Free restaurant template · Checklist
Restaurant opening and closing checklist
Free to use and edit. These are starting drafts, not legal advice: have an employment attorney review any policy before you rely on it.
The template
[Restaurant name]
Opening and Closing Checklist
Date:
Opening manager:
Closing manager:
Opening: front of house
- Clock in before starting any task
- Lights, music and thermostat set
- Dining room, entrance and restrooms checked and stocked
- Tables set; menus clean and current, with the allergen notice
- POS on, 86 list and specials updated
- Bar: fruit cut, ice, juices dated, glassware polished
- Host stand: reservations reviewed, floor plan set
- Pre-shift meeting held
Opening: kitchen
- Clock in before starting any task
- Hand sinks stocked; sanitizer buckets made and tested
- Walk-in and reach-in temperatures recorded: ______ / ______ / ______
- Equipment on: hoods, ovens, fryers, dish machine
- Deliveries checked in against invoices and put away
- Prep list written from pars; items labeled and dated
- Line set and tasted
Closing: front of house
- Tables, chairs and floors cleaned; restrooms checked
- Side stations broken down and restocked
- Bar wiped, bottles capped, perishables dated and stored
- Checkouts run; tips counted and split using the tip-out sheet
- Staff clock out after the tip count and side work, not before
Closing: kitchen
- Food cooled, labeled, dated and stored
- Walk-in and reach-in temperatures recorded: ______ / ______ / ______
- Line, flat tops, fryers and hoods cleaned to schedule
- Dish area cleared; machine drained; floors swept and mopped
- Trash and recycling out; back door locked
- Equipment and gas off
Closing: manager
- Cash counted, deposit prepared, safe locked
- Timecards reviewed; missed punches noted on time edit forms
- Minors clocked out by their legal end time
- Shift notes written for the next manager
- Final walk-through, alarm set, doors locked
Opening manager:Date:
Closing manager:Date:
Starting draft from Back of House Ops (backhousehr.com). Edit it to fit your restaurant. It is not legal advice.
Massachusetts rules
The rules that apply to this document
Are pre-shift meetings, orientation and required training paid time?
Yes, when you require them. In Massachusetts, working time includes all time an employee is required to be on the premises or on duty, before or after the shift. Required food-safety or allergen training for your own restaurant is working time.
Full answer and official sourceIs time spent counting and splitting tips after close paid?
Yes. If you require staff to stay after their shift to count and distribute tips, that time is working time and must be paid.
Full answer and official sourceCan servers be paid $6.75 for prep, cleaning or other side work?
No. The Department of Labor Standards says hours a tipped employee spends on non-tipped work, such as kitchen prep or cleaning, must be paid at least the full $15.00, and tips earned during serving hours cannot be used to cover them.
Full answer and official sourceWhat hours can 16- and 17-year-olds work in a restaurant?
Between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. on nights before a school day (10:15 p.m. if the restaurant stops serving at 10). On nights not before a school day, restaurants can keep them until midnight. The limits are 9 hours a day, 48 hours a week and six days a week, all year.
Full answer and official sourceWhich kitchen tasks are off-limits for teens?
No one under 18 may operate, clean or repair power-driven meat slicers, grinders or choppers or power-driven bakery machines, drive, or handle, serve or sell alcohol. Under 16 also may not cook except on grills with no open flame, run fryers, rotisseries or pressure cookers, bake, handle hot oil above 100°F, or work in freezers or meat coolers.
Full answer and official sourceWhat are the food allergy rules for Massachusetts restaurants?
Restaurants must display the state-approved food allergen poster in the staff area, print "Before placing your order, please inform your server if a person in your party has a food allergy" on menus and menu boards, and have a certified food protection manager on staff who holds a Massachusetts allergen awareness certificate.
Full answer and official source
Rules checked against official sources on . General information, not legal or tax advice.
Where restaurants go wrong
- Asking staff to clock out and then finish closing. All required time on the premises is paid.
- Paying an hour of closing side work at the tipped service rate.
- Assigning a task on the list to a minor who is not allowed to do it, such as certain equipment cleaning.
Your restaurant remains the employer of record and approves payroll and employment decisions. BOHO is not a PEO, a staffing agency, or legal counsel. This template is a starting draft for you to edit. It does not decide how the rules apply to your restaurant, so have counsel review any policy or separation before you rely on it.
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Your restaurant remains the employer of record and approves payroll and employment decisions. BOHO is not a PEO, a staffing agency, or legal counsel.