iMenus
by Scott Hardie on November 3, 2012
I think we just experienced the future of restaurants. I thought that once before, and it turned out to be true, but in that case the trend was years late coming to Sarasota after large cultural centers like New York and Los Angeles. We might be a few years behind on this new trend as well, but I still see it becoming commonplace.
The restaurant we tried a few nights ago was Carmel Cafe. The food was ok. The service was mixed. What set it apart was the ordering experience. Each table receives two iPads loaded with interactive menus, featuring full photos and descriptions of every dish and drink. When you want something, you select it on the iPad and the kitchen gets to work. You can order a batch of items at once, like desserts all around, or just one item if you like. A few minutes later, the food shows up at your table. You can view your ongoing check at any time, and pay the bill directly on the iPad when you're done. A waitress still stops by your table every few minutes in case you need anything.
Interacting with a glowing screen instead of a menu or a human server was not especially noteworthy, but the option to order your meal in parts, when you want each part, really made a difference. The occasion for our meal was both a birthday celebration and the last time we would share our engagement with someone new in person, so we really wanted extra time to converse at the table without interruption. The format gave us that. It also helped us take more control of our meal: When Kelly changed her mind on a drink, a new one showed up a few minutes later. When my entree proved unsatisfying, a side dish showed up a few minutes later. This was a great way to dine.
I can see this format working especially well in two kinds of restaurants: Hang-out joints like Denny's and Steak 'n Shake where large groups of young people gather for hours to chat and occasionally order something, and places where tiny portions are the norm like sushi bars and tapas bars where you might want to order a series of small dishes. Our local Denny's already has a doorbell-like button you can press at your table to summon a waiter any time (a feature conspicuously missing from Carmel's iPad), so they've already taken one step in this direction.
There are tangential benefits to the interactive menus, too: Run out of a particular item? Just take it off the menu, or post a "sold out" notice that prevents people from ordering it. Need to clear your supply of an overstocked item in a hurry before another shipment arrives? Just reduce the price and declare it a sale item, instantly. There's potential for prankster kids with programming skills to tamper with your menus, but you could always keep paper menus on hand as a backup.
Though the iPads would probably pay for themselves over the long run because of reduced labor costs, they would still represent a large up-front investment and make a restaurant even less likely to succeed. I wouldn't want to open a new restaurant with the iPad menus, but I sure do want to eat at more restaurants using them.
Logical Operator
The creator of Funeratic, Scott Hardie, blogs about running this site, losing weight, and other passions including his wife Kelly, his friends, movies, gaming, and Florida. Read more »
Scott's Pet Peeve #8446
Not all mobile phones mix a qwerty keypad with their main numerical keypad, but I have an old Blackberry that does. That makes me especially frustrated by companies that only provide a letter-based phone number without showing a numerical alternative (800-LIKE-THIS). I just went to cancel Nutrisystem, and of course they require you to call a counselor rather than just cancel online, and the only number they give is 888-459-THIN. Go »New Neighbors Upstairs
STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP... Go »At Least It's Better Than Bra
You know what sucks, bro? Reading this article a couple of times and later discovering that "bro" has leaked into your everyday speech. Go »The Little Ship
Our cat Sweetie Pie passed away in her sleep on Thursday night after a very long illness. We don't know how old she was -- she was my mother's cat before mine, and my grandmother's cat before that, and belonged to some other lady in my grandmother's nursing home before then. We have that stranger to thank for giving her the old-fashioned name, but it was appropriate: Sweetie Pie was a friendly cat, who was happy when company came over (especially if they fed her treats!) Go »Crying in Baseball
Kelly and I won tickets to see a Tampa Bay Rays game in a deluxe suite last night. We've been excited about it for weeks, looking forward to a good game, good seats, and good food, all paid except the parking. What we got was a let-down. Go »
