The COVID-19 pandemic has launched new restaurant trends into prominence. Digital solutions took off this past year as customers looked for alternatives to dining out. From takeout and delivery services, to brand new devices like Self-Service Kiosks, restaurants are changing to meet the growing prevalence of contact-free technology.
How can your food service business support contactless, off-premise dining?
3 Digital Restaurants to Inspire Your Brand
1. Taco Bell
Big chain restaurants are often at the forefront of change. Last year, this famous QSR decided to roll out two locations with a new concept: Taco Bell Go Mobile. With stores roughly half the size of a typical venue, these contact-free alternatives will have a traditional drive thru line as well as a priority lane for people who ordered ahead through the Taco Bell mobile app. Guests can also retrieve to-go orders inside from a designated, safe area.
Contactless ordering is also a newfound priority for many businesses. Taco Bell Go Mobile integrates smart kitchen technology to give staff a heads up when customers arrive so they can direct them to the parking area for curbside service. There, a worker brings the food out in a contactless exchange. With Taco Bell Go Mobile, customers choose how to retrieve their food but can earn extra loyalty points if they use the pickup method that Taco Bell suggests.
2. Chipotle
This popular chain made headlines during the pandemic when they opened their first completely digital store in Highland Falls, New York. With no dining room and no queues, they eliminated a significant part of the physical store. This lets them expand to cities where rent is too high to adequately turn a profit with sit-down seating. Chipotle’s digital sales tripled toward the end of 2020, so it made sense to shift their priorities toward what people seemed to care about.
Customers order in advance through the app, website or third party platform. Then they go either to the dedicated pickup area or a special waiting area if their orders aren’t ready when they arrive. This Chipotle still accepts catering requests as well to facilitate your sit-down event. Whatever off-premise order you want to make, fully digital stores are ready to serve you.
3. Burger King
Another household name that’s recently tested the waters of contact-free, off-premise dining solutions is this popular burger chain. These all-digital venues will roll out in Miami and outside the United States this year. They’re 60% smaller than their average stores and completely touch-free. Customers can pick up mobile orders inside, retrieving their meals from lockers so they don’t come in contact with the staff. Unlike Taco Bell and Chipotle, these venues will also still offer sit-down areas outside where there’s a lower risk of infection.
For those who would rather enjoy meals at home, Burger King will also have a dedicated area for curbside pickup where couriers bring the food out to their cars. Double and even triple drive-thru lanes will speed up the line, especially now that more people will use them. They can watch the cooks work in the kitchen that’s suspended over the drive-thru lanes, and then a conveyor belt delivers orders to the right cars. It’s truly an innovative time for contact-free dining.
Burger King will open a new drive-in area, too. For those that want to stay and enjoy their food while it’s fresh, they can park, scan a QR code and Burger King will deliver the meal to their cars right there.
Digital Solutions for You
Your restaurant doesn’t have to go completely contact-free, but if you’re looking for ways to capitalize on the off-premise ordering trend, then consider digital solutions like these. Successful restaurants need the flexibility of smart Point of Sale technology that gives them room to grow wherever the market goes.
