How Can Restaurants Capitalize on Digital Orders?

Acceleration of restaurant technology adoption isn’t slowing down. The rush to adapt during the pandemic is still occurring, with new guest expectations and operational workflows. So, how is technology solving the restaurant industry’s biggest challenges? The Main Course host Barbara Castiglia spoke with Steve Simoni, CEO of Bbot, on the topic. Simoni described the company’s evolution, “My co-founders and I were nuclear engineers in the Navy, and we founded Bbot creating ceiling robots bring food and drink to tables. Now we’re an ordering and payment technology for restaurants with software and QR codes.” The company was growing pre-pandemic, but since then, it’s been a 10X increase in customers. Much of that success has to do with the reimagining of QR codes. “Customers can order and pay at the table by scanning, which is helping mitigate labor challenges,” Simoni said. The technology does drive convenience and efficiency. Simoni noted, “You can go from a server model to a floor manager model. You can serve more tables and upsell while customers place digital orders and pay from their own device.” This technology supports a business in many ways, and restaurant owners are embracing lots of applications. However, Simoni said, “What they really want is for everything to integrate.” With this in mind and the evolution of the restaurant industry, Bbot’s next frontier is the customization of QR codes. “There are three ways a QR code can work now—scan for menu, digital orders, or pay the check but order through a server. What’s next for us is allowing restaurants to install different applications to curate the experience. If they can download an app, they can do this in a few easy clicks.”