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I hate QR code menus as they are often poorly implemented. However, I just experienced a QR code check for the first time. That was really nice .. I scanned

I hate QR code menus as they are often poorly implemented. However, I just experienced a QR code check for the first time. That was really nice .. I scanned the QR code with my iPhone, it downloaded the Toast "app clip", which allowed me to pay the bill with Apple Pay. It was totally seamless and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned.

dmitriid 4y ago
> It was totally seamless and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned. In most countries I've been the waiter brings the PoS terminal to you and you pay at the table.
- reaperducer 4y ago
  In most countries I've been the waiter brings the PoS terminal to you and you pay at the table. We've had this in America for over a decade at big chain suburban restaurants like Ruby Tuesday's and Applebees.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - motoxpro 4y ago
    He means most countries that are not the USA. Haven't been to Applebees in ~5 years or so but they didn't do it then either. USA doesn't bring you a terminal on average. I travel around the world for work and my experience is that most countries outside the USA do. Ah, you edited your response. Mine still is valid I guess.
    - reaperducer 4y ago
      Haven't been to Applebees in ~5 years or so but they didn't do it then either. Must have been the Applebees that you went to. I went to one in 2014 that brought the POS to the table. I remember the year because it was in a state that I've only been to once, for a business trip.
      - jakear 4y ago
        Beat middle class restaurants tend to use tableside POS systems. Applebees, Chili’s, Rock Lobster, Outback, etc etc. I understand them and love them for what they are, but it always feels jank to have to deal with a computer when I’m out for dinner. I’d pay more to not have to do that, which is the experience higher end restaurants provide. I don’t have a computer screen in my car for the same reason. Software engineers tend to produce shit tier user experiences. (Speaking as one)
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
- vasco 4y ago
  I've only seen this madness in the US. The first time they took my card away from my sight I went with them to see what the heck they were doing. Crazy system, unsafe for no reason, they can bring terminal to you in the same amount of time, no signatures needed either. All of Europe works as you described, few countries in Africa I've been in the same, I wonder how it came to be like this in the US.
  - ryanschneider 4y ago
    > I wonder how it came to be like this in the US. Before credit cards were handled electronically the server used to have to use one of these to make a carbon paper imprint of your card: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_card_imprinter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_card_imprinter While they a weren’t _huge_ they weren’t very easy to bring to the table and use, so I imagine we just got used to the experience of the server running off with our card. In wasn’t until the pandemic that I noticed most restaurants using handheld terminals.
    - erik_seaberg 4y ago
      In 2005 we were still using knuckle busters with airport shuttle customers who didn’t prepay. Also alpha pagers, VHF radios, and Thomas Guide paper maps. I have to admit they were all reliable out in the middle of nowhere.
    - sircastor 4y ago
      I actually used one of these at an Apple Store a several years ago because their payment processing was down. I didn’t have a iPhone at the time, so the alternative was the least-elegant, non-Apple-ish solution ever.
      - brewdad 4y ago
        Even that solution wouldn't work today. My cards are all moving to a smooth surface with the card number printed on the backside. I still have a few cards with the raised numbering but each new replacement card I get, as the old ones expire, is the flat style.
- temporallobe 4y ago
  I think one reason we don’t use those PoS terminals too often in the US is because of tipping culture. There is this insane expectation to tip at least 18%, and in fact most receipts have suggestions for 18, 20, and 22%. Any time a server has brought me one of those portable PoS terminals, it felt really awkward, as they stare at me thinking about how much tip I should give for the half-ass snooty service. I imagine many others feel this way, which is probably why it’s not popular. I spend quite a bit of time in Europe and have seen more of the PoS terminals used there, but it makes way more sense because there’s no expectation of a tip.
  - kazamaloo 4y ago
    Flipping that iPad with 20, 22, and 25% tip presets for a takeout really grinds my gears. But even for non-tip services, people tend to use iPhone attachements to scan the card rather than using a POS machine in the US.
  - bruce511 4y ago
    Here we both tip, and use the portable POS. First the check arrives (on paper) and you can check that. At that point you write in the tip amount. 10% is normal. Then the waiter returns with the machine, enters the total (including tip) - you touch your card to the machine (and if the amount is high enough enter a pin.) The waiter does not handle the card. There is no awkwardness at all. I recently joined a newly-arrived US friend at a restaurant, and he paid, but clearly didn't understand the edit-the-bill process, so we tipped in cash then gave quick education. It's a system that works well, is effecient and secure. Overall you stay in control of your card and your card is only processed once.
