Simple POS hardware

Anyone have any suggestions for a simple, inexpensive POS system for our new hotdog joint? Only need one station, with built-in receipt printer, no remote printers, no bells and whistles. Or do I just go with a slightly amped-up register?
All I want it to do is record sales by item so that we can check the cash and perform some simple sales analyses. It would be nice if we could link it to a PC so that we could access the info via the internet, but this isn't essential.
I've used Squirrel, Micros and a few others, and they all seem way to complicated for this task.
Dependability and ease of operation are the key (no pun intended) words.

Thanks.

Here's an idea... http://www.tucows.com/preview/393276 Or visit www.tucows.com and type in POS in the search box... Might save ya some green backs...

And for the Hardware part, you probably have or can get a cheap computer (For a single station POS, you'd probably get away with an old 386 or 486 computer..Just make sure the hard drive has space for the software).. As for the printer part, check some computer stores in your area.. You might get a good lead on some surplus for far far less then new! Good Luck!

thanks. i'll look at that. my computer abilities might, perhaps, maybe, possibly be sufficient.

i am just dying, trying to picture you cooking and selling hot dogs.....are they gourme?

quote:

Originally posted by bassrocker4u2

i am just dying, trying to picture you cooking and selling hot dogs.....are they gourme?

you really want to bust 'em, don't you, bassrocker?

here's the deal, since you asked: we bought a building to have bigger kitchen facilities for our catering business. since i'm a cheap sob by nature, i didn't want to have to pay for our overhead - rent, utilities, insurance, vehicle, etc - from the catering. so i looked for a building on a main drag; took us a year and a half to find what we wanted.

my idea was that we should have some kind of retail operation in front, since we've got, according to a survey, 22,000 cars/day passing our place. metered parking on the street, plus we have a parking lot.

started out thinking about a sandwich shop or a tiny gourmet shop. but i've been down that road, and know the pitfalls. so i had the idea to do hot dogs. easy inventory, flat training curve, good margins. sorry to ruin your laugh, bass, but i'm not gonna be cookin' dem dawgs. we'll be in the back, doing the catering work, while other people run the doggery. of course, since we'll be all of 20 feet away (and have cctv), supervision shouldn't be so difficult.

haven't made final decision on the dog yet, but for sure it'll be all-beef, and probably kosher. not only is there a large jewish population nearby, but there's an even larger black population, and not having a pork/beef dog should be a plus. also, i grew up eating hebrew national (and isaac gellis, my all-time favorite, but they're gone) and find the pork/beef dogs unpleasant.

don't know about gourmet, but i plan to have somewhere between 15 and 20 toppings. my grilled cajun chicken cutlet with scallion/jalapeno remoulade. sweet potato fries. chocolate egg creams. some simple sides, like cole slaw, potato salad, macaroni salad (as opposed to pasta salad). seriously thinking about one of those automatic doughnut makers. italian ice cart out in front next summer. breakfast, ham/egg/cheese on roll, breakfast burrito.

and, just to make you really laugh, if i can get away with it, bbq in a few months. i'd actually like to discuss this with you.

i know you think i'm a stuck-up egomaniac, based on our earlier discussion about serving what the customer wants, etc. but i'm actually not a food snob. i just like quality food, no matter what the level of cooking.

currently working on website. will post url when it's finished.

stay tuned.

i appreciate, and agree with, your advice. but what i'm really looking for is the hardware, the register or pos terminal that records the orders and stores the cash.

how would you feel about combing ebay for machines like this?

quote:

Originally posted by bassrocker4u2

i am just dying, trying to picture you cooking and selling hot dogs.....are they gourme?

I was thinking the same thing when I first read this, and forgot to post accordingly. I guess I have been too busy with the roast beef guy!

sorry, couldnt resist the opportunity. i am sure, you will oblige, when the time is right.
i can relate to the importance of an accurate pos system, even for your operation. in a previous venture of mine, i had cameras installed all over the restaurant. fired three employees the first shift! and they knew about the cameras! yea, you got to watch em like a hawk.
i commend your insight and patience on your building. congrats are in order. maybe, you can lease out the front to an aspiring restauranteer, and you wont have to worry about the side business, just collect the rent.