display on Show all items and never create a route. Routes are optional.

Worked example: Two screens showing the same thing

A busy kitchen wants the same tickets visible at both ends of the pass. They set up a second Kitchen Display and pick the same route. Each screen keeps its own bump state, so clearing a ticket on one screen does not clear it on the other.

Routes are set up per site. A route you create at one site is not available at another.

If you experience any difficulties with Item Routes, please get in touch with our Support team for assistance.