6 ways to automate bar closing checklists

#1 - Simple checklist

Who it's for: Single-site bars where the manager closes themselves and wants the paper checklist on a phone instead.

What it is: A bar closing checklist is the set of tasks done at the end of service to leave the bar cashed up, clean, and secure. This version is the tick-list of 16 closing tasks, plus a notes field. It covers cashing up and card reconciliation, cleaning the bar top, taps, ice wells and drip trays, securing fridges and stock, waste, and locking up.

In practice: A single-site pub closes at midnight. The manager works down the list, cashes up, cleans the taps, ticks each task, notes a short on the till to investigate, and the bar is left secure with the close on record.

Why it works: The list lives on the canvas, so the close doesn't depend on a tired closer remembering all sixteen steps. The notes field captures the one thing, like a till short, that needs following up.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (16 closing tasks: cash, bar top, taps, ice wells, fridges, waste, security)
• 1 notes field

#2 - With guidance

Who it's for: Bars where closing is delegated to whoever is on the rota.

What it is: The simple checklist with a guidance note at the top, calling out the steps that protect money, stock, and the building: cashing up and reconciling, shutting fridges, cleaning taps and lines, and locking and alarming the premises.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. The steps that cost real money if missed are spelled out
2. New closers know why each one matters
3. The close is consistent whoever runs it

Why it works: The guidance sits with the list, so a new closer reads what matters as they work, not in a training session weeks ago.

Steps included:

• 1 guidance note (the steps that protect cash, stock, and security)
• 1 checklist (16 closing tasks)
• 1 notes field

#3 - With a signature

Who it's for: Bars where the close needs a name against it. Groups where head office wants to know who signed off each site's close, and single sites where a different person closes every night.

What it is: A signed bar close is the simple checklist plus a signature captured at sign-off. The 16 tasks and the notes field stay the same; the signature confirms who closed the bar and when they signed it.

In practice: A bar with a rotating close. Whoever closes works the 16-task list, notes anything that needs attention, and signs. The next morning the manager knows exactly who to ask about the note, not just that someone left one.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A signature naming who closed the bar, captured at sign-off
2. A record of when the close was signed, next to what was ticked
3. Accountability without asking anyone to take a photo

Why it works: The name goes on the record at the moment the work finishes, not from memory later. When something is found unsecured the next day, the conversation starts with who signed it off, which is specific instead of general.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (16 closing tasks)
• 1 notes field
• 1 signature (sign-off)

#4 - With photo evidence

Who it's for: Teams that want proof the bar was locked up and secured at close, not just a ticked list, whether for an auditor, head office, or their own peace of mind.

What it is: The simple checklist plus a photo of the bar top and speed rail wiped down and emptied, taken on completion as a record alongside the ticks. One specific, telling spot rather than a vague wide shot.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A photo of the bar top and speed rail, captured at the time
2. Proof that holds up to an inspector, not just a ticked box
3. A visual record kept alongside the checklist

Why it works: A photo taken on completion is far stronger than a tick. It shows the state things were actually left in, not just that someone said the work was done. A single named spot like the bar top is easy to shoot and easy to check.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (16 closing tasks)
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the bar top and speed rail

#5 - With Poppi checking the photo

Who it's for: Bars where the close photo gets taken but nobody reviews it. Multi-site groups where head office can't review every site's photos every night.

What it is: A photo-checked close is the simple checklist plus a photo of the bar top and speed rail that Poppi (AI) reviews the moment it's saved. Poppi answers one question about that photo, set by you: does the bar top and speed rail look properly cleaned and emptied, with no glasses, bottles, or other items left on it? A single named spot is something an AI can actually judge, where a wide shot of the whole bar is not. If the answer is no, Poppi posts what it spotted to the team chat, so the problem gets fixed before everyone leaves.

