# Core concepts

> The vocabulary behind every Sofra screen.

Source: https://sofra.tablixai.com/docs/core-concepts

Section: Get started

A handful of ideas explain how almost everything in Sofra behaves. Learn them once and the rest of the product becomes predictable.

## Owner account and restaurant

An **owner account** is you. It signs in to the portal and can own any number of restaurants. A **restaurant** (also called a tenant) is one business: its own address, plan, subscription, staff, menu and data. Data from one restaurant is never visible to another.

The same email can own several restaurants. The owner signs in once to the portal and uses **Open** on any restaurant to enter it without typing a password again.

## Branches

A **branch** is a physical location. The first branch is always the **head office**. Branches can have a parent branch, forming a hierarchy. Tables, floor areas, warehouses, printers, shifts and reservations are branch-level. Whatever you do in Sofra, you do it **in the context of one branch**, chosen in the branch selector at the top of the app.

## Global catalog vs branch overrides

Your menu is defined **once** (the global catalog): menus, categories, items, modifier groups and tax definitions. Each branch can then override how that catalog behaves locally: which menus are assigned, which items are sold, the price, channel prices, availability windows and tax rules. Branch overrides are a Pro feature; without them every branch sells the whole catalog at base price.

## Order channels

Every order has a **fulfilment type** (dine-in, takeaway, delivery) and a **source** (POS, counter, website, mobile app, QR, phone, third party). The POS offers eight ready-made channels that combine the two:

| Channel | Fulfilment | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Dine-In | Dine-in | POS |
| Takeaway | Takeaway | POS |
| Counter | Takeaway | Counter |
| Delivery | Delivery | POS |
| Online | Delivery | Website |
| QR Order | Dine-in | QR |
| Phone | Delivery | Phone |
| Quick Sale | Takeaway | Counter |

## Roles and permissions

Every staff member has a **role**, and a role is a list of permissions such as `orders:refund` or `inventory:write`. A role can also cap the discount percentage its holder may give. Staff can be limited to specific branches, and can hold a different role in each branch. See [Staff, roles & departments](https://sofra.tablixai.com/docs/staff-roles).

## Plans and feature gates

Your plan decides which modules are switched on and what limits apply (staff accounts, menu items, tables, storage). If your subscription becomes inactive, gated features return a clear “subscription inactive” message instead of failing silently. Your data is never deleted when you change plan. See [Plans & limits](https://sofra.tablixai.com/docs/plans-and-limits).

## Time and currency

Each branch has its own **timezone** and operating hours. Reservation times, no-show expiry, reminders and “today” on the floor all use the branch’s timezone, not the server’s. The restaurant has a currency chosen at creation, and each branch can show its own.