Key Takeaways

• Complete restaurant stack: This tutorial builds menu management, table reservations, POS ordering, kitchen display system, inventory tracking, and Stripe payment processing.
• 2-4 hours for an MVP: With OpenCode's AI assistance, a functional restaurant management MVP can be built in 2-4 hours; a production-ready system takes 1-2 days.
• Real-time features included: WebSocket/Server-Sent Events enable live order tracking, kitchen display updates, and table status changes -- critical for restaurant operations.
• Tech stack: Next.js 14 + Tailwind CSS frontend, Next.js API Routes backend, PostgreSQL with Prisma ORM, and Stripe for payments.

How to Build a Restaurant Management App with OpenCode in 2026

Restaurant management software is one of the most requested application types—and for good reason. Every restaurant, cafe, or food service business needs tools to manage orders, reservations, inventory, and payments.

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to build a complete restaurant management system using OpenCode, the open-source AI coding assistant with 45K+ GitHub stars.

By the end, you'll have a working system with:

• Menu management
• Table reservations
• Order taking (POS)
• Kitchen display system
• Basic inventory tracking
• Payment processing with Stripe

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Table of Contents

1. Prerequisites
2. Project Setup
3. Building the Database Schema
4. Creating the Menu Management Module
5. Building the Table Reservation System
6. Implementing the POS (Point of Sale)
7. Adding the Kitchen Display System
8. Integrating Stripe Payments
9. Deployment
10. Next Steps

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Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

• OpenCode installed — See our OpenCode Tutorial for setup
• Node.js 18+ installed
• An API key for your preferred AI provider (Claude, GPT, or Gemini)
• Basic familiarity with terminal commands

Tech Stack We'll Use

Component	Technology
Frontend	Next.js 14 + Tailwind CSS
Backend	Next.js API Routes
Database	PostgreSQL with Prisma
Payments	Stripe
Real-time	Server-Sent Events

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Project Setup

Step 1: Create Your Project

Open your terminal and create a new Next.js project:

npx create-next-app@latest restaurant-pos --typescript --tailwind --app
cd restaurant-pos

Step 2: Launch OpenCode

Navigate to your project directory and start OpenCode:

opencode

Step 3: Create the AGENTS.md File

Before building, let's give OpenCode context about our project. Ask OpenCode:

Create an AGENTS.md file for a restaurant management system.
Tech stack: Next.js 14 App Router, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, Prisma with PostgreSQL, Stripe for payments.
Key features: menu management, table reservations, POS ordering, kitchen display, inventory tracking.

OpenCode will create a comprehensive AGENTS.md that guides all future development.

---

Building the Database Schema

Step 4: Set Up Prisma

Ask OpenCode to set up your database:

Set up Prisma with PostgreSQL for this restaurant management system.
Create the schema with these models:
- Category (menu categories like Appetizers, Main Course, Drinks)
- MenuItem (name, description, price, image, availability, category)
- Table (number, capacity, status: available/occupied/reserved)
- Reservation (table, customer name, phone, date, time, party size, status)
- Order (table, items, status: pending/preparing/ready/served/paid, total)
- OrderItem (order, menuItem, quantity, notes, status)

OpenCode will generate the complete Prisma schema:

// Example of what OpenCode generates (prisma/schema.prisma)

model Category {
  id        String     @id @default(cuid())
  name      String
  sortOrder Int        @default(0)
  items     MenuItem[]
  createdAt DateTime   @default(now())
  updatedAt DateTime   @updatedAt
}

model MenuItem {
  id           String      @id @default(cuid())
  name         String
  description  String?
  price        Decimal     @db.Decimal(10, 2)
  image        String?
  available    Boolean     @default(true)
  category     Category    @relation(fields: [categoryId], references: [id])
  categoryId   String
  orderItems   OrderItem[]
  createdAt    DateTime    @default(now())
  updatedAt    DateTime    @updatedAt
}

model Table {
  id           String        @id @default(cuid())
  number       Int           @unique
  capacity     Int
  status       TableStatus   @default(AVAILABLE)
  orders       Order[]
  reservations Reservation[]
}

