We explore the relationship between kitchen display systems and a reliable, integrated, easy to use, and automated back of house — including challenges such as flexibility and barriers to implementation.
INSIDE
The Restaurant Technology Journey
The Kitchen as the Heart of the Restaurant
Barriers to Automation
Restaurant Think Tank E-Book published by
PRESENTED BY
NEXT: Meet the Think Tank
Restaurant
Imagining the Future of Restaurant Automation
Automation
and the
Evolution of
Kitchen Technology
Meet the Think Tank
Kevin Bentley Head of Technology Jollibee Foods
Rob Jakoby VP of IT Firehouse Subs
Toby Malbec Managing Director ConStrata Technology Consulting
Clark Matthews VP of IT El Pollo Loco
Robert Firpo-Cappiello Editor in Chief Hospitality Technology
2
Tom Seeker Chief Information Officer, Earl Enterprises
A Restaurant Think Tank E-Book published by
NEXT: The Restaurant Technology Journey
Currently Implemented Restaurant Automation
How Restaurants Rate Their Technology Compared With Competitors
Data from EnsembleIQ’s Exploring the Impact of Restaurant Automation, 2023
Efficiency
3
We’re all looking to automate processes and get more efficient. For instance, exploring voice AI and call tech for text-based ordering to minimize phone staff reliance. Back-of-house automation is crucial due to labor challenges, and we need automated actionable data insights rather than manual processing, ultimately aiming to boost basket size.
Currently, we stand at around 30% online ordering, and the challenge is finding the path to achieving 100% digitization.
In California, wage dynamics are steering our evolution. Operational efficiency is paramount, utilizing kiosks, drive-thru, and AI to enhance order accuracy. Kiosks address communication issues between consumers and cashiers, streamlining accuracy and allowing our team to focus more on food.
“Now we’re moving into a post-pandemic era — shift from off-prem into the reality, scant resources, supply-chain issues, hiring issues,” notes Toby Malbec, Managing Director, ConStrata Technology Consulting. “Does that promote robotics? Other efficiencies? Menu changes?”
Our data landscape is diverse with on-premise, off-premise, third-party, and virtual elements. We aim to facilitate communication between vendors and solutions, guiding executives and employees to locate relevant insights in the data stream. Our goal is to consolidate processes and unify everything under a single pane of glass. Collaborating with industry partners, we seek to standardize processes and KPIs.
INSIDE THE DATA
NEXT: The Kitchen as the Heart of the Restaurant
POS
Payroll
Kitchen automation/KDS
Inventory management
Reservation & table management
Data analytics
77%
69%
49%
43%
38%
37%
Off-premise order management
29%
Recipe viewer/ recipe management
Quantified Impact of BOH Automation
4
“We’re moving toward untethered technology,” says Malbec. “The POS is not a fixed thing — it’s movable wherever you happen to be selling your food. We’re moving beyond the queue.”
Most of our kitchens have been very simple, with POS and a printer, and the chit gets passed around. Now we have a brand-new prototype, a dual line with QSR Automations' monitoring system. We’ve increased productivity by about 30%. Because the monitoring system can see all those orders coming through from various sources, it can adjust the threshold of how long the guest will have to wait.
KDS is a huge miss for some restaurants – it offers incredible opportunity; especially the data; too many restaurants are still operating on the chit/receipt, with no info on prep time, etc.
Keeping up with KDS advancements is crucial — for instance, being able to call up a recipe to ensure you’re preparing it properly. Nowadays, some kitchens aren’t just plating food for guests but also preparing food for virtual brands, which must be handled differently. Automation can help ensure order accuracy and employee safety.
We use KDS and POS – like many QSRs, we struggle to improve order accuracy. One specific tech we don’t use is “fire on demand” – we’d like to use it but we wait until the order is placed and paid for because food cost and guest satisfaction are primary.
NEXT: Barriers to Automation
Average ROI
94%
83%
Average increase in order accuracy
Average decrease in ticket time
Top Barriers to Implementing More Automation Solutions
5
“You need to recognize that your POS must be flexible enough to allow for integration and expansion,” agrees Kimpel.
“A conceptual pain point is when your POS is down and your restaurant is dead in the water,” says Parizher. “We think software is what’s important, but we need to be able to run it on the devices that can give us flexibility.”
We have had challenges with legacy technology, seeking to grow artificial intelligence and machine learning, but finding it doesn’t integrate with our existing stack. Also, vendors need to do their homework and learn about our menu and pricing — sometimes promises of ROI and upsell potential are based on generalities and don’t apply to our model.
It often comes down to priorities. You can always cite cost as a barrier, but in many cases, restaurants have to determine whether automation is an appropriate strategic move — does it fit the business model, is it a significant business driver?
The space that automation takes up can be a barrier. If you have to reconfigure your kitchen to accommodate it, for example, you may find yourself in direct opposition to what you’re trying to do as a kitchen.
Training is often the biggest issue, especially with employee retention, being a major concern at this time. Improving training should be a priority, Including automating training to the extent possible — turning screens into training stations, for example.
Cost
Buy-in (e.g. from execs, kitchen staff)
Unsure of ROI/value
Training/resources required
More knowledge/finding the right one
Concerns about integration
Not suitable for small business
52%
15%
14%
11%
8%
6%
5%
NEXT: Strategic Goals for Restaurant Tech Investment
Top Strategic Goals for Restaurant Tech Investment
6
I think brand-new kitchens and robots were made for each other, but we tried robots a bit too early, and found there wasn’t room in the kitchen for them, and there wasn’t really room for them to serve guests efficiently. But I do see promise in robotics — clearing tables, taking frozen food out of storage, for example. A robot doesn’t call in sick, it can work an extra shift, and, quite frankly, it won’t argue with you. Employees are more tech savvy than they used to be, and increased bandwidth allows us to implement so many more wireless solutions.
Tactically, we would love to have high-definition cameras integrated into KDS, to detect errors in food prep; and a thermographic camera to monitor cooking.
I recently witnessed a fully electric kitchen, no hood. The hood is a massive cost and it’s also a limiter in renovation; without a hood, we pumped out 25 dishes, vacuum sealed. I also see opportunities with dynamic pricing based on day part; you’ve got to find what 80% of your guests are looking for. What do they buy? How about getting data that helps us understand who they are?
Data from Hospitality Technology’s 2023 Restaurant Technology Study: Going All In
NEXT: What's Next?
Improve digital engagement
Improve business analytics
Improve employee productivity & retention
Reduce costs
Support revenue generating opportunities
Enhance payment & security
63%
54%
46%
42%
25%
What’s next?
Restaurant automation has evolved rapidly toward operational efficiency, guest experience, order accuracy, and speed of service.
Learn more at https://qsrautomations.com
Common barriers to entry for restaurants considering automation include ROI, the need for workforce training, management, and company culture and priorities.
There is a clear relationship between KDS and a reliable, integrated, easy to use, and automated BOH.
KEY TAKEAWAYS FOR FUTURE PLANNING:
7
Interested?
