12 Benefits of a Restaurant Kitchen Order System

“Quick Summary” It doesn’t matter if your business is big or small. Regardless of the size, most restaurants can benefit from a restaurant kitchen ordering system. Gone are the days when orders used to arrive only from customers in the restaurant. Nowadays, orders pour in from various channels like mobile apps, websites, takeaways, and third-party applications. Managing so many orders is a challenge for the restaurant staff. It’s hard to make crucial decisions amidst hundreds of orders and that too, in a high-pressure environment.

When we talk about restaurant technology, the first thing that comes to mind is an online ordering and a payment integration system. What about the backend operations, though? A POS system contributes immensely towards automating and optimizing kitchen operations, but we can’t ignore the importance of having a restaurant kitchen order system. Let’s talk about how an establishment can benefit from a restaurant kitchen order system.

What is a restaurant ordering system?

A restaurant ordering system is necessary to convey information effectively and provide speedy service to customers. A restaurant ordering system or a KDS (kitchen display system) eliminates the need for paper tickets and printers. This system is integrated with cloud technology, allowing it to function remotely and shows the number of orders that need to be prepared as they’re entered into the POS system.

With a KDS system, you can ensure the right food item reaches the correct table, notifies the kitchen staff when the queue is too long or when a particular table hasn’t been served. Moreover, it also allows the wait staff to check the orders’ status on the mobile POS and serve it to customers upon completion. Additionally, customers can also get real-time updates as to when their orders would be delivered.

Let’s discuss the benefits of the restaurant ordering systems below.

Harvest the benefits of a restaurant ordering system & revamp your kitchen operations.

Most businesses in the food industry have opted for a restaurant kitchen order system, but you need to know how it will benefit your business. After reading this, you can decide whether you want to invest in one.

No missed orders

A restaurant kitchen is busy and chaotic, especially during the weekends. Orders are taken, printed, and then stacked up in the kitchen. In the middle of all the commotion, a piece of paper might fall off here and there. The matter will only be highlighted when a customer complains about the delay in service. 

All these problems can be eliminated by investing in a kitchen order system. It displays new orders & adds them to the queue. In this way, all the orders are fulfilled, giving customers no reason to complain. Furthermore, the customer stays well informed about the progress of their order.

Speedy order taking

With KDS, there is no need to generate paper receipts or pass around unreadable details scribbled on chits. The order details automatically reflect on the kitchen screen, and chefs can begin with the preparation instantly. Such clarity of information cuts down on wastage of time, plus the guest’s order will arrive faster.

Reduces carbon footprints

With restaurant kitchen order systems, paper receipts are no longer necessary. Four thousand two hundred fifty (4250) tons of restaurant paper recipes are generated every year. It goes straight to the landfill because it can’t be recycled. It takes approximately 15 trees to produce one ton of paper. With KDS, you can make a difference in the environment while streamlining operations.

Inventory management & wastage control

When you know the exact number of orders and people at a particular table, the kitchen staff will be aware of how much food to serve and plan accordingly. When a kitchen order system is integrated with a restaurant POS, there is no room for confusion, plus managing operations becomes smooth and stress-free.

Improved communication

A lot can go wrong with verbal communication or poor handwriting. Most customers won’t forgive mistakes like a wrong side dish or dressing. With KDS, such possibilities are eliminated. Everything is entered into the system, and kitchen staff will see with their own eyes. Even the wait staff can see what’s going with a particular order and update the customer accordingly.

Cloud integration

A kitchen order system or KDS is integrated with a cloud. It ensures that orders are updated on the system instantly and that customers are not made to wait unnecessarily. Orders need not be sent separately; they will be updated on the system, reducing the chances of errors.

Analytics and performance analysis

An efficient KDS or kitchen ordering system will provide you with real-time updates and useful analytics that will enable you to make well-informed decisions. These analytics will give you valuable insights into staffing, menu reporting, ordering pattern (onsite and offsite), and business pain-points. You will also get useful customer information like phone numbers, addresses, etc., to create marketing campaigns.

Streamlined  operations

With analytics, you can also calculate the average time taken to fulfill each order. By utilizing this information, management will get detailed information about star performers, good performers, average performers, and people who need improvement. With these insights, you can decide how and where to use a specific employee’s skill set. Further training can be recommended (for average performers) during quiet phases to improve performance.

Improved quality of food

When kitchen staff doesn’t have to worry about missing orders or delayed orders, it can focus solely on preparing delicious meals for customers. It makes customers happy, and they come back again. During busy times, staff might forget to check if they have enough ingredients, but KDS will highlight the issue, and the team would know about it. This way, they can alert the customer about the non-availability of a particular dish rather than making a long face later on. 

Loyalty features

Every restaurant has loyal customers, and it’s essential to take care of such customers. With KDS, details of their favorite meals or special needs can be fed into the system so that they need not repeat it every time. Besides, establishments can surprise them on special occasions with gifts or send them personalized text messages.

On-job training

A KDS system allows you to upload eye-catching images and informative videos about recipes. Kitchen staff can save these and learn from them. In case of confusion, they can refer to such material and polish their skills.

Cost-effective

Compared to KOT’s (Kitchen order ticket system), a KDS system is cost-effective and easier to use. After integrating it with the existing POS system, you can reap the rich benefits of the same. The possibilities of manual errors are reduced, plus it also boosts speed, efficiency, and accuracy.

In a nutshell

With KDS, you can speed up your operations, boost productivity and revenue while ensuring accuracy. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that POS & KDS are the same. They are two different applications, and they are best used in conjunction with each other. 

When you invest in an efficient restaurant POS and an outstanding kitchen order system, it’s like sweet harmony. Both front house and backend operations are synchronized, resulting in a flawless restaurant experience.