There are many ways your restaurant can serve customers these days, with restaurant table ordering software being one of the best solutions.
As technology changes, so do customer expectations. Customers are faced with new ways of engaging with restaurants and their order processes. Staying on top of this can help you offer better customer experiences.
By using the right table ordering software and offering digital menus, restaurants can optimize their operations and work more efficiently. This can be a great way for you to streamline your operations.
If you’re interested in offering tableside ordering, this guide covers the best platforms you should consider.
What is Restaurant Table Ordering Software?
Restaurant table ordering software lets you send orders directly to the kitchen from tables.
Your restaurant could implement a tableside ordering system in several different ways. One solution is to equip the waiting staff with a device, like a handheld tablet, set up with the ordering software. The server can then send orders directly to the kitchen as the customer places them.
However, a more modern solution is to use a customer-facing ordering system.
This is when customers access your menu on a digital device, and key in their orders themselves, which go straight to the kitchen. This can be accessed by scanning a QR code that reveals your menu. You can also offer your ordering screens at the tables. Some takeout and fast food restaurants also have self-order kiosks set up at the entrance.
Whatever the case, restaurant table ordering software involves offering an online menu. This means it’s usually also used by restaurants that offer online ordering outside the restaurant.
Tableside ordering technology offers a couple of benefits to restaurants.
First, it improves the customer experience, as customers can order food as soon as they want to. A table ordering system also means customers can get their orders in faster, which means service is more efficient. This also improves the customer experience.
Second, restaurant table ordering software helps restaurants operate more efficiently. There’s less room for error, and orders can be placed and processed faster. This results in a more streamlined service. What’s not to love?
Restaurant Table Ordering Software | Top Picks
Setting your business up with restaurant table ordering software can be a great idea. You just need to make sure the software offers the right features for your restaurant, and that it works with your POS system.
To help you find the right platform, here are some of the best online ordering options right now.
1. Lunchbox
Lunchbox is a restaurant management tool with several interesting features. The platform includes online ordering, a marketing CRM, loyalty software, order aggregation, catering tools, and a UX/UI feature.
Restaurants can use Lunchbox alongside their POS system to add extra functionality to their restaurant, like tableside ordering.
Lunchbox’s online ordering system is a slick tool for both restaurants and customers. You can create an ordering page with your digital menus, which customers can access from their devices.
You have control over how these pages look and feel, allowing you to offer a great customer ordering experience. You can create your own branded mobile app. The platform includes various payment options, like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Beyond the customer-facing platform, Lunchbox gives restaurants a lot of control over managing their orders, changing menus, managing guests, and more, all in real-time. The platform also integrates with all major restaurant POS systems, so it's easy to implement.
The main reason to use Lunchbox is its online ordering tool. However, the platform also offers great features to improve customer knowledge and marketing. This makes it a powerful tool for growing your restaurant operations.
Main Features
- Web and app ordering
- Marketing CRM
- UX/UI tools
- Loyalty and scan-to-pay systems
- Order aggregation
- Catering tools
2. Slerp
Slerp is an online food ordering system that can be used as restaurant table ordering software. The platform covers three main modules:
- Online ordering
- Growth (marketing)
- Operations
Online ordering is the main focus, and the modules offer a range of different ordering solutions for different scenarios. This includes online ordering tools for deliveries, click and collect, and a table ordering system. You can also create an online order app for your restaurant.
Slerp is a solid choice because it offers plenty of flexibility in the kind of ordering system you want to set up for your business. This helps you provide a more seamless customer experience.
When combined with the added marketing and operations tools, Slerp can be a powerful platform for offering mobile ordering, attracting new customers, and growing your business.
Of course, the restaurant table ordering software integrates with POS systems for easy use.
Main Features
- Online ordering for various scenarios
- Digital marketing functions
- Loyalty software
- Website tools
- Operations functions
3. TouchBistro
TouchBistro is a restaurant management POS system with plenty of functions. The platform offers a fairly extensive range of POS solutions, including a traditional POS system, a kitchen display system, and payment processing tools.
In terms of restaurant table ordering software, TouchBistro also offers a customer-facing display that lets guests take control of their orders. There is also an online ordering solution that lets guests place orders from your restaurant.
TouchBistro is ideal if you’re looking for a single solution to cover your restaurant’s POS system and your online ordering software. The platform offers all the tech tools you need to run your restaurant - which includes the ordering hardware.
The downside is that using TouchBistro can be quite a big investment because you need to set all areas of your operations up with their system. It’s not as flexible as other online ordering solutions.
That being said, the platform also offers a range of useful tools for customer engagement, like loyalty software, gift cards, reservations management, and marketing tools. This means it’s the most extensive and feature-rich table ordering system on this list.
Main Features
- Point of sale system
- Kitchen display system
- Customer-facing display
- Payment processing
- Online ordering
- POS hardware
4. Goodeats by Goodtill
Goodeats is a click-and-collect and table ordering service offered by Goodtill. The platform is fairly straightforward to set up, making it an easy solution for restaurants that want to add tableside ordering to their operations.
The platform includes payment processing, as well as a unique URL you can add to your online ordering site. This all adds to a more personalized customer experience.
Goodtill also offers a greater range of tools and products for restaurants. This includes a POS system, stock management tools, reporting and analytics, a kitchen display system, and loyalty software. The POS has been designed for use on a tablet or mobile device, which makes it a convenient choice for small businesses.
Main Features
- Centralized orders and payments
- Customized online ordering
- POS system
- Table ordering and click and collect
- Stock management
5. Revolution Ordering
Revolution Ordering is a platform designed to help restaurants enhance their off-premise ordering abilities. It’s a simple solution for tableside ordering, as it integrates with your existing systems to simply extend your restaurant’s ordering abilities.
Restaurants can use Revolution Ordering to unify omnichannel ordering systems. The platform offers live order monitoring, as well as detailed insights into your customers and their order history.
Main Features
- Unified omnichannel ordering
- Google food ordering
- Integrates with POS systems
- Customer profile views and order history
- Demand creation and marketing services
6. EatOS
EatOS is a restaurant POS and payments ecosystem. We say ecosystem because the platform includes a fairly extensive range of features that all work together.
Beyond the point-of-sale platform, there’s a kitchen display system, workforce management tools, and analytics and reporting features. However, the platform gets its value from the different ordering solutions it offers.
In terms of restaurant table ordering software, EatOS offers:
- Customer facing display
- Point of purchase handheld devices
- Self-service kiosks
- Tableside ordering and payments
- Online ordering and delivery software
There’s a lot you can do with this platform. From QR code ordering to mobile ordering and delivery services, restaurants can introduce many different areas of operation with EatOS. Because the platform offers an entire POS system, you can use it as a single solution to manage all of your restaurant’s orders and sales.
Main Features
- POS system
- Customer-facing display system
- Tableside ordering
- Point of purchase
- Online and mobile ordering
Conclusion
Using restaurant table ordering software can be a great way to streamline your ordering process and enhance the customer experience.
Just make sure that the software you use offers all the features your restaurant needs. Of course, the solution should also work with your POS system, and any other software tools your restaurant relies on.
If your restaurant hosts events, then you’ll also want to use the right event management platform to streamline your operations even more. Try Perfect Venue for free to see how it can help you grow your business.
