Kitchen Display Systems (KDS) are an ordering and information system display in the kitchen backend to increase restaurant efficiency. Kitchen Display Systems are becoming increasingly necessary and famous for modern restaurants, especially quick-service restaurants whose business model works around giving prompt services to customers. The KDS system is integrated with a cloud-based POS technology due to which it works remotely, and displays orders to be prepared as they are fed in the POS software. This reduces both staff effort and the chances of manual error by automating the entire process. This article will tell you why the Kitchen Display System has become the need of the hour in modern restaurant kitchens.
Why Do You Need POS Integrated Kitchen Display Systems For Your Restaurant Kitchen
The Point of Sale software, when equipped with a Kitchen Display Systems, can honestly work wonders for your restaurant. This integration is what enables orders placed in the POS to automatically get updated in the KDS systems and displayed to the kitchen staff. Some advantages of having a POS integrated Kitchen Display System are:-
- It also allows online orders to integrate into the restaurant operations fully, so that they do not require additional staff or re-entering in the POS.
- If you have an iPad POS/tablet POS or a mobile phone-POS, you can directly take orders from customers from their table, and it will get updated in the KDS, which will save a significant amount of time and boost efficiency.
- With access to a mobile POS, the service staff can be updated as soon as the orders are prepared, which would ensure that food is served right after it is ready.
Now that you know the advantages that KDS systems come with, it is time to look at how it boosts your restaurant’s profits.
How Kitchen Display Systems Improve Restaurant Operations
Let us discuss the ways a Restaurant Kitchen System improves restaurant operations and lead to greater business success.
1. Increased Service Speed And Efficiency
Restaurant kitchens are one of the busiest places, with everyone rushing to get their work done. It should not be surprising if the handwritten ticket orders are lost or damaged due to spills and splatters or rendered illegible because of the handwriting. This can eventually lead to nightmarish order inaccuracies.
A KDS puts an end to all such problems by showcasing details of all the orders on a bright, easy-to-read, extensive display system that also serves as a central repository. Everything that the food preparation staff needs to know about meal preparation, including restrictive ingredients (if any) or other specific preferences.
Also, it keeps a real-time track of the change in orders and additions. All changes are reported to the kitchen staff as soon as the customer requests them. With this, instead of waiting for the service staff to get the order details, the preparation staff can begin working on their food preparation as soon as order details are notified at the display system.
Restaurant kitchen systems track the time it takes to prepare an order and expedited to the table, making the staff aware of how long the order is taking to process and helps them to increase their efficiency and speed accordingly.
2. Improved Inventory Management And Waste Control
Kitchen Display Systems or KDS systems also help to reduce wastage at your restaurant, which eventually reduces the overall food costs. A discrepancy in order taking by the waiter, or mixing up of orders is one of the significant causes of food wastage in restaurants. The POS integrated KDS eliminates such confusion and reduces food wastage significantly.
Integrated with a smart restaurant POS, the display screen automatically monitors order volume and inventory levels, alerting you when quantities become low, ensuring that the stock in the inventory is replenished accordingly. This prevents inaccurate or delayed orders due to the lack of required ingredients that force the preparation staff to improvise orders against the preference of customers and creates preparation easy.
Read this article to get better control over your Restaurant Inventory.
Apart from being environmentally friendly by eliminating the use of paper for kitchen orders, it contributes to food wastages that occur due to erroneous communications between the preparation and serving staff.
3. Better Customer Service
Enhanced accuracy and service speed provides an excellent experience for customers. The foodservice industry is quite literally based on customer service and the quality of service that you provide breaks or makes your business. A KDS positively transforms a restaurant’s overall performance and contributes significantly to customer service.
Because the service staff no longer needs to make trips to the kitchen to pass the orders, they can tend to ore tables and provide better customer service. On the other hand, the kitchen staff will be able to see what different order sequences and requirements are and work at their speed.
With lesser hassles and confusion in the kitchen backend, even the service staff can extend excellent hospitality to the customers. Such high caliber service provides an exceptional customer experience, which leads to increased sales and profits, and of course, loyal customers.
4. Complete Tracking Of Orders And Detailed Reporting
The KDS screen displays the time it will take for your kitchen staff to complete a ticket (order). If you are equipped with a POS system that offers reports and analytics, you can get access to tremendous data that can help you improve your overall restaurant operations.
With this information, restaurateurs and managers can keep a check on the average time taken for a particular meal to be prepared as well as the average time it takes for orders to get processed. This helps to focus on the key areas that need improvements and also enables you to categorize your preparation staff into the most efficient ones and ones that need additional training for better performance.
They can then optimize labor by comparing the speed of service data against the revenue generated. This will allow determining whether increased sales are turning into profit or being lost to operational inefficiencies.
Read more about the importance of Mobile Reporting and analytics in restaurants here.
The restaurant industry revolves around efficiency and accuracy, and Kitchen Display Systems or restaurant kitchen systems possess proven to be of tremendous value for restaurants, replacing paper tickets and kitchen printers. The operational advantages of a touch-screen display system are vast, and they also counter restaurant wastage and give a great customer experience with better kitchen coordination and management.