// ... more models

Step 5: Run Migrations

npx prisma migrate dev --name init
npx prisma generate

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Creating the Menu Management Module

Step 6: Build the Admin Menu Interface

Ask OpenCode:

Create an admin page at /admin/menu for managing restaurant menu items.
Features needed:
1. List all menu items grouped by category
2. Add new category
3. Add new menu item with image upload
4. Edit existing items (price, availability, description)
5. Drag-and-drop reordering within categories
6. Toggle item availability with a switch
Use shadcn/ui components for the UI.

OpenCode will create:

• /app/admin/menu/page.tsx — Main menu management page
• /app/api/menu/route.ts — CRUD API endpoints
• /components/menu/MenuItemCard.tsx — Reusable menu item component
• /components/menu/CategorySection.tsx — Category grouping component

Step 7: Add Image Upload

Add image upload functionality for menu items using local storage for now.
Later we can switch to S3 or Cloudinary.
Create an ImageUpload component that shows a preview before saving.

---

Building the Table Reservation System

Step 8: Create the Reservation Flow

Ask OpenCode to build the customer-facing reservation system:

Build a table reservation system with two parts:

1. Customer booking page (/reserve):
   - Date picker (only future dates)
   - Time slot selection (show only available slots)
   - Party size selector
   - Customer name and phone input
   - Confirmation screen

2. Admin reservations page (/admin/reservations):
   - Calendar view of all reservations
   - List view grouped by date
   - Status management (confirm, seat, complete, no-show)
   - Table assignment

Step 9: Add Availability Logic

Add smart table availability logic:
- Check if requested party size fits any table
- Don't allow double-booking (2-hour reservation window)
- Show available time slots based on existing reservations
- Auto-suggest alternative times if requested slot is full

---

Implementing the POS (Point of Sale)

This is the core feature for any restaurant. Ask OpenCode:

Step 10: Build the POS Interface

Create a tablet-friendly POS interface at /pos with:

Left panel (70% width):
- Grid of menu categories as tabs
- Menu items as cards with image, name, price
- Tap to add to order

Right panel (30% width):
- Current order summary
- List of items with quantity +/- buttons
- Item notes (e.g., "no onions")
- Order total
- Buttons: Send to Kitchen, Print Bill, Split Bill

Bottom bar:
- Table selector dropdown
- Current table status
- Quick actions: New Order, View Orders

Step 11: Add Order Management

Create the order workflow:
1. Select a table (or create walk-in order)
2. Add items to order
3. Send to kitchen (creates OrderItems with status "pending")
4. Kitchen marks items as "preparing" then "ready"
5. Server marks items as "served"
6. Process payment and close order

Add real-time updates using Server-Sent Events so:
- POS sees when items are ready
- Kitchen sees new orders immediately

---

Adding the Kitchen Display System

Step 12: Build the Kitchen Display

Ask OpenCode:

Create a kitchen display system at /kitchen with:

Features:
- Full-screen mode for mounted displays
- Show all pending and preparing orders
- Order cards showing:
  - Table number
  - Time since order placed
  - List of items with special notes highlighted
  - Status buttons: Start Preparing, Mark Ready
- Color coding: new (blue), preparing (yellow), ready (green)
- Audio notification for new orders
- Auto-refresh using SSE (Server-Sent Events)

Sort orders by time (oldest first) to ensure FIFO.

