What does “adisyon” mean? The Turkish word for a restaurant check
A check — “adisyon” in Turkish — is the running record where a table’s orders are processed from the moment it opens until the bill is paid. It is not a receipt, and certainly not an invoice; it comes before both.
Where the word comes from
The Turkish word “adisyon” comes from the French addition, meaning a sum, and is used in restaurants, cafés and bars for a table’s running bill. In English the equivalent is a check in table-service venues and a tab in bars. At its core the word describes an addition: every item that reaches the table is written underneath the last and totalled at the end.
In everyday use, “opening a check” means starting a table’s bill and “closing a check” means taking payment and ending it. “Split the check” divides the bill between several people; “merge the checks” brings two tables’ bills into one record.
A check, a receipt and an invoice are not the same
The three are often confused, but they are produced at different moments and for different reasons. A check is a living record during service: it grows as items are added and stays open until the table closes. A receipt is the fiscal document that the register produces at the moment of payment. An invoice is the formal document issued on request, carrying the buyer’s identity and tax details.
- Check: the working record that stays open through service as items are added
- Receipt: the fiscal document produced by the register at the moment of payment
- Invoice: the formal document issued on request, carrying the buyer’s details
The journey of a check
A table sits down and a check is opened. As orders are entered, each line is written onto it: item, quantity, portion, extras and a kitchen note. New lines are added as service goes on — drinks, a starter, a main, dessert. When the bill is asked for, the total is calculated, any discount or comp is applied and payment is taken. Once payment is complete the check closes and can no longer be changed.
On paper, every step of that journey depends on one person’s attention. On a digital check every line is recorded: who added it, when, and who voided it. That record is needed not only for oversight but so that the numbers add up at the end of the day.
The three known problems of paper checks
A paper check looks cheap, but the bill arrives at the end of the day. Three problems recur in practice, and all three come straight out of revenue.
- Unreadable handwriting: the kitchen prepares the wrong dish, it comes back, and the cost is paid twice
- A lost ticket: the dish reaches the table and is never billed
- Adding up by hand: the total comes out too low or too high, and both cause trouble
Short questions, short answers
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