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A how-to guide to get the most out of your restaurant tech stack

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Endless stacks of paper, jumbled spreadsheets, and unsorted invoices—these once-common unpleasant features of the restaurant industry can be maddening as well as inefficient. Luckily, we’re at the point where much of the number-crunching in the restaurant industry can be automated, as management tools in the form of restaurant technology are now widely available. A well-organized restaurant tech stack can make life as a restaurant owner significantly easier than in the past, helping streamline operations and ensure data-driven decision-making.

However, keeping a restaurant tech stack organized is a challenge, as the growing amount of technology often leaves you with redundant tools, bottlenecks in data flow, and added training needs.

Keeping your tech stack organized can provide significant returns on both the time and money invested. Restaurant operations that rely on integrated platforms tend to have smoother workflows, allowing staff to focus on delivering a great customer experience. Follow along with this step-by-step guide to learn how you can get the most out of your restaurant’s tech stack.

1. Inventory your current restaurant tech stack

Restaurant staff reviewing the point-of-sale system together.

The first step toward operational efficiency with your restaurant technology is to take inventory and compile a list of all the tools and platforms your restaurant is using. Consider the following:

To start, group the tech you’re using by where it’s used in the restaurant, e.g., front-of-house (FOH) or back-of-house (BOH). Identify who uses what tool, how often they use it, and what specifically they use it for. For example, servers use the POS system throughout their shifts, the manager or restaurant owner uses the staffing software weekly, and the kitchen manager or head chef operates the inventory management system daily.

Ask the following questions about your restaurant tech stack:

  1. Are there tech tools that serve similar purposes?
  2. Are any of the tools underused or rarely used?
  3. Are there any processes that can be automated with tech solutions?

2. Assess tech stack costs

Once you’ve identified all the tools you use and how you use them, take a look at their financial impact. Start by calculating your total spend on software:

  • Subscription fees (both monthly and annually)
  • Transaction fees (e.g., per-order fees for third-party delivery platforms)
  • Hardware costs 
  • Maintenance/support costs

Compare these costs to the value you’re getting out of them to identify their impact on profitability. Are deliveries via third-party apps profitable, for example? Is your reservation system helping drive reservations while improving customer satisfaction?

Remember to watch out for hidden costs as well. Training time, downtime due to upgrades or technical problems, or integration fees can all add up as indirect expenses.

Ask yourself the following questions about costs:

  1. How much are you paying for platforms with overlapping capabilities?
  2. Do you have any expensive tech that’s not providing enough value?
  3. Can you switch to more cost-effective plans for some software or negotiate better prices with software providers?

3. Evaluate data flows

Smiling restaurant manager holding a tablet.

Having a clear understanding of where data comes from and where it goes helps to identify which tools are punching above their weight in value and which cause inefficiencies or bottlenecks. Start with these steps:

  • Create a map of data flows: Trace how data moves between your systems, e.g., from your online reservation platform to your CRM or from your POS system to your kitchen display system (KDS).
  • Look for integrations: Mark which platforms integrate natively with others, which require third-party systems to integrate, or which don’t integrate at all.
  • Look for bottlenecks: Anywhere there’s manual or duplicate data entry is a sign of inefficiency and should be addressed. Similarly, look for systems that don’t work well with each other.

Questions to ask about data flows:

  1. Are there systems that don’t integrate and instead require manual workarounds?
  2. Do integration problems cause delays in service or errors, like preventing real-time inventory stock level updates?
  3. Is customer data like orders or reservations held in individual systems, or is it shared across platforms?

4. Spot redundancies

Where there are redundancies, there are opportunities to reduce your restaurant management software and simplify operations. Track redundancies by:

  • Comparing features: Cross-reference features in your technology solutions, and look for duplicate tools, like multiple platforms offering reservation management.
  • Look for staff usage overlap: If you find staff are using multiple tools for the same task, there’s waste to be cut.
  • Prioritize multi-function software: Look to tools like Yelp Guest Manager that can handle multiple functions, like reservations, waitlists, and guest management.

Questions to ask about redundancy:

  1. Are you using multiple restaurant management tools for the same function, like separate loyalty and CRM systems?
  2. Can a single tech solution replace two or more tools without losing functionality?
  3. Are there paid tools that can be retired without negatively affecting restaurant operations?

5. Consolidate your restaurant tech stack

restaurant manager holds a tablet in the foreground with the kitchen team working in the background.

Once you’ve identified costs, data flows, and redundancies, begin to consolidate your restaurant tech stack where possible. Combining multiple functions into one place prevents context switching, making workflows more efficient. Studies show that switching between two tasks can eat up 20% of productive time, and up to 40% for three tasks. Swapping to an all-in-one platform like Yelp Guest Manager means more time to concentrate.