Step 13: Implement Real-time Updates

Set up Server-Sent Events for real-time communication:
- /api/orders/stream endpoint
- When order status changes, broadcast to all connected clients
- Kitchen display auto-updates
- POS shows notification when items ready

---

Integrating Stripe Payments

Step 14: Set Up Stripe

Integrate Stripe for payment processing:

1. Install Stripe packages
2. Create /api/checkout endpoint that:
   - Creates a PaymentIntent for the order total
   - Supports adding tip
   - Handles split bills (multiple PaymentIntents)

3. Payment UI on POS:
   - Show order total
   - Tip selector (15%, 18%, 20%, custom)
   - Split bill option
   - Card terminal integration (or manual card entry for testing)

4. After successful payment:
   - Update order status to "paid"
   - Mark table as available
   - Generate receipt

Step 15: Add Receipt Generation

Create a receipt component that can be:
- Displayed on screen
- Printed (thermal printer compatible)
- Emailed to customer (optional)

Include: restaurant name, date/time, items, subtotal, tax, tip, total, payment method

---

Deployment

Step 16: Prepare for Production

Ask OpenCode:

Prepare this restaurant app for production deployment:

1. Add environment variables handling for:
   - DATABASE_URL
   - STRIPE_SECRET_KEY
   - STRIPE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY
   - NEXT_PUBLIC_APP_URL

2. Add error boundaries and loading states
3. Implement proper error handling for API routes
4. Add basic rate limiting
5. Create a seed script with sample menu data

Step 17: Deploy to Vercel

## Push to GitHub
git init
git add .
git commit -m "Restaurant POS system"
git remote add origin your-repo-url
git push -u origin main

## Deploy to Vercel
vercel

Configure environment variables in Vercel dashboard.

---

What You've Built

Congratulations! You now have a complete restaurant management system:

Module	Features
Menu Management	Categories, items, images, pricing, availability
Reservations	Customer booking, calendar view, table assignment
POS	Order taking, item customization, table management
Kitchen Display	Real-time orders, status updates, FIFO queue
Payments	Stripe integration, tips, split bills, receipts

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Next Steps

Enhance Your System

Ask OpenCode to help you add:

1. Inventory Management — Track ingredient stock, low-stock alerts
2. Analytics Dashboard — Sales reports, popular items, peak hours
3. Staff Management — User roles, shift scheduling, performance tracking
4. Customer Loyalty — Points system, discounts, repeat customer tracking
5. Online Ordering — Customer-facing menu for takeout/delivery
6. Multi-location Support — Manage multiple restaurant branches

Example Prompt for Analytics

Add an analytics dashboard at /admin/analytics showing:
- Daily/weekly/monthly sales totals
- Best-selling items chart
- Peak hours heatmap
- Average order value
- Table turnover rate
Use recharts for visualizations.

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Don't Want to Code?

If you'd rather skip the coding and get a working restaurant app immediately, NxCode can build the entire system from a simple description:

"Build me a restaurant management system with menu management, table reservations, POS for order taking, kitchen display for cooks, and Stripe payment processing"

NxCode's AI agents will create the complete application—frontend, backend, database, and deployment—in minutes instead of hours.

Try NxCode Free — From idea to deployed app without writing code.

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Sources

• OpenCode Documentation
• Stripe Payments Documentation
• Next.js App Router Guide
• Prisma ORM Documentation
• Replit Restaurant App Builder
• Aire Apps Restaurant Guide

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Written by the NxCode Team | Empowering developers and creators with AI.

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Troubleshooting Common Issues

Here are the problems you are most likely to run into, with solutions:

Build fails or deployment errors

• Check your environment variables. Missing API keys or database URLs are the #1 cause of deployment failures
• Review the build log line by line. The actual error is usually buried 20-30 lines above the final "build failed" message
• Try a clean build. Delete node_modules and .next (or equivalent) and rebuild from scratch

AI generates incorrect or broken code

• Be more specific in your prompt. Instead of "add authentication," say "add email/password authentication using Supabase Auth with a login page, signup page, and protected dashboard route"
• Break complex features into smaller steps. AI handles "add a search bar that filters the product list by name" better than "add full-text search with filters, sorting, and pagination"
• Review and test each change before moving on. Catching errors early prevents cascading issues

Performance issues

• Check for unnecessary re-renders in React apps — AI-generated code sometimes misses useMemo or useCallback optimizations
• Optimize images. AI builders often embed full-size images. Use WebP format and lazy loading
• Monitor your database queries. Look for N+1 query patterns, especially in list views

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