FAQ
Everything people ask us before they start.
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The basics
- What is Cooku?
- Cooku is a system for restaurants, cafés and bars in Panama: QR menu, ordering, point of sale (POS), kitchen display, cash register and closes, inventory with recipes, reservations, customers and promotions and DGI e-invoicing in one system, under your brand and with no commission per order.
- How much does Cooku cost?
- There are three plans: Free (forever, no card), Starter at USD 29 a month and Pro at USD 59 a month, taxes included and with no lock-in.
- Does Cooku charge a commission per order?
- No. You pay a flat subscription and every sale is yours. Payment gateways charge their own fees on each payment.
- Do I need to buy hardware?
- No. Cooku runs in the browser of the phone, tablet or computer you already have, with an internet connection. To print kitchen tickets and receipts it connects to ESC/POS thermal printers through PrintNode.
Orders and payments
- How do my customers order?
- They scan the table QR and order from their phone, order pickup or delivery from your link, or the waiter takes the order on the POS. Everything lands on the same board and the kitchen sees it right away.
- Which payment methods does it accept?
- Online: BAC (Powertranz), Tilopay, Yappy, plus cash, tips and refunds. If your business already works with another gateway, we integrate it. Cooku never stores card numbers: the gateway processes the payments.
- Does it connect to delivery apps?
- With the delivery integrations add-on, orders from the apps land on the Cooku board, kitchen display and closes. We are integrating Uber Eats, Rappi, DiDi Food and PedidosYa; write to us to find out which are available in your country.
- Can the menu be shown in English?
- Yes. The menu is bilingual Spanish and English, with automatic translation (DeepL or Google), and diners switch language with one tap.
Operations
- Does it work for several branches?
- Yes. One organization has several branches, each with its own tables, QR codes, hours, prices and availability: 1 on the Free plan, up to 3 on Starter and up to 10 on Pro.
- Does it have inventory and recipe costing?
- Yes, from the Starter plan: recipes per dish with cost, food cost and margin, ingredients deducted with every sale, suppliers, waste and stock counts. The Pro plan also reads purchase invoices with AI to load inventory.
- Does it have online reservations?
- Yes, from the Starter plan: a public booking page with your brand, optional deposits and a host panel to assign tables.
- Does it issue e-invoices?
- Yes. Cooku issues Panama's DGI e-invoice (PDF, XML and QR) at checkout, with ITBMS broken down and automatic credit notes on refunds. The Starter plan includes 500 invoices a month and Pro 2,000; above the quota each document costs USD 0.0015. The Free plan does not issue invoices.
- Does it work for hotels, colivings and coworkings?
- Yes. Besides tables, in the POS you create rooms, common areas and workspaces, each with its own QR, and guests order from there. The order reaches the kitchen with the exact delivery spot.
Your data and your account
- Is my data mine?
- Yes. Customers, orders and sales belong to your business. You can export the catalog and reports as CSV.
- Is it secure?
- Everything travels encrypted (HTTPS), your gateway and integration keys are stored encrypted (AES-256-GCM), each business only sees its own data and Cooku never stores card numbers. The details are on the security page.
- Can I cancel any time?
- Yes. Plans are paid month to month with no lock-in; when you cancel, your account moves to the Free plan and keeps your data.
- How do I contact you?
- Email us at hola@usecooku.com or on WhatsApp at +507 6926-6374.
Try it in your business?
Create your free account, no card needed, and upgrade when you need to.