Why consolidate? Look to the following reasons:

  • Cost savings from consolidated restaurant software are a benefit of having fewer subscriptions and transaction fees.
  • Simplified operations lead to less training and fewer systems for staff to learn.
  • Better data flows mean data is all in one place, reducing errors and helping optimize decision-making.
  • Improved customer experience from consolidation leads to more consistent experiences, like having reservations and orders all in one place.

Preparing to consolidate

Get all your ducks in a row before consolidating to help create a smoother transition toward a better-organized tech stack.

Start by prioritizing all-in-one platforms like Yelp Guest Manager, which combines FOH operations with customer engagement. This program offers:

  • Reservation and waitlist management, automating most reservations and eliminating the need for multiple platforms.
  • Guest management, tracking customer preferences and storing data to identify trends and improve forecasting.
  • Review management, allowing restaurant owners to respond to Yelp reviews directly and keep reputation management all in one place.
  • Integration with key tools—such as popular POS systems, payment processing, loyalty programs, inventory management software, online ordering platforms, and employee scheduling software—eliminates data silos and keeps information organized.

In addition to switching to all-in-one platforms where possible, consider eliminating others when it makes sense. For example, if you’re on multiple online delivery platforms, identify which drives the most sales and get rid of the others as an additional way to streamline operations.

Be sure to test your integrations when switching to new systems before going live with the service. Host mock services where staff can test the new systems to see how well the consolidated programs perform under pressure.

Questions to ask when consolidating:

  1. Can a single platform like Yelp Guest Manager replace previously separate reservation, waitlist, and table management tools?
  2. Can your POS system replace standalone tools with add-ons or additional features?
  3.  Can free or low-cost tools take the place of paid tools?

6. Transition to your new restaurant tech stack

There’s always a learning curve when implementing new processes in the restaurant business, so you’ll want to set aside time for training and tweaks. Start by creating a transition plan that includes the following steps:

  • Set a timeline for implementing new platforms, like Yelp Guest Manager for reservations.
  • Train staff on new systems, and ensure everyone is up to date.
  • Avoid disrupting the customer dining experience, and be mindful of when you plan for the implementation to take place. 

Track your restaurant’s performance after the transition to see how well it’s working. Monitor cost savings from the discontinued platforms, look for improvements in efficiency, and regularly check in with staff for feedback on the new systems.

Conduct a quarterly review of your new tech, with a deep dive on an annual basis to make sure your new systems have truly improved efficiency and that you’re staying on top of any new software features.

Questions to ask when transitioning your restaurant tech stack:

  1. Have you set aside ample time to train staff on your new platforms?
  2. How will you measure the success of your new tech stack?
  3. How will you handle customer communication during the transition, like with updated reservation links or a streamlined ordering process?

7. Make sure your tech stack is customer-friendly

A couple pays for their restaurant meal using a mobile phone.

A solid, effective tech stack should simplify life for both the restaurant and its customers. For example, streamlining the reservation experience for your customers will help drive business while keeping them happy.

Focus your attention on:

  • Streamlining customer interactions: For example, Yelp Guest Manager offers custom booking links you can share on social media, which take customers directly to your reservation page.
  • Centralized customer data: Customer data can help a restaurant make smart menu management decisions, like identifying which dishes are the most popular. Additionally, customer data can lead to an improved dining experience by helping staff better understand customer preferences.
  • Automations and efficiency: Hardware like Yelp Kiosk can ease the workload at the hostess stand by speeding up the seating process, reducing wait times for guests and the stress of your staff. With tableside contactless payments, waitstaff can benefit from fewer trips to the payment terminal, giving them time to better focus on their customer service skills. Reservation tools make communication easy as well: Yelp Waitlist quotes wait times with up to 92% accuracy and automatically shares them with customers, both via the app and through Yelp Kiosk.

Questions to ask about customer-friendly tech:

  1. Does your restaurant tech stack offer a seamless experience for customers, like having the ability to make reservations and check reviews via the Yelp mobile app?
  2. Are you using customer data to encourage repeat visits by improving the experience?
  3. Are you leveraging platforms like Yelp to boost your online visibility via reviews and promotions?

Make Yelp Guest Manager the crown jewel of your restaurant tech stack

After a thorough review of your restaurant tech—considering features, costs, data flows, and redundancies—you may find that Yelp Guest Manager is the right tech solution for your business. Its user-friendly reservation and waitlist management features eliminate the need for manual data entry, while its fully customizable table management software allows your servers to focus on the important things, like customer experience. The guest data it collects and stores backs your decision-making with real insights, while integrations with POS systems, inventory management systems, and much more mean all your tools are neatly organized.

Interested in saving time, effort, and money? Reach out to us for a free demo, and discover which systems could be streamlined into a single system to help your business. When your restaurant tech stack works, you can focus on the human side of the business and optimize the guest experience.