Top 5 Restaurant Contactless Dining Software 2021–22

Did you know that contactless dining was implemented by a whopping 23% of restaurants in just the third quarter of 2020? This development took place over a very short period and today, contactless dining is becoming a necessity for restaurants all over the world, big and small.

It’s no secret that technology has played a huge role in the restaurant industry to streamline daily operations and improve overall performance over the years. Today, the focus has shifted towards using technology to transform the traditional dining experience associated with ambiance and human interaction to one with minimum touch points and maximum safety.

A survey conducted by Panasonic in 2020 found out that 100% of the foodservice operators agreed that it was an urgent requirement to adopt new tech to fit in with the rising health and safety concerns. 78% further indicated that contactless payments are in high demand today.

A huge number of restaurants have taken these features into account while modifying the online ordering and dining experience. Taco Bell, for instance, has launched its new concept called ‘Taco Bell Go Mobile’ in a bid to enhance contactless curbside pickup. It is designed to let customers pre-order their food and pick up their order from their drive-thru.

Contactless dining is here to stay. Today, it serves as the number one way of letting customers feel safe and looked after. But it can be a little confusing to determine which contactless dining software would work best for your business. To help you out, we’re going to look at the 5 best restaurant contactless dining software that can help you simplify the online ordering process as well as offer a seamless user experience to your customers.

Restolabs

Restolabs was established in 2012 and is one of the most renowned names in the online ordering world. It is a cloud-based software that allows restaurants to receive online orders on their mobile apps or restaurant websites.

Whether you have a restaurant with a strong online presence or are just venturing into online ordering, Restolabs is suitable for restaurants of all sizes. It serves as a great option for any food establishments looking to launch online ordering without a hefty investment.

It has various features that can make contactless dining as simple as possible. For starters, it offers a contactless menu to customers that supports all sales channels — dining, delivery, curbside, and takeaway. The QR technology used in this system allows for seamless integration and communication between the customers and the kitchen staff. All orders placed by customers using Contactless Dining can be accessed by the kitchen in real-time with up-to-date instructions. But that’s not all restaurants get to access real-time analytics that can help assess performance, as well as personalize customer experience for the next visit.

Another major advantage offered by Restolabs is that restaurants can customize their QR Menu to suit their brand identity so customers can connect with the brand at all touchpoints despite being served without any human interaction.

All in all, Restolabs’ wide array of features work together to help restaurants create a winning system for online ordering and contactless dining. It’s easy to use and offers dedicated support. Subscription starts at $45 per month with a free trial for 2 months, which is great value for money taking into account the plethora of features available.

Tasti

Tasti is another cost-effective contactless dining software that restaurants can benefit from in the next normal. If you’re venturing into the restaurant business or planning to pivot to meet the demands of the current market, they can help you transform your restaurant menu into a user-friendly online ordering website with a branded menu. They’ve designed their contactless solutions keeping in mind maximum convenience for customers and higher safety.

Tasti offers scan, order, and payment solutions that can eliminate the need for human contact at the restaurant. You also have upselling and other cross-selling tools to increase order size. For promotions, there are unlimited coupon codes generated. Order details related to status and payment summary are sent to customers via SMS.

Tasti’s software can be used easily by chain restaurants with multiple outlets as well. They offer a ‘Freemium Plan’, which is a contactless dining solution designed specifically for small to medium-sized restaurants that receive less than 500 orders per month. It is available for free, an attempt by Tasti to help restaurants get back on their feet during the aftermath of the pandemic.

Presto

Presto came up with the ‘Presto Contactless Kit’ to help restaurants reopen during the pandemic. Its goal is to help restaurants offer a complete contactless experience to customers. With Presto, restaurants can feature QR codes on each table. Customers place orders directly in their browsers and these get sent to the restaurant’s POS system. Customers can also split the bill and give instant feedback from their table.

Presto provides customers with a virtual waitlist experience, which can be a boon when dining out. Based on customer profiles, it also sends out targeted promotions, to bring back customers. Similarly, there is easy loyalty program integration that can offer rewards to customers on repeat visits.

There is a free trial available for the contactless kit. However, the downside is that spots for this trial are limited and subject to availability.

MiSelf

MiSelf is a contactless dining solution by Possier, a restaurant management system. Like its counterparts, MiSelf lets customers scan QR codes to place orders from an E-menu and offers the flexibility of add-ons with each order, as well as an option to add a note for customization.

A major advantage of using MiSelf is how easy it is to make menu changes. For instance, a chain restaurant with different outlets can make price changes in the digital menu, reflecting immediately across all outlets.

Payments are made directly on the restaurant app as well. There is also the option of in-store promotions on the contactless ordering platform, which can be personalized easily. Pricing varies from restaurant to restaurant, depending on the scale of operations.

OneDine

OneDine’s contactless dining software encourages restaurants to move away from traditional menus to a more digitally enhanced user experience. They provide restaurants with mobile menu browsing that customers can make use of to place their orders for dining as well as food delivery.

There is the option to “call a server” if a customer needs help. The menu also offers filters to display menu items suited to customers’ dietary preferences. While scrolling through the menu, one can add items to “favorites” to narrow down their options easily before making a final decision.

It uses PurePay technology for payment, which permits customers to make payments by using an SMS link or scanning a QR code. It can be integrated seamlessly with a restaurant’s existing portal but it might require some hardware investment. The website doesn’t disclose their pricing or setup fee, but the same can be found out by signing up for a demo.

Contactless dining has become a tool that every restaurant needs to add to its arsenal soon. Various tools in this domain pop up now and then, and your contactless dining software needs to integrate these novel developments.

There is a wide range of options in the market for you to choose from. Before you commit to one, make sure you’ve checked multiple reviews, taken different demos, found out about the onboarding process and whether the software can be accessed through different devices. What works for another restaurant might not work for you, so take your time with research to ascertain which contactless dining software is the right fit for your restaurant.