The food service industry has been through a lot in the last few years. The year that went by wasn?t any different but it brought in some new challenges like rising inflation, labour shortages, supply chain disruptions, and similar other stuff. Most importantly, people crammed in their houses finally started getting back to normal and flocked to different eating destinations creating exciting new opportunities to even out the lockdown losses.
These movements also compelled the quick adoption of restaurant technology like contactless payments, mobile check-ins, higher use of augmented reality, and so on. In this blog, we explore some of those tech trends that will keep buzzing the restaurant technology in 2023 and the upcoming years. But before diving deep there, let?s understand why it matters.?
Why Restaurant Technology Is Getting So Much Traction?
Technological flexibility has always been the key to ensuring seamless customer experience in the hospitality industry. But what?s new is the need to satisfy consumer demands through multiple touchpoints and channels and give them what they want at the place of their choice in restaurant technology. Such complex goals can?t be met without the due support of technology as it is the basic reason for rising complications on the demand end. There are a number of tech solutions like chatbots, contactless payments, and automation that can simplify these issues providing much-needed adaptability and flexibility to the business.
Then there is rising demand for sustainable business practices, products, and services, you can?t hope to achieve that unless you have some tech support to carry out the error-prone processes, streamline the FOH, and BOH operations, and establish uninterrupted communication on several fronts. Approx. 75% of US operators state that they will definitely adopt new technology in the years ahead. They also agree that technology was one of the main reasons for their survival in the last three years.??
Which Restaurant Technology Will Dominate The US Restaurant Industry This Year??
- Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, and Automation: Artificial intelligence, automation and robotics have been around for some time now but they penetrated the restaurant industry deeper during the pandemic. Operators are now considering these sophisticated techs more seriously to counter staff shortages, higher labour costs, and menu inflation. These techs automate several manual tasks to an extent and reduce some of the steps for the staff. The result is better product consistency and efficiency along with a seamless service experience. For instance, automation software tools are now being considered to facilitate reservations, menus, payroll, and stuff like that. Markets are flooding with restaurant payroll software that supports automated processing of salaries, tax payments, end-of-year reports, filings, and similar other stuff. Similarly, restaurant technology automation tools enable price adjustments based on timing and demand. Dynamic pricing is a rising trend in this domain as food prices fluctuate in wake of supply line disruptions and shortages. Chatbots, mobile check-ins, and recognition technologies are similar other options that can share and reduce the workload for restaurant staff and operators. Then there are advanced AI-driven systems like robots in hotels and restaurants. For instance, Panda Express is using robotic woks and increased its overall work efficiency by 25%.?
- Virtual Brand Marketplaces: Virtual brand marketplaces are an F&B version of extended reality. It involves extensive use of virtual reality, augmented reality, voice search and voice control technologies in an integrated format. They are playing an important role in increasing the delivery radius and exposure of food establishments. Apart from that, virtual reality can be a key asset with respect to new experiments and creating new versions of famous recipes. It can also help in optimising kitchen operations during peak hours. Lastly, virtual brands ease the process of setting new avenues, defining gaps in market research, and competition analysis, and developing a fitting marketing strategy not just for well-established or well-resourced players but also those who lack the resources to carry out all these tasks.
- Online Order Aggregator Software: The global food delivery industry is not slowing down any soon and if it keeps going at the current rate it will cross $369.97 billion evaluation by end of this decade. For the last few years, food makers and restaurants have been turning to online ordering systems or third-party delivery services to cater to the rising demand. Now, in the coming years, they will look to optimize their online ordering operations and push their potential to the maximum. This is why delivery aggregator software will gain traction in 2023 and years beyond it. It is designed to allow restaurant technology to manage their online orders efficiently. In simple terms, it aggregates all the online orders and synchronizes those with the POS streamlining the overall restaurant?s operational flow. However, if you are looking for something more, you need to turn to state-of-the-art delivery management platforms. Not only can they help you manage your menus and inventory efficiently but also provide priceless insights into consumer behaviour and sales figures. The best part, these software are capable of integrating with other software like voice search and voice control, recognition technology, and so forth.?
Last Word
Restaurant technology have the potential to keep restaurants agile, adaptable, and flexible as the industry transforms itself. They are allowing restaurant technology to reach every doorstep and enter personal dining spaces without much effort. On a parallel scale, they are allowing a much more personalized and seamless experience for diners.
