A Taste of the Future of Dining and Great Food at the National Restaurant Association Show

The National Restaurant Association Show offered a wonderful opportunity to meet with solution providers, speak with restaurant operators and discover new technologies.

Restaurants are racing to overcome formidable challenges like labor shortages, inaccurate orders and increasingly demanding customers. When it comes to priorities, many of the restaurants we spoke with are focused on deploying technologies that can help them enhance hospitality by serving customers more quickly, accurately and with fewer labor resources.

In talking with QSR operators, three major shifts taking place are: 

1. Digital ordering – QSRs are transitioning from cashiers taking orders to self-order kiosks and/or orders placed via mobile app. This helps to alleviate errors and speeds order receipt.
2. Digital drive-thru - Drive-thru efficiency is also top of mind among QSRs. Efforts here result in reduced wait times and more satisfied customers. The shift to digital drive-thrus includes everything from digital menu boards that display the correct menu for the time of day (breakfast vs lunch, for example) to voice-AI technology for order receipt, to automated drink machines, which automate drink preparation to save employees time.
3. Grow customer loyalty - Customer loyalty is king in QSRs, and they are working to build and maintain that loyalty. The priorities above are the first key to customer loyalty in that they result in more satisfied customers who are likely to return. But additional efforts include customer loyalty apps, which collect valuable information about customers, their preferences and in turn deliver rewards, relevant promotions and personal touches.

While much thought is put into the ultimate goals of these new technologies and the vision for streamlined operations, there’s also a universe of infrastructure required behind the scenes to power these technologies. From low voltage, power cables, servers, switches and Wi-Fi, to camera placement, cloud-based software set-up and maintenance, a solid foundation must be in place to support these technologies. That’s where Telaid comes in.

Telaid is an integral part of restaurants’ transition to automation. While we’re most effective when involved in early conversations, we can get involved at any part of the process. The Show gave us an opportunity to explore the full ecosystem of partners required for these major shifts in QSR operations. It was certainly an eye-opening and exciting experience. If you’re planning to deploy one of many automation technologies, I hope you’ll invite us to be part of the conversation.

While the conversations were great, the best part of the show, honestly, was eating! I tasted many a delectable food samples. I’ve already signed up to attend next year’s show!