Open Settings, go to the end of the General block, fill in the Prep time target (min) field with a number from 1 to 240 and tap Save. That number becomes your house target and appears on the Dashboard, right below the real average time of the orders completed today.
What the house target is
The prep time target is a number in minutes stored in the restaurant's Settings, in the General block. It applies to the whole restaurant: it isn't per item, isn't per kitchen and doesn't change from shift to shift. Every restaurant starts with 18 minutes there, and you can change it to any number from 1 to 240. It's a single field: you type and save.
On the other side is the number you don't choose: the real average time. The Dashboard takes the orders completed today, measures from when the waiter sent them to the kitchen until the order became Ready, averages them and rounds to minutes. Both show up on the same card, Average prep time: the day's big number on top, and below it how many orders went into the math and the house target. With no order completed today, the card says no data today and only the target remains.
Why it's worth having this number
- The guess becomes a single number. While the target lives in everyone's head, nobody can say whether today's service was good. Written in Settings, it becomes what the whole team has agreed on.
- The real number sits right next to the target. The Average prep time card shows both side by side and says how many completed orders went into the average, so you know right away whether those 12 minutes came from two orders or from forty.
- In Reports it becomes a trend. The Prep time card repeats the target on its bottom line and also calculates the change against the previous period. Here going down is good: a drop in time shows as an improvement, not a loss.
- It anchors the guest's estimate at the start. The guest's page says Ready in about N min based on the orders the restaurant has already completed. Until there are five completed orders to calculate from, it's your target that shows there.
- It doesn't block anything or set off alarms. Going over the target doesn't change any color, doesn't alert anyone and doesn't affect the kitchen. It's a number for reading, so you can compare and talk with your team.
How to set the prep time target in 5 steps
There are five steps, from the number you'll choose to seeing it on the Dashboard every day.
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First see what the restaurant delivers today
Before writing any number, look at what already happens. On the Dashboard, the Average prep time card shows the average of the orders completed today. In Reports, the Prep time card shows the average over a longer period and a small chart of the last few days. A good target is a little tighter than what you already deliver.
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Open the restaurant's Settings
At the top of the Dashboard is the gear button, Settings — the same item is also in the menu on the top bar. The screen opens on the General block, with the restaurant name, logo, photo, description and the ordering switches. Scroll to the end of that block.
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Fill in Prep time target (min)
At the end of the General block is the Prep time target (min) field, with an explanation right below it. It's a number field, accepts 1 to 240 minutes and comes filled in with 18. Delete it and type your restaurant's number — a round number your team can repeat from memory works well.
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Tap Save
Scroll to the bottom of the page and tap Save. This button saves the General block together with Location and Opening hours. If everything goes well, we take you straight back to the Dashboard, with the new target already in place.
Tip: The Offline mode block has its own button, Save offline mode. It doesn't save the target, and the target doesn't save it. -
Read the card on the Dashboard every day
On the Dashboard, the Average prep time card shows the day's number in minutes and, below it, the line with how many completed orders went into the average and the house target with your number. Until the first order of the day is completed, the card shows no data today and the target appears on its own. The day's number resets every day: to compare weeks, go to Reports, and the Export CSV there includes the prep time in minutes.
Frequently asked questions
What number should I use?+
One your restaurant can hit again and again. Watch the real average time on the Dashboard for a few days, or the period average in Reports, and set it a little below that. There's no right number: the field accepts 1 to 240 minutes and starts at 18.
Is the target per item or per kitchen?+
Neither. It's a single number for the whole restaurant. A restaurant with a grill, a bar and a pastry station still has one target, and the Dashboard's average time also covers the whole restaurant.
What exactly goes into the average time?+
The orders completed today. The clock starts when the waiter sends the order to the kitchen and stops when it becomes Ready, that is, when no item is left pending. Serving it at the table and closing the bill come later and aren't part of this math.
If we go over the target, is anyone notified?+
No. The target doesn't trigger alerts, doesn't change the card's color and doesn't interfere with the kitchen queue or the waiter app. It exists for you to compare with reality and decide what to do, not for the system to pressure your team.
Does the guest see my target?+
They don't see the number as a target. Their page shows an estimate like Ready in about N min, calculated from the orders the restaurant has already completed. Only when there aren't yet enough completed orders for that calculation does the estimate use your target.
Can I change the target later?+
As often as you like. Just go back to Settings, change the number and tap Save. The change takes effect immediately and the Dashboard shows the new target right away; the real average time doesn't change, because it comes from the orders, not from the field.
Glossary
- Prep time target
- The number of minutes your restaurant sets in Settings, shown on the Dashboard as the house target. It starts at 18 and can be anything from 1 to 240.
- Average prep time
- The Dashboard card with today's actual average: from sending the order to the kitchen until it's Ready, across orders completed today.
- Ready
- An item's status after the prep station marks it done; the waiter is alerted right away.
- Dashboard
- The owner's screen, at qmen.us/restaurante/painel/, with active orders, occupied tables, today's revenue and a shortcut to Settings.
- Reports
- The screen at qmen.us/restaurante/relatorios/ with revenue, orders, average order and prep time for 7, 30 or 90 days or a period you choose.
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