Today technology has revolutionised the back-end operations of the food and restaurant industry. From effective inventory management systems to tracking solutions, Indian restauranteurs are heavily investing in latest technology solutions to increase efficiency of operations and reduce errors and wastage By Rituparna Chatterjee
Today, technology has come to play an undeniable role in simplifying our lives. From mobile devices to cloud computing, various technological advances are leaving an impact across different sectors, and the food and restaurant industry is no different. From online table reservations to inventory control, technology is redefining the traditional dining experience making it more systematic, seamless and enjoyable. The need to be competitive in terms of costs and services are driving Indian restauranteurs to adopt the latest technology in the market. Increasingly, large number of restaurants are providing iPads to their guests to order food or pay the bill while wireless headsets are enabling the staff to communicate better, making the entire dining experience run smoother. These advances have served to improve the experience – both for the industry and for the patron. “There are numerous factors for this trend. To begin with, faster, affordable, mobile internet access which has penetrated deep within Tier I and II cities and affordable smart phones keeping people connected through social media and other applications almost 24*7. From having a holistic, seamlessly integrated solution for all activities at the consumer’s end to having reports at the click of a button at the operator’s end, the effectiveness of technology is coming to be explored with every passing minute,” states Zorawar Kalra, founder and managing director, Massive Restaurants. The manpower available today is better equipped to access and use technology provided to them in their working environment, with minimal training time required. “Though modernisation may have started in western countries, today India has the potential to optimally use and even go beyond when it comes to the use and influence of technology in the global food service industry,” predicts Mihir Desai, co-owner, The Bar Stock Exchange and The Big Bang Bar & Cafe.
Improved efficiency
Today, technology has penetrated not only in front of the house but also in backend operations through effective inventory management systems and tracking solutions. “Some of the solutions that we have incorporated are state-of-the-art inventory management and tracking solution to keep a watch on the order and delivery flow of raw materials and ensure that the products are always available across our restaurants. Technology has allowed us to keep a real time track of our stock in hand and helps us to take immediate steps to order more stock just at the right time to ensure continuous supply is maintained, while keeping costs under check, avoiding spoilage/ wastage of raw materials and resources. Effective use of our internal technological set up has increased our efficiency of operations by almost 50 per cent, if not more,” mentions Kalra. Likewise, Sid Hospitality which operates several restaurants under its umbrella like – Lemon Leaf, Pot Pourri, Tight Bar, Soy Street, Aoi – has been using a materials management system to control inventories. “Daily stock taking is a very important method of controlling inventories. Various reports are generated to understand data like dishes that are popular, what is recommended by wait staff, items that aren’t available, etc,” opines Chef Mitesh Rangras, co-director, Sid Hospitality.
Even Silver Beach Hospitality, which operates restaurants like Nom Nom, Silver Beach Cafe, Treesome Cafe, Copa, has upgraded its software and has got everything in sync including the billing, so the inventory in is directly co-related to the inventory out. “This saves us all the time and money on loss and wastage,” states Hitesh Keswani, owner, Silver Beach Hospitality. As for The Bar Stock Exchange and The Big Bang Bar & Cafe, they have a custom app in place for smart phones for their client and a different version for their staff. These apps are used to place orders which are routed through their servers and order slips are printed in respective sections (kitchen/bar/grill, etc). This reduces the overall time, for placement of order by client, submission of the order to the cashier and kitchen by the waiter. Also, when a client has the app on the phone they don’t have to depend or wait for a member of the staff for the menu or to place the order. The digital records created by this ordering process are accurate and streamlines their inventory consumptions which can be accessed through their customised software. “Through technology there has been a notable reduction in errors and wastage, about 63 per cent and going even further up. This in turn has boosted our revenues by an estimated 23 per cent,” boasts Desai.
Cost factor
Today, restauranteurs are investing heavily to adopt the latest technology in the market. Various factors such as location of the restaurant, type of cuisine and format of the restaurant, etc help determine the technology investment cost. For instance, Massive Restaurants invests approximately 12-18 per cent of its total budget in setting up effective solutions for the smooth operation of each unit. While Sid Hospitality invests an average of Rs one-two lakh per annum for each outlet and Silver Beach Hospitality allots an average of Rs 10-15 lakh for technology in every restaurant depending upon its size. As for The Bar Stock Exchange and The Big Bang Bar & Cafe, Desai opines, “The average amount of investment made for equipping the outlet with the latest technology is approximately 20 per cent of the initial capital investment. This includes only the initial setup cost of white goods and deployment of software solutions. A further cost of 15 per cent of initial investment is spent for maintenance and ancillary services on a yearly basis. The frequency of upgrades depends on the frequency of increase in requirement of data or the speed at which the data needs to be shared or transferred.”
Tech next
Though iPads and wireless headsets are the current fad, what are the technologies expected to enter the India market that will define future dining experience? “There are multiple innovations which we shall see taking prominence, for example electronic ordering through handheld devices, one click ordering using applications for home delivery system or pre-ordering a dine-in meal using an application. There are multiple ideations being worked upon, however we need to see the feasibility of these in the Indian scenario and take an educated call if so much use of technology is actually going to benefit the business,” suggests Kalra. Giving his perspective, Desai states, “Ordering and payment by NFC enabled phones, using QR codes to get details or trivia about dishes and beverages, etc will drive this trend even further, optimising the speed at which everything is processed and also increasing the engagement and interaction with your clients leading to a whole new way of marketing your brand.”
However, there still needs to be a personalised touch in the dining experience believes Keswani. “I feel this overall growth of technology will result in lack of personalised service and the human touch that is of sheer importance in the hospitality industry. My company and I firmly believe in making our services as personalised as possible,” concludes Keswani.