For the last 50 years, Nation's Restaurant News has been at the forefront of information and innovation in foodservice, driving the industry forward with the latest news, trend insights and market analysis. As NRN celebrates fifty years of foodservice, the spotlight is on the technology that will take operators into the next fifty years and beyond.

The restaurant industry is undergoing a technological renaissance of sorts. Guests are notified via text message when their reservations are ready, orders are taken electronically, payment is simplified, tables are turned faster – and restaurant operators are taking notice.

Increasingly, operators are beginning to view technology as critical to their business’ success, and the reasons that would compel them to adopt – the desire to make day-to-day operations more efficient, the ability to reduce costs and overhead, and more – are growing daily.

87% of restaurateurs believe that incorporating technology into their restaurants would help attract more customers.*

* American Express Restaurant Trade Survey

“New restaurant technology should always work to alleviate the pain experienced by restaurant operators. That’s our mission,” says Mani Kulasooriya, CEO of CAKE Corporation, a Sysco company that creates integrated restaurant POS and host management systems.

Using technology to seat more guests
Attracting and keeping customers is one of the biggest challenges faced by restaurant operators. Managing their guests’ experience once they walk through the door ranks a close second. With a cloud-based table management, digital waitlist and reservation management system, front-of-house operations are simplified. Using restaurant-specific technology – including customizable floor maps, predictive wait times and text message notifications – operators are able to more accurately and efficiently seat guests, increasing customer satisfaction and reducing walk-aways.

Accelerating the speed-of-service
As speed-of-service becomes an essential part of consumers’ lives, restaurant operators must adapt to meet the growing expectation for convenient, fast and enjoyable service. Intuitive POS systems simplify operations by streamlining and accelerating the order process through integrated ordering systems, which empower restaurants of any size. For quick-service establishments, easy-to-use POS terminals facilitate checkout, helping create an enjoyable and efficient experience. For full- service restaurants, handheld POS solutions streamline operations for improved customer experiences and increased table turns.

A complete front-to-back solution
Technologies that integrate simplified reporting functionality allow operators to track restaurant progress in real-time, enabling them to identify where sales are soaring – and where they’re slumping. Guest management systems that provide real-time seating data make wait times more predictable, enabling operators to spot trends more easily – like how many parties are seated per hour, the average wait

time for a table, and the time quoted versus the actual wait time. When integrated as a bundle, these systems seamlessly streamline front- and back-of-house operations, allowing for easier communication and smoother operations overall. Utilizing this technology, operators can identify the swings in business, both day- by-day and year-over-year, and manage both FOH and BOH operations, including product ordering and staff management.

“By focusing on technology built specifically for restaurants and made by people who are fervent about restaurants, CAKE allows owners to concentrate on the passion that brought them to the industry in the first place.”

– Mani Kulasooriya, CEO of CAKE