Charge prefix guide
What is a Toast charge?
Toast is a point-of-sale system built for restaurants — so a TST* charge is a restaurant, cafe, bar or food hall, full stop. The name after TST* is the venue (sometimes with a location number for chains), and because restaurant charges often settle a day or two late with the tip added, the amount can differ from what you remember agreeing to at the table.
Important: a processor prefix identifies who processed the payment — not necessarily who you bought from.
Real examples of how it appears
- TST* THE ROSEMARY - Nashville TN
- TST*BURGER JOINT 0042
- TST* CAFE OLE
- TST* MAPLE STREET BISTRO NASHVILLE TN
- TST*DOWNTOWN DINER - CHICAGO
Formats vary by bank — reference fragments, cities and codes come and go, but the prefix shape stays recognisable.
Descriptor formats to look for
- TST* …
How to verify the charge
- Read the name after TST* as a restaurant name and think back a few days — settlement lag means Saturday dinner posts on Tuesday.
- Expect the amount to include the tip, which is why it may not match the pre-tip total you remember or the pending amount you saw earlier.
- For chains, the trailing number is the location; searching the name plus your city almost always resolves it.
- Group meals are the classic confusion: one person's card was charged for a table others remember paying cash for.
- If the charge is pending or looks doubled, wait a few business days before disputing. Toast's own guidance says banks show authorization holds alongside the finalized charge until the hold drops off, typically within 1-5 business days: https://support.toasttab.com/en/article/Troubleshooting-Duplicate-Charges-on-Credit-Card
- There is no public charge-lookup tool for diners, but the restaurant can find your payment for you: staff can search checks in their Toast system by the last four digits of your card and re-print or re-email the receipt, so call the restaurant named after TST* with your card's last four, the date, and the amount.
Is it fraud?
TST* fraud is rare — the charge comes from a physical restaurant terminal. The realistic problems are tip-adjustment errors (charged more than the total you signed) and duplicate charges from a re-run card. Both are merchant-fixable: call the restaurant with the date and amount before involving the bank; they can look up the ticket.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my TST* charge higher than the bill I remember?
Toast authorises the pre-tip amount and settles with the tip included. If the difference exceeds your tip, call the restaurant — tip-entry errors happen and they can correct the ticket.
Why did the charge appear days after I ate there?
Restaurants often batch-settle transactions, and tips delay finalisation. One to three days between meal and posting is normal.
Why is the TST* charge higher than my receipt total?
The tip is usually the difference. When you pay at a restaurant, the card is often authorized for the pre-tip amount, and the final charge that settles a day or two later includes the tip you wrote on the receipt or added on the screen. Compare the statement amount to your receipt total plus tip before assuming it's an error.
Why do I see two TST* charges for one meal?
One of them is almost always a temporary authorization hold. Toast's support documentation explains that banks show these holds alongside the finalized charge, and they typically drop off within 1-5 business days. If both charges still show as fully posted after that, contact the restaurant directly — staff can look up the check by your card's last four digits and issue a refund from their Toast system.
Can Toast tell me which restaurant charged me?
Toast doesn't offer a self-service lookup for diners, so the text after TST* is your best clue — it's the restaurant's name, sometimes abbreviated, often with a city. Search that text online, check whether anyone who shares your card ate there, and contact the restaurant to resolve the charge. If you still can't place it, dispute it with your card issuer.
Common misunderstandings
- The city or state shown is often the company's registered address, not where you made the purchase.
- Charges can post days or weeks after the purchase.
- Small businesses may bill under a legal or holding-company name.
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