What Restaurant Operations Software Do You Need?

Want to know what restaurant operations system you need to run your restaurant business effectively? We’ve got you covered.

Finding the right restaurant management software is crucial if you want to stand above your competitors in the restaurant industry and thrive. It can differentiate restaurant owners who dominate the hospitality industry and make over $40 million in annual sales from those who don’t.

We’ll explore the essential software you require to streamline fundamental aspects of your restaurant business. And we’ll outline a few key features to look for in each system. Our goal is to help you find the right combination of restaurant management solutions to drive maximum profit and business growth. 

Definition and Purpose of Restaurant Operations Software 

Commonly known as restaurant management systems, restaurant operations software are critical digital tools for food service businesses. They serve as a digital hub, enabling restaurant owners and managers to perform various day-to-day functions efficiently. Some of these include:

• Order processing
• Inventory management
• Table reservation management
• Employee scheduling
• Customer relationship management (CRM), among others.

The primary purposes of restaurant management software are to streamline your daily workflow, automate manual tasks (especially the repetitive ones), and optimize resource allocation. So you can run your restaurant’s operations smoothly and at low costs. 

Some of the best restaurant operations platforms also have advanced features, like integration with POS systems, a shared online calendar, and online ordering solutions. With these, you can create a comprehensive ecosystem that enhances operational efficiency and increases profit margins.

The Importance Of Restaurant Operations Software

 Restaurant management software is a valuable tool worth investing in because it helps you to:

• Reduce manual errors – automating administrative tasks simplifies your restaurant operations while reducing reliance on human input for crucial processes. These include things like tracking order supplies and inventory levels. This minimizes the chances of manual errors.
• Enhance customer satisfaction – automation allows your restaurant team to focus on more significant duties. Let’s say you purchase inventory management software. This will help your head chef focus more on ensuring customers receive a seamless dining experience instead of worrying about tracking inventory. Other software allows your kitchen staff to send meal orders directly from the customer’s table to the kitchen, reducing wait times. All these options help you provide excellent customer service, which enhances customer satisfaction and loyalty.‍
• Improve labor management – restaurant management software can help you track employees’ schedules, hours worked, and overall performance. You can use this information to improve employee productivity and minimize labor costs.‍
• Make better decisions – some of the best restaurant management software provides real-time insights into how your business is performing. You’ll know what areas of your business work well and what needs improvement. Then, you can make data-driven decisions to strengthen the weak areas and flourish‍
• Improve your bottom line – a good restaurant management platform helps with food cost control. You can plan your menu and pricing in a way that reduces food waste while increasing sales to improve your bottom line.

Key Features to Look for in Restaurant Operations Software

When searching for a great food business management platform, some features or functions are paramount and worth your attention. These include elements that optimize crucial front and back-of-house operations, such as:

• Inventory management
• Employee scheduling and management
• Menu item set-up and tracking
• Table and order management
• Payment processing capabilities
• Customer relationship management solutions
• Support for integration with your existing hardware or other software
• Advanced and interpretable reporting and analytics tools 

Types of Restaurant Operations Systems Available

Nearly every aspect of your culinary venture can be managed by a restaurant operations platform. But you don’t need to buy them all. However, some types of restaurant management software (RMS) are necessary for maximizing your restaurant business’s performance. Here are some essential types of RMS you require for various purposes:

Inventory Management Software

Inventory management solutions are back office software you need to keep tabs on the current state of your restaurant’s inventory. They automate the entire inventory tracking process, so you won’t have to run up and down performing regular inventory checks. These systems save you time while giving you peace of mind to focus on other aspects of your venture. 

When looking for an inventory RMS, ensure it has the following capabilities:

• Ingredient-level inventory. With this, you'll prevent overstocking or understocking and eliminate food waste. 
• Real-time tracking so you can tell which products are selling fast and which ones aren’t.
• Automatic stock alerts with forecast on what’s needed to help you restock the required items in the right quantities and at the right time
• Allow purchase order creation and purchasing management. 

Food Costing Software

Food costs eat into 35% of the average revenue restaurant owners make. Food costing software can help you lower these costs and increase your profit margins. It considers the costs of your ingredients and provides detailed analytics about the expenses of making different dishes. You can then price your dishes accordingly to offset all preparation costs and earn a sizable profit.

