Running a successful restaurant is a masterclass in managing details. You’re constantly juggling the quality of your food, the training of your staff, and the experience of your guests, all while operating on notoriously thin profit margins. In this high-stakes environment, every single dollar saved on operational costs is a dollar that goes directly to your bottom line.
While we often think of technology as a major expense, a strategic investment in the right tech can be one of the most powerful cost-cutting tools you have. This is where touchscreen technology can have a profound impact. From your point-of-sale (POS) system to a customer-facing kiosk, this technology is more than just a convenience; it’s a powerful tool for streamlining operations, reducing costly errors, and ultimately, boosting your profitability.
If you’re looking for ways to improve your restaurant’s financial health, here’s a look at the key ways touchscreen tech can help.
1. Streamline Orders and Reduce Food Waste
The old-fashioned system of a server scribbling an order on a paper ticket and running it back to the kitchen is a recipe for errors. Messy handwriting, an obscure abbreviation, or a lost ticket can all lead to the wrong dish being made. Every time the kitchen has to “remake” an order, you are losing 100% of the food and labor cost for that dish.
A modern touchscreen POS system eliminates most of these errors. The server taps in the order on a clear, intuitive interface, and it is sent instantly and legibly to the kitchen. This dramatic reduction in ordering errors means less food waste and a healthier bottom line.
2. Optimize Labor with Self-Service Kiosks
This is one of the most significant trends in the restaurant industry, especially for quick-service and fast-casual concepts. A self-service ordering kiosk allows customers to browse the menu, customize their order, and pay for their meal without ever interacting with a cashier.
This has a huge impact on labor costs. Instead of needing three or four cashiers to manage the front counter during a busy lunch rush, a single employee can act as a host and assist customers at a bank of several kiosks. These kiosks are frequently programmed to intelligently upsell (“Would you like to add a drink for just $1?”), which can lead to a significant increase in your average ticket size.
3. Improve Kitchen Efficiency with a KDS
A kitchen display system (KDS) is a rugged, heat-resistant touchscreen that is mounted in the kitchen, replacing the old paper ticket printer. This is a game-changer for the back of the house.
- No More Lost Tickets: Orders are displayed clearly on the screen and cannot be misplaced or damaged by a spill.
- Better Order Management: A KDS can track how long each order has been in the queue, helping the kitchen manager prioritize and ensuring that food gets out to the guests faster.
- Clearer Communication: The system can be used to communicate between different stations on the line and with the expediter at the pass.
This leads to a faster, more accurate, and less stressful kitchen, which means happier cooks and happier customers.
4. Cut Down on Training Time
The restaurant industry is known for its high employee turnover, which means you are constantly training new people. A picture-based touchscreen POS is incredibly intuitive and easy to learn compared to older, text-based systems that require memorizing a host of complex codes. A new server can often be trained and ready to take orders in a fraction of the time. This reduction in non-productive training time is a real and significant labor cost saving.
5. Have Tighter Inventory and Waste Control
A modern POS system is also a powerful inventory management tool. You can program the system so that every time a server rings in a specific menu item, the core ingredients for that dish are automatically deducted from your inventory count in real-time. This gives you a much more accurate and up-to-the-minute picture of what you have in stock. This data is invaluable for preventing food waste from over-ordering and for avoiding lost sales because you unexpectedly ran out of a popular item. Tight inventory control is a key to profitability.
In the challenging food service industry, efficiency is survival. An investment in touchscreen technology is a strategic way to reduce errors, streamline your workflow, and build a more profitable and resilient operation.