Know what item subtotal measures
An item subtotal multiplies the recorded quantities by the saved item prices. It describes the value of the items in an order before payment tracking and tax accounting. It does not prove that a guest paid, that the payment settled, or that the restaurant earned a profit. Menuji labels current dashboard amounts as item subtotals for this reason.
Check the period and timezone
Today is only useful when it follows your restaurant’s operating timezone. A late-night service may cross a calendar boundary, and a manager in another country may read the screen at a different local time. Confirm the timezone during setup, then choose today or the last seven days intentionally. Explain the selected period when sharing figures with the team.
Read cancelled orders separately
A cancelled order can be operationally important without belonging in a non-cancelled order-value total. Look at what happened and why the order stopped. Menuji excludes cancelled orders from relevant item-subtotal figures. Cancellation is not a payment refund; when payment handling is required, it needs its own reconciled record.
Use channels to understand the shape of service
Dine-in, takeaway and delivery order counts show how operators classified activity. This can help identify a service mix worth reviewing, but it does not automatically prove a marketing channel’s performance. Delivery in the current Menuji release is an entered service type, not a synchronised marketplace feed. Read the label in that context.
Look at popular items without inventing margins
A dish ordered frequently may matter to preparation and availability planning. It may not be your most profitable dish: ingredient costs, waste, packaging and discounts affect margin. Use the popular-item view to guide a practical conversation with the kitchen, then consult your separate cost records before making a profitability decision.
Turn the overview into one action
Pick a useful next step rather than attempting to interpret every number at once. Review paused dishes, inspect an order waiting for handover, or discuss a service-channel change. A dashboard is the starting point for that work, not a replacement for accounting. Payment reconciliation and inventory reports are planned as separate Menuji modules.