Must-have functions to consider from a food costing software include:

• Takes labor costs and other fixed costs into account
• Highlights the dishes that make you the most money to inform your marketing efforts
• Offers custom pricing tools, you should be able to experiment with various price points to set the perfect prices and make the highest profits.
• You can assess the profit different dishes offer and gauge whether they’re worth selling.

Menu Management Software

Menu-building restaurant software takes the guesswork out of menu creation and management. These systems consider food costs and apply the best menu engineering principles to help you design attractive menus that boost your proceeds.

Must-have features to consider in menu-building and management software include:

• Drag and drop menu builder
• 100% customizable
• Promote special offers
• Support QR code menu creation

Point-of-Sale (POS) System

Restaurant POS systems are among the most powerful tools for optimizing your restaurant’s performance. A modern POS system is a hybrid of a computer and cash register. It can help you process customer payments, print receipts, and run the entire service station from the same dashboard.

Your preferred POS system should perform the following functions:

• Keep track of key sales metrics
• Support different payment methods, like credit card payments
• Record cash flow
• Create sales reports 

Restaurant Reservation Management Systems

If your restaurant takes reservations, you need a well-designed reservation management platform to move from a manual pen-and-paper booking system to an online one. This allows you to receive more bookings from various online channels. 

Guests provide their information through your restaurant’s website or mobile app to book their seats instead of calling and having you take notes. You get to save so much time this way.

The best reservation management software also comes with comprehensive tools for table management. These allow you to use your floor plan to make seating arrangements and maximize your restaurant’s space.

Must-have functions to consider when looking for these platforms are:

• Support online booking through multiple channels in several locations.
• Reduce no-shows through customized reminders – these can be through time-sensitive notifications or direct SMS updates.
• Stores guest information for future marketing activities, like sending emails with tailored offers on their birthday, anniversaries, or other special occasions.
• You can allocate specific tables for reservations and others for walk-in customers to prevent overbooking. 

Labor Management

Solutions for labor management create favorable working conditions for your team members and boost employee performance. You can organize staff schedules according to individual peak working hours, supporting them to offer excellent services.

Staffing solutions also include payroll creation and tracking features, making it easy to compensate your staff well and in good time.

Critical functions to consider here include:

• Managing shifts intuitively
• Straightforward communication with employees, especially after shift changes
• Labor laws compliance
• Labor cost management

Check out our Top 9 Employee Scheduling Platforms to transform how you manage labor and increase the efficiency of your daily operations. 

Online Ordering Software

Ordering online is central to your restaurant's success as more people prefer enjoying restaurant dishes from the comfort of their homes. Look for an online ordering system that:

• Offers multiple online ordering options with a user-friendly interface 
• Allows delivery services tracking

Restaurant CRMs

Restaurant CRMs help you maintain a good relationship with your customers, and encourage repeat business. The best CRM solutions should have the following capabilities:

• Track and store customer data for marketing purposes
• Collect customer feedback
• Run loyalty programs 

Reporting and Analytics

Advanced reporting and analytics software is essential for tracking your overall business performance and identifying growth opportunities in different aspects of your venture.

Whether you seek to improve employee productivity, cut labor costs, or sell more, this software provides the data you need to make informed strategic decisions and meet your goals.

Must-have functions to look for in reporting and analytics software include: 

• Real-time sales performance tracking
• Easy-to-interpret advanced analytics

How Much Does Restaurant Operations Software Cost?

Restaurant operations software prices vary depending on the features and functions offered. You can get simple restaurant management software for as low as $40/month. But you'll likely have to supplement these with other software to get the full features you need to run your restaurant operations effortlessly.

To get a more comprehensive solution with nearly all essential features in one platform, you’ll have to make a considerable investment, which is worth it. Most providers require you to contact their sales teams for exact quotes.

Conclusion

When choosing a restaurant management solution, consider the size of your business and have a budget ready to get the perfect fit. You don’t want to purchase enterprise solutions if you’re a small or medium-sized business because you may pay for features you’ll never use.

Specifically, go for all-in-one end-to-end solutions with superior third-party integration support. These provide almost all types of software as one professional package. You’ll save costs and can still integrate additional software to create an expansive restaurant management system tailored to your business.

If you host events in your restaurant, consider using Perfect Venue. As a leading venue management solution, our platform can help optimize your event hosting operations for maximum profitability. Book a free demo to see how it works.