Gone are the days of paper menus and guest books. In their place are sleek tablets, innovative ordering systems, and in some cases, even robots.

But what exactly is this technology? And how is it being used in restaurants?

Here's a list of what tech is typically used in restaurants:

Point of Sale
QR Codes and Digital Menus
Internet Service
Printers
Guest Wifi
Audio Systems
Surveillance Cameras
Scheduling Software
Customer Relationship Management
Inventory Management
Tablets & Kiosks
KDS or Kitchen Display Systems
Bluetooth-Compatible Temperature Sensors and Monitoring Systems

Continue reading as we list out some of our favorite tech tools and how they are used.

Guest Wifi

Guest wifi is a great benefit to any restaurant.

Customers can connect to the internet while they wait for their food, allowing them to stay productive or entertained.

In addition, restaurants can use guest wifi to collect data about their customers. This data can be used to improve the customer experience or for marketing purposes. The most basic method is to offer free wifi in exchange for someone's email address.

QR Codes and Digital Menus

The QR code revolution was undoubtedly fuelled by the Covid-19 pandemic and, just in 2020, 11 million Americans used QR codes on a regular basis. But what once was a safety response to protect ourselves and others from the risk of contagion, is today an important tool that has improved touchless operations across a multitude of industries.

Restaurants were not immune to this revolution!

QR codes can also be utilized to securely and efficiently order for customers, depending on the technology you choose. This way, they can converse with their waiter or waitress, as well as handle their orders.

KDS or Kitchen Display Systems

An organized restaurant kitchen can quickly become a hot, chaotic mess, especially when a meal-time rush approaches! Nothing can substitute your management and head chef's ability to structure sections and roles while maintaining high food standards.

Systems such as KDS, or kitchen display systems, allow you to get rid of hand-written or printed order systems. Thanks to a tailored KDS, your kitchen will receive each order in real-time and can track prep and plating updates.

Fully-digital systems can offer you valuable insights into service timings and labor usage.

Bluetooth-Compatible Temperature Sensors and Monitoring Systems

Today’s restaurants follow strict health and safety guidelines, and each ingredient or food needs to meet the highest standards. And yet, every year, one-in-six Americans report food poisoning. Technology can not only help you keep your customers safe and ensure the quality of the food you are serving, but it can also help you protect your restaurant's reputation!

Bluetooth temperature sensors combined with fixed and handheld probes allow you to monitor both equipment and food quality. These tools can also help you keep track of measurements and avoid modifications.

Using Technology in Smart Ways (3 Ideas to Try)

We're experts in restaurant tech. And having been around for a while, we've seen some great ways to use tech that really make sense.

Here are 3 of our favorites:

Have a support team that is always available to assist your restaurant staff so they can focus on their food and their guests. Asking a shift lead at a Popeyes to troubleshoot an internet problem or printing issue is an enormous waste of time and resources and costs the restaurant real money.
Make sure there’s a hardwired data network in place. Many things don’t work well on wifi. Hardwired connections are 1000% more reliable.
Include redundant internet service. There’s no excuse to rely on a single internet connection. Having a redundant (backup) internet connection can rescue $2500-$5000 of revenue in a single day, sometimes in a single hour.

Too many times have we seen a restaurant's internet go down and all their operations come to a screeching halt. It's bad for businesses not to have a backup plan.

Science On Call offers a variety of plans that will keep your restaurant connected even if your primary internet goes down. Click here to view your options.

Conclusion

Restaurants are dependent on technology to run their business. But when the internet goes out or their POS system causes issues, it disrupts operations, devours potential revenue, and leaves customers upset.

At Science On Call, we guarantee that your restaurant tech stress will be eliminated in 30 days or you will owe us nothing. With us, there is only one hotline to call for any type of technology concern. No more going back and forth with your team. We’ll handle it fast and free up your time & bandwidth so you can keep customers happy.

Book your 30-min discovery call with us by clicking here. Zero risk. Nothing to lose.

What Type of Technology Is Used in Restaurants? (A Complete List)