My Way Eateries

Sunday morning, a friend and I shared our mostly weekly breakfast chat at Denny’s and yesterday, another friend and I enjoyed lunch at Baker’s Square before she heads off for her first day of a new school year and I enjoy my actual first day of not returning to work. At both restaurants, it struck me how inefficient the process of ordering is, even with a really complete menu, perhaps because the process is server-driven, rather than customer friendly.

My brain popped into gear and imagined a restaurant with a hand-held menu similar to a PalmPilot. The newly-seated customer would send an initial beverage request directly to the kitchen or bar, where it would be filled and delivered by the server. My experience this weekend was waiting for the server to get “a round tuitt” and include our table in the multiple meaningless tasks being performed in the restaurant. The time spent sitting in the seat with no food, no beverage, and no server in sight ties up a table for longer than the turn-around time could be in a busy restaurant.

When placing an order, the server either has to commit to memory or write on a pad what each patron wants, how they want it, and in what order. It would be so much easier for the diner to program that information into a hand-held, print out a receipt much like a gas station receipt, and then wait for the order to be delivered. There is no need for me to read the menu, make menu decisions that I then relate to the server, then sit back and wait to see if my order is going to be my way or what the server brings to the table.

A hand-held device could tell me what choices are available and I could make my own meal from the git-go. The menu could be by the item or by the meal, with pictures of the dishes part of the menu listing. If I want a hamburger, I could begin with the choice of bun, the size/doneness of the burger patty, and then the add-ons, such as lettuce, tomato, onion, sauce, and so on. Instead of the requisite fries, the hand-held menu would tell me the choices I have for a side dish. I could describe my perfect salad and select my dressing directly. If I need a beverage refill, I could send that request without going through the gymnastics required to catch the eye of the person who came to my table but has not returned since I was seated.

I have come to learn that there is a reason the employees of a restaurant are called “wait staff,” but it’s not part of the process I enjoy, especially when the wait often culminates in an incorrect order. Programming the order myself can be easier and more accurate than going through a third party to the kitchen staff. If I’ve completed the ordering process, the server can serve my order and fulfill the job description for which (s)he was hired.

The same hand-held can probably also total the bill, suggest a tip strategy, and alert the server to come by and pick up my payment method. I hate just sitting there after finishing my meal, sitting there with nothing to do, waiting for the server to notice that I’m ready to depart—but cannot do so until I have the check. Believe me, that wait time does NOT add to the tip!

Yeah, it’d be great if the hand-held had the option of reading my credit card, but in this day and age, that enhancement would probably do more for credit card and identity theft than it would for the payment process.

So, it’s time for a chain of My Way eateries, restaurants that are embedded in the 21st Century and electronically focused on providing better customer service. Believe me, I’d be the first in line to order my meal!