Cash is still half the transaction in many Hispanic-density US markets. Eatsy supports it where it makes sense and blocks it where it doesn't. Here's the split.
Online channels: card-only by default
The Microsite, Branded App, and pay-in-app QR all require a card at checkout. Cash is not an option. Why: the gateway needs an upfront authorization to confirm the order before it routes to your kitchen. Without an auth, you'd be on the hook to prepare orders that never get paid.
This is gateway behavior (Shift4 or NMI), not an Eatsy preference — every online ordering platform works this way.
iPad Menu supports cash in-store
The Eatsy iPad app — used at the counter for staff-assisted ordering — supports cash. Staff rings the order, marks it as cash-paid, the drawer opens (if your printer has a drawer attached), and the kitchen ticket prints. The order reconciles in admin.eatsyorders.com → Orders with a cash badge.
This is the standard QSR / counter-service flow. Customer comes up, orders verbally, staff rings it on the iPad, customer hands over cash, transaction closes.
Cash drawer integration
Cash drawers connect through the receipt printer. When a cash receipt prints, the printer fires the drawer kick (a 24V signal). Both Star and Epson printers support this; configure in the printer's setup once and forget about it.
If your drawer doesn't open on a cash sale, check the cable from drawer to printer (RJ-11 jack on the printer's back) — usually a loose connector.
End-of-day reconciliation
admin.eatsyorders.com → Orders filters by date and shows you cash totals expected for the day. Your closing manager:
- Counts the drawer.
- Compares against the expected cash total in the Orders log.
- Records the variance (over/short).
- Drops the cash in the safe.
Most operators add a manual variance log in a notebook or spreadsheet. Eatsy doesn't currently have a built-in cash-counting screen — that's roadmap.
Cash on delivery
Off by default. If you serve a market where cash is preferred — many South Florida and Southwest Hispanic-density neighborhoods — your onboarding manager can enable it per delivery zone. Pros: more orders converted. Cons: drivers need to carry change, returns/voids are messier, theft risk.
If you turn it on, train drivers explicitly: confirm the cash amount, count it back, never leave with a customer's order without payment in hand.
Cash on delivery is off by default
Most operators don't enable it. If you serve a Hispanic-density market where cash is preferred, ask your onboarding manager to turn it on per zone. Start with one or two zones to see the volume mix before going wider.