Why don't restaurants have electronic reservation systems?

[FearSonic]

Topic title.

Just wondering, is there anyone who owns or has experience in restaurants and happens to know? I've always been baffled as to why there hasn't already been a system that has been implemented.

[molala]

you mean as in you can make reservation online?

Many restaurants offer this service..

[FearSonic]

you mean as in you can make reservation online?

Many restaurants offer this service..

No, as in a digital representation of tables that their hosts/hostesses can use to easily place people at tables? In any restaurant I've ever been to, it's always pen and paper.

[AcidBomber]

No, as in a digital representation of tables that their hosts/hostesses can use to easily place people at tables? In any restaurant I've ever been to, it's always pen and paper.


if you mean those touch screen monitors, they do that at TenRen haha... hmmm where else... places like Swiss Chalet is digitalized too?

[FearSonic]

if you mean those touch screen monitors, they do that at TenRen haha... hmmm where else... places like Swiss Chalet is digitalized too?

Are you talking about the seating system or the ordering system? When I worked at Red Lobster, we had touch screen ordering systems but the reservation systems were pen and paper!

[molala]

but why do they need an electronic system when pen and paper can do the same thing?

not many restaurants has a lot of reservations on a daily basis...pen and paper would be more cost efficient

[mic2074]

think the main reason they don't use electronic reservation or seating is that almost all restuarant have their tables moveable so that they can config it to which ever they like to suit the situation... ie, if there's a party of 6, and they have 1 table for 4 and 1 table for 2 available side by side, then they move it together... and on pen and paper, they can easily cross that one table out - whereas, with electronic system, it might not be that easy... grant it, there are very sophisticated software out there that can do this - but probably very costly for a restaurant to have it customized to their restaurants layout.

[netwise]

It's also not really a problem that needs a solution.

The similar systems I can think of are for things like hair salons, dentists, etc, where they want to remember the customers/patients, who they see, what work they've had, when they want to rebook, if they need to be called, etc, etc. In the case of a resturaunt, mostly that information isn't of a lot of value (though, I could see it becoming that way), as you don't have repeat advance bookings (usually), they don't need to sit in the same spot, it doesn't matter who their server is, and what they get to eat depends largely on their mood or who they're with rather than "the usual" or "the check up" or whatever.

I work in IT, and I gotta say - sometimes, the paper/pen really IS the best answer :) If it's not broke, why spend money fixing it, on the software, hardware, consultants, support, troubleshooting, etc.