Open your restaurant's Dashboard to see occupied and free tables in a single number: the Occupied tables card shows something like 4/12 and, right below, how many are free now. On the Tables page, each card has the Occupied or Free badge, the open items and how many minutes it's been open.
What qmen.us counts as an occupied table
Occupied and free tables is how qmen.us reads your dining room from the orders, without anyone marking anything by hand. A table counts as occupied while it has an order that hasn't been freed yet; when none are left, it counts as free again.
That includes an order already sent to the kitchen as well as a Draft the waiter is still putting together, as long as it has at least one item. And closing the bill doesn't give the table back: a closed bill still occupies the spot until someone taps Free table, which is what tells the system the guests have left.
Why keep an eye on dining room occupancy
- You see the dining room without crossing it. The Dashboard answers the question everyone asks at the door — any tables? — with a number that came from real orders, not from a floor plan someone forgot to update.
- The count keeps itself up to date. The Dashboard refreshes the moment an order changes, so guests who just sat down already show in the occupied count, even on a phone left open at the counter.
- You can see the money sitting at the tables. On the Tables page, the Open card adds up how much is on live bills in the dining room and how many items are at occupied tables — handy for knowing whether to start another round or begin closing.
- The waiter doesn't open one order on top of another by accident. In the waiter app, tables that already have an active order appear faded in the picker, with a note that the table is already in use.
- Guests see it too. The restaurant's public page has a Tables section with the Occupied or Free badge on each one, so anyone who scans the wrong QR code notices right away.
How to see occupied and free tables in 6 steps
It takes less than a minute and you can do it all from your phone, in the browser, with nothing to set up first.
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Open the Dashboard and look at the occupancy card
The Dashboard is at qmen.us/restaurante/painel/. At the top, the Occupied tables card shows the current count in the 4/12 format — four occupied out of twelve set up — and, right below, the line "8 tables free now". If your restaurant calls its tables tabs, the card uses the word you configured.
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Go to Manage restaurant and open Tables
At the bottom of the Dashboard, under Manage restaurant, tap the Tables card. The page opens with four numbers: Total tables (active QR codes), In use now with the occupancy percentage, Free available right now and Open, with the value of live bills and how many items are at occupied tables.
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Read each card's badge
Below the numbers comes the grid, one card per table. The badge in the corner says Occupied, Free or inactive. On an occupied table, the card also shows how many items are on the bill, the total — like R$ 42,00 — and how many minutes it's been open, with the view shortcut to the order. On a free one, you see "Table free · ready for guests".
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Open the table to see what's on the bill
Tap the card to open that table's page. At the top is the same Occupied or Free label, and below it the open orders with their items, the waiter who entered them and the time. If nobody's there, the page says the table is free and that the order will show up there as soon as someone sits down and orders.
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Free the table when the guests leave
Until the order is freed, the table keeps counting as occupied — even after Close bill and Mark as paid. Open the order from the Dashboard or the waiter app and tap Free table; the system asks whether to free the table for the next guests and, once you confirm, it goes back into the free count.
Tip: Get your team used to freeing the table while they clear it: that's what keeps the Dashboard number reliable. -
Check the picker in the waiter app
In the waiter app, the home screen shows the Choose a table grid. Tables with an active order appear faded, and when you tap one the button changes to New order with a note: that table already has an order, so give it a name to keep the bills apart. It's a good cross-check of what the Dashboard is telling you.
Frequently asked questions
Is the table still occupied after I close the bill?+
Yes. Close bill only stops new items from being added, and Mark as paid only records the payment. What puts the table back into the free count is the Free table button on the order.
Do I need to mark the table as occupied when guests sit down?+
No, and there isn't even a button for that. The table becomes occupied on its own as soon as there's an order on it — even a Draft the waiter is putting together counts, as long as it has at least one item entered.
Does the number update on its own or do I need to reload?+
The Dashboard updates on its own when an order changes. The Tables page, on the other hand, builds its grid when you open it, so reload if you want the latest state of the dining room.
Why is the table total on the Dashboard different from the one on the Tables page?+
Because the Dashboard counts only active tables, while the Tables page lists all of them, including deactivated ones — which show the inactive badge and don't take new orders.
Do two separate bills at the same table count as two occupied tables?+
No. The table counts once, even with several open orders on it. To keep the bills apart, the waiter gives each order a name when opening it.
Does seeing this cost anything?+
No. qmen.us is free for the restaurant and charges no commission per order, and everything runs in the browser on your phone or computer, with no app to download.
Glossary
- Table
- Each spot in the dining room registered in the system, with its own QR code for opening orders.
- Dashboard
- The owner's screen, at qmen.us/restaurante/painel/, with active orders, occupied tables, today's revenue and a shortcut to Settings.
- Tab
- The open bill of a table, where items add up until it's closed.
- Draft
- An order's first status, while the waiter is still putting the list together and nothing has gone to the kitchen yet.
- Inactive table
- A deactivated table: it takes no new orders and isn't printed, but it keeps its history.
- Served
- The order's status once every item has been served; the bill can still stay open.
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