Between tradition and digitisation, how can you improve restaurant order-taking?
How do you welcome customers in a restaurant? With a smile, of course, but also by seating them properly and taking their order quickly and efficiently. Consumers form an opinion of your establishment within the first few minutes of their visit. So it's best to make a good impression!
That's why taking orders in a restaurant is so important, and you need to pay particular attention to it. Fortunately, there are a number of IT solutions to help you during this key stage of service. Find out more about them in this article 🌮 along with some valuable advice.
The importance of taking restaurant orders
For the restaurant owner...
Professionals in the catering trade are well aware that taking an order in a restaurant is of vital importance.
For a start, it affects the fluidity of service in the dining room. It's important to make the kitchen's work as easy as possible, by noting customers' wishes without skimping on detail, and by specifying special requests:
- remove an ingredient ;
- changing the accompaniment
- serving starters at the same time as main courses, etc.
In addition, accurate ordering reduces errors and wastage. By avoiding misunderstandings, restaurants can manage their inventory more accurately, and therefore minimise costs.
According to a study by the Institut National de Recherche sur le Gaspillage Alimentaire, ordering errors contribute to around 10% of food waste in the catering industry.
... and for the customer
Order-taking is one of the major components of the customer experience.
After all, your waiter is often the first contact a customer has with your restaurant. And when they take an order, they can leave a good impression... or a bad one! So it's important to be thorough, precise and adaptable, while always keeping a smile on your face 😁.
What's more, taking orders allows you to conform to customers' specific needs, particularly when it comes to allergies or food preferences. This flexibility is beneficial not only for customer satisfaction, but also to avoid any health-related risks.
How do you effectively take a customer's order in a restaurant? 5 tips on the menu
#1 Organise the dining room and teams correctly
To begin with, structure the working environment for your teams.
We recommend that you organise the dining room into zones, each of which is the responsibility of a particular waiter. This allows the waiter to concentrate on a specific section, thereby improving time management and service quality.
What's more, this arrangement helps to personalise the experience for customers, as they receive more consistent attention throughout their meal.
#2 Master the menu at your fingertips
Good order-taking also involves perfect mastery of the menu. Servers need to know what each dish on the menu consists of, but also be able to provide information on the following elements:
- preparation and cooking times
- allergens present
- portion sizes
- customisable options, etc.
In this way, the front-of-house team can provide precise answers to customers, without having to take time out to go and ask in the kitchen. All the more reason to boost your professionalism!
💡 Tip: we recommend that you draw up technical sheets for each dish or drink. Intended to list all the key information, they will prove to be a valuable aid for waiters.
#3 Make recommendations
However, an order that makes all the difference is one where the waiter goes further than just mastering his menu: he gives relevant recommendations!
For example, they
- They suggest the most popular specialities or dishes;
- they indicate which wines go with which recipes;
- they know the best dish/entrée combinations;
- It recommends cooking times;
- suggest desserts to suit the customer's preferences, etc.
These are all skills that meet, but also exceed, consumer expectations.
💡 Tip: of course, it's possible to gear your recommendations to benefit cash flow. Don't forget that waiters can also put on the good salesman hat and suggest as a priority the dishes... that are most profitable for you 🤑.
#4 Constantly work on communication skills
Developing the communication skills of waiters is essential for effective order taking in a restaurant. As we've seen, clarity and precision not only ensure that orders are delivered correctly, but also contribute to a positive and personalised customer experience.
💡 Tip: one good practice is to always repeat the order for confirmation to ensure everything is OK and to clear up any ambiguities.
#5 Train your teams
We advise you to make order taking part in a continuous improvement process. This approach involves constructive feedback, as well as training on various aspects of the service.
For example, training in
- communication techniques ;
- motivational and suggestive selling techniques
- managing difficult situations and conflicts
- knowledge of restaurant procedures and policies, etc.
💡 Tip: reward employees' efforts and improvements. They remain your most valuable resource when it comes to taking orders. So make them really want to excel!
Why digitalise restaurant order-taking?
Perhaps you've noticed that a key piece of advice is missing from the paragraphs above 🤔 ?
👉 Use digital solutions.
Paper restaurant order-taking is now a thing of the past. More and more establishments are digitalising the process. This change starts with the use of a mobile terminal, more specifically a touch tablet or smartphone, to replace the good old notepad.
It has to be said that restaurant owners are reaping many benefits from this technology:
- Orders are taken more reliably, and they save a lot of time because the vouchers are sent directly to the kitchen without the waiter having to go anywhere.
- The solutions used keep track of services. Handy for carrying out various analyses to improve performance!
- Restaurant order-taking pads are often also cash register software. They make checkout easier by avoiding errors and queues, and by allowing greater flexibility (splitting the bill, for example).
- Digital technology simplifies stock monitoring and the adjustment of menus according to the availability of ingredients.
- Digitalisation means that staff can focus more on interacting with customers and less on taking manual orders.
But what exactly are the software and tools that can give you all these benefits?
The different restaurant order-taking solutions
Numerous technologies are helping to digitalise order taking. Let's take a look at the main ones 👀.
Cash register software
Cash register software, which is very similar to Point of Sale (POS) systems, generally proves to be the most comprehensive and relevant tools for digitising your order-taking... and not just that! They often take care of other operations such as stock management and sales analysis.
🛠️ L'Addition, for example, is a cash register solution specially developed for restaurants and available on iPad or iPhone. It offers a host of features to help you run your business more effectively, including a dedicated order-taking module. Thanks to this module, you can combine speed and efficiency: the vouchers, with all the associated comments, are sent directly to the kitchen, in the order requested by the customer. Addition also allows you to manage supplements, automatically detect menus, add comments on wines... in short, everything you need to guarantee exceptional service.
Order-taking terminals
Self-service order-taking kiosks , often found in fast-food outlets, save time for front-of-house staff... and for customers too!
What's more, they help boost sales by encouraging consumers to explore more menu options and make impulse purchases.
☝️ However, the lack of human interaction can impact on the customer experience. Therefore, only install this type of device if it is suitable for the target clientele (avoid it in a gourmet restaurant, for example).
QR codes
We should also mention QR codes. Used to replace paper menus, they were developed during the health crisis.
Thanks to this technology, you no longer have to wait for the waiter to arrive to consult the restaurant menu. What's more, it reduces the cost of printing on paper, especially if you change your menu regularly.
☝️ If you want to use QR codes, make sure your restaurant has a good internet connection!
Online booking management software
Last but not least, online reservation management software is another application that can make ordering in a restaurant much easier.
What's in it for you? It relieves staff of the need to answer the phone during service, leaving them free to concentrate on their work in the restaurant.
☝️ Note that cash register software such as L'Addition often offers QR code and reservation management functions.
Restaurant order-taking in a nutshell!
Your professionalism and the quality of your establishment should shine through as soon as the order is taken.
To do this, you need to be organised, a good listener and good communicator, with a perfect command of your menu and a real ability to adapt. And, of course, a desire to constantly improve.
At the same time, don't hesitate to use technology. Cash register software, order terminals, QR codes... there are plenty of tools to support you in this task and help you focus on what's essential: the experience you offer your customers!
Article translated from French