In practice: A multi-site bar group closes at 11pm. The closing manager photographs the bar top and speed rail as always. Poppi reads the photo: clean, empty, no glasses or bottles. Verdict yes, and nothing changes. On a rushed Saturday the photo shows several empty bottles and a dirty glass by the pumps. Poppi answers no and posts the reason to the team chat ("The photo shows glasses and bottles still on the bar top"). The manager sorts it and retakes the photo before locking up.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A photo of the bar top and speed rail that gets checked the moment it's saved, not just stored
2. A team chat message with Poppi's reason the moment a photo fails the check
3. The manager stops being the only person who ever looks at closing photos

Why it works: The check happens in the seconds between the photo being taken and the closer leaving. That's the only moment the problem is still cheap to fix. A manager reviewing photos the next morning can only record that the close was poor; Poppi catching it at 11pm gets it fixed before anyone leaves.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (16 closing tasks)
• 1 notes field
• 1 photo of the bar top and speed rail
• 1 Poppi decision (judges the photo against your question)
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat if the photo fails the check)

#6 - With a team alert when the close runs late

Who it's for: Bars that have to be locked up by a set time. Late-night venues with a hard close, sites in a shared building with a security lock-up, and groups where a half-finished close is a real risk overnight.

What it is: A late-close alert is the simple checklist plus a Poppi (AI) action set to the workflow's end time. If the closing checks aren't finished by the time the bar is due to be locked up, Poppi posts a message in the Pilla team chat so the outstanding steps get done before anyone leaves. It watches the end time, so it catches the close that quietly got abandoned half-done, not just the one that never started.

In practice: A late-night bar is meant to be closed and locked by 2am. On a busy Saturday the team is tired and it's easy to leave the last few steps: till reconciliation not finished, a fridge door not checked, fridges not properly secured. With this version, if the close isn't signed off by 2am, the team chat gets a message, so the shift lead catches the unfinished steps that night rather than the opener discovering them at opening time.

What it adds to the simple checklist:

1. A message in the team chat if the close isn't finished on time
2. A catch for the close that got abandoned half-done, not just the one that was skipped
3. A record of when the close should have been done, next to when it was
4. The manager finds out that night, not from the next morning's open

Why it works: The alert is tied to the lock-up time, so an unfinished close raises its own hand. Nobody has to notice it's missing; the deadline does.

Steps included:

• 1 checklist (16 closing tasks)
• 1 notes field
• 1 Poppi action (posts to the team chat if the close isn't finished by lock-up)

How to pick the right version

You don't need to know our product to choose. Every version here is the simple checklist plus one addition, so pick the additions your bar actually needs.

Do other people close besides you?

If you close yourself and know the method, the plain list is enough: #1. The moment rota staff close, the cash and security steps need to be on the screen: #2.

Does the close need a name against it?

If knowing it was done is enough, skip this one. If you want who signed it off on the record, #3 adds a signature.

Do you need photo proof?

A ticked checklist says the work was done; a photo shows it. If you want visual proof, #4 adds a photo of the bar top and speed rail.

Does anyone actually look at the photos?

If a manager genuinely reviews every photo, #4's record is enough. If photos get taken and filed unseen, #5 has Poppi (AI) check each one as it's saved, and tell the team chat when something's wrong.

Does the close have to be finished by a set time?

If a tired team sometimes leaves the last steps, #6 posts a message to the team chat when the deadline passes with the close unfinished.

Need more than one addition? Open the version with the addition that matters most in the playground and add the others as steps. That's how the product works anyway: every option here is one step added to the same list.

Related workflows

• Bar opening checklist - the start-of-day counterpart to this close
• Kitchen closing checklist - the same secure close for the kitchen
• Daily bar cleaning checklist - the cleaning side of the close in more detail

Conclusion

A bar close protects money and the building as much as cleanliness, and it's the one most easily rushed or forgotten in the chaos of service. A recorded checklist turns "we always lock up properly" into something you can show, and something you can trace when a till is short. Every version above is the same simple checklist plus one addition: guidance, a signature, a photo, an AI check on the photo, or a deadline alert. Pick the ones your bar needs and combine them in the playground.

→ Build your own bar closing checklist on Pilla.