Restaurant POS: Looking for the right Software and Hardware?

Aug. 3, 2009 - PRLog -- Restaurant POS Software and Hardware

Back to the basics of running a success restaurant: good location, good food, good service. These days, there's another important consideration: a reliable software to run your restaurant POS system.

Even though physical components like the monitors and computers are the most visible, the software is the heart of the POS system. Doing a careful evaluation of restaurant POS software is key to getting a system that will greatly satisfy both your staff and customers.

What to look for in restaurant software
First of all, identify your needs, know exactly what task you want to be done using a software. Any reasonable restaurant software can handle checks by diner or table, track orders per server, move diners from the bar to a table, manage waiting lists and reservations, and more.

Once you're satisfied that a particular piece of restaurant software can meet your basic requirements, try it yourself to see how easy it is to use. Even though there would be a learning curve for your staff when you purchase a new POS system, and since a POS software is easy to learn and navigate it can save you time on staff training.

You may have a couple of your staff to accompany you in the evaluation of the software while testing it. They'll be able to try out the kinds of oddball situations and changes that can cause problems with some software.

   * Security – you may need to create accounts for each employee for safety reasons. You should be able to limit access to sensitive reports and functions (such as comping meals) to managers, if desired.
   * Flexibility – servers should be able to manipulate checks to match the whims of your patrons: easily splitting checks and tracking special orders, for example.
   * Reporting – one the main advantages of restaurant software for owners and managers is the detailed reporting available. So you better make sure the software you choose gets detailed information either per check, per server, or overall, ranging from daily to annually.
   * Multiple location support – if applicable, make sure that your POS system is able to track and record on multiple locations, including local differences in staffing and pricing.

What to look for in a hardware
Of course you'll need to invest in restaurant POS hardware as well: computers to run the restaurant software on, touch-screen displays for servers to enter order, and printers to produce order slips for the kitchen. The software will use will dictate any special hardware requirements – The only big deicision with it comes to using hardware is how many will you need.

Ready to start contacting restaurant software vendors? Find more information at POS-For-Restaurants.com and you will be assured of receiving free unbiased quotes from the Restaurant POS professionals serving your area.

For more information on restaurant POS software and hardware or to have a local POS professional serving the restaurant industry, you may visit http://pos-for-restaurants.com

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