Fall is just around the corner, which means we’re about to get inundated with headlines about pumpkin-spice lattes. And while the restaurant industry is seeing a bit of a sales slowdown at the moment, something that’s expected to continue through the last third of 2019, the space has no end of tech-centric developments happening week to week. Here’s a look at a few more pieces of restaurant tech news from the last few days.
Appetize Partners With Olo and Others for POS Integration
What’s the solution to having too much tech in the restaurant? More tech, obviously. This week, Playa Vista, CA-based POS maker Appetize announced new integrations with not one but three more pieces of restaurant tech software: Olo, which consolidates orders from multiple third-party channels, Punchh, who handles loyalty programs, and SynergySuite, a back-of-house inventory management solution. According to a press release, these additions will help restaurants to balance the many digital demands in the biz today: third-party delivery capability, loyalty programs, mobile order and payments, and back-of-house duties like inventory management.
Grubhub Launches Perks
Even as more restaurants talk about bringing customer loyalty back under their own roof, third-party delivery companies are countering that by adding new bells and whistles to retain users within their own apps and websites. This week, Grubhub launched Perks, an in-app feature that offers users more ways to earn loyalty points from restaurants via deals only available within the Grubhub app. Since the feature is actually integrated with restaurant loyalty programs, those rewards and points are all redeemable from the same account. However, to access all the free food on offer from the likes of Taco Bell, Red Lobster, and Smoothie King, customers have to use the Grubhub app.
Barclaycard and TouchBistro Join Forces to Improve Restaurant Payments
Another POS company, TouchBistro, announced a partnership with UK-based credit card and payments processor Barclaycard. TouchBistro will integrate Barclaycard’s payment solution into its iPad-based POS system for UK restaurants, making it easier for staff to split checks, and gratuities and process payments. For any restaurant-tech feature involving payments, the biggest benefit is that they cut down the amount of manual calculations and data entry workers have to do, which in theory reduces the risk of human error when it comes to keeping track of the numbers.
New Delivery Deals
In what was just another week in the world of delivery, numerous chains announced partnerships with third-party services. Casual dining chain Village Inn announced it’s now delivering via DoorDash; fast-food chain A&W also teamed up with the service, to deliver to nearly 400 locations across Canada. DoorDash didn’t grab all the headlines this week, though. As we covered in depth, McDonald’s is expanding its McDelivery program throughout NYC and the Tri-State area with Grubhub.
Intrigued? We’ll be talking restaurant tech at this year’s Smart Kitchen Summit this October in Seattle. Grab your tickets here and come on down.
