QR table ordering for hotel lounges, bars and terraces

How does QR ordering work in a hotel?

Each table in your public areas gets its own QR code: the armchairs in the lounge, the bar stools by the window, the terrace, the sunloungers by the pool. A guest scans it with their phone camera, the menu opens in the browser, and they order a coffee, a glass of champagne or a club sandwich without walking to the bar or waving at a busy server.

The order appears at once on a bar screen with a chime and the table name in large type, such as “Lounge 4”, “Terrace 7” or “Pool 12”. Staff move it through New, Making and Ready, then take it out with the card machine. Guests pay at the table by card, contactless or cash.

Lounge, bar, terrace and poolside: where it fits

DrinksQR is built for tables in shared spaces, so it suits the parts of a hotel that work like a bar or café. It isn’t a room service system, and we don’t present it as one: there are no QR codes for bedrooms and no delivery to rooms.

• The lounge: afternoon coffee, a cream tea, an early-evening drink, with guests who would rather not interrupt a conversation to flag someone down.
• The bar: tables and booths order by QR while the bartender looks after guests at the counter.
• The terrace: a long walk from the bar for staff, and a long wait for guests if nobody passes by.
• Poolside: guests in swimwear without a wallet can order and settle when the drinks arrive.

Poolside and terrace tables a long way from the bar

The further a table is from the bar, the harder it is to serve well. Staff either walk the area repeatedly to take orders or guests go without. With QR ordering, the order is on the screen before anyone moves, and the only trip is out with the tray and the card machine.

Ticket timers help on a busy afternoon: each one turns orange after five minutes and pink after ten, so the bar can see when a poolside order is waiting. Alcohol tickets show “Check ID”, useful when families and younger guests share the pool area. For large outdoor spaces, see our page on beer gardens and outdoor areas, and for weatherproof cards, the guide to printing table QR codes.

English and Spanish menus for international guests

Hotels serve guests who don’t always read English comfortably. DrinksQR offers menus in English and Spanish, which helps with Spanish-speaking visitors and with guests from across Latin America and Spain. A guest who can read the menu in their own language is more likely to try the cocktail list rather than point at the first thing they recognise.

Allergen information travels with the menu. Each item can show any of the 14 UK allergens, plus vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free tags, so guests with dietary needs can check before they order. Your team should still confirm anything serious in person. Our guide to allergens on digital menus explains how to keep this accurate.

A menu that looks like your hotel

A hotel’s public spaces are part of the brand, and the menu on a guest’s phone should feel the same. The branding add-on, at £20 a month, applies your colours, logo and font to the guest-facing menu, so it looks like your hotel rather than a generic ordering page.

Behind it, the back office lets you manage categories, items and prices, sizes from 125ml glasses to bottles, shared option lists for mixers and milks, ABV, and sold-out toggles. Lounge and poolside drinks can sit in their own categories, and any item can be marked sold out in one tap when it runs out.

What does it cost for a hotel?

A hotel with one bar and lounge and no more than 20 tables can use the Standard plan at £69 a month. Most hotels with a terrace or pool will want the Large plan at £99 a month: up to 100 tables and multiple bar screens or service points, such as a lobby bar and a pool bar. Add branding for £20 a month. Hotel groups get 10% off each additional venue. All plans are 12-month rolling, billed monthly. See the pricing page or get in touch about a full food menu setup.