  - stormbrew 4y ago
    Canada has the same tipping culture as the US and we've had portable PoS systems in restaurants for like 10-15 years now (and I feel like I'm being conservative there). The machine just asks for a tip and lets you put a % or $ amount in, usually with a suggested amount. I'm not sure what difference you perceive here between writing it on a piece of paper and entering it on a terminal.
- TomDavey 4y ago
  I hugely dislike the POS terminal for exactly this reason: "The waiter brings the POS terminal and you pay at the table." The experience I dislike goes like this: The server gives you the hand-held terminal and then stands watching you, tapping his/her foot impatiently, while you hurriedly verify the check, then calculate a tip amount under the server's scrutiny. I guess I'm a wimp. With the server's eyes on me, I feel the pressure to tip generously, no matter how poor the service or the overall experience. By contrast, I find the traditional system, where the server would drop off the paper check for you to examine on your own time, to be private, un-rushed, and less prone to error. After three decades of paying my restaurant checks without a POS terminal, I've never encountered any monkey business during the brief time the server is in possession of my credit card. Is "restaurant credit-card fraud" really a thing?
  - winnie_ua 4y ago
    In my country they bring in the receipt first, and let you take a look at it. Perhaps negotiate with your peers who pays what amount and so one. And than in 10 minutes waiter arrive with hand held POS.
  - lxgr 4y ago
    It does happen, but thanks to the chip rollout, the value of a skimmed magnetic stripe read is falling drastically. No idea if there is non-negligible fraud in the form of staff copying down the card number and security code for online payments fraud, though.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - oneeyedpigeon 4y ago
    Some places, the waiter leaves the POS with you and collects it after a minute. Those are good places.
filoleg 4y ago
Fully agreed on both points. QR code menus 99% of the time just link to the website menu (which existed before the QR code for menus became popular, and is still wack). And it usually sucks just as much as it did before. QR for a check is a beauty. Exact same experience as yours, there is a local restaurant that did it, and I was prepared for the worst. But I scanned the code, it did the Toast app clip, and the entire process was extremely smooth. I went to that restaurant multiple times since then, and I would be lying if I said that the "qr to pay the check using the app clip" didn't at least partially contribute to that.
lxgr 4y ago
I find these extremely annoying: - You need good signal or connect to wi-fi to pay (not a given in many restaurants) - The restaurant can get your email address by default when paying with Apple Pay - Much slower than just tapping my card or phone on the POS Compared to the waiter walking away with my card, handing me a receipt to sign and top to fill in, I kind of understand the trad-off – but at-the-table POS solutions have existed for many years now.
- BHSPitMonkey 4y ago
  It isn't "much slower" when you actually account for the time spent waiting for the server to come around, getting their attention to ask for the check, waiting for them to come back with it, waiting for them to do their lap and come back to collect the card, waiting for them to go run it, and finally waiting for the card to come back.
  - lxgr 4y ago
    No need for the waiter to walk away with my card if they have a mobile POS, as I mentioned above. Tapping my card and selecting a tipping option takes less time than even opening my camera app. Ironically, many of the QR payment places I‘ve been to actually have these as well. I get that jumping from a central POS to a device per waiter is an investment – but why switch to QR codes if all your staff is already equipped with a strictly superior solution?
    - hamandcheese 4y ago
      > if they have a mobile POS That’s a big if in the US.
      - j16sdiz 4y ago
        This is pretty standard in many parts of the world. I just can't understand why wireless credit card payment and mobile pos ain't available in US.
arcanemachiner 4y ago
I like the Binary Eye app. It's open source and comes with a Quick Settings toggle. I wish it was built into the AOSP camera app, but it's not.
zaptrem 4y ago
Coincidentally I encountered this system for the first time last night. Unfortunately it never finished loading and I embarrassingly had to switch to a physical card after stalling for 30 seconds.
agluszak 4y ago
> It was totally seamless and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned In Poland we have Blik[1] for that, it's a national, standard payment process. Works with any bank, in any restaurant, no need to download an app. 1 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blik https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blik
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
sails 4y ago
Agreed, these are great and especially useful at reducing the friction of splitting bills Or if the staff lose interest and you want to leave and keep asking for the bill (seems to happen if you don't order alcohol)
kergonath 4y ago
> It was totally seamless and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned. In the civilised world, we don’t do that. Instead, the waiter brings a terminal to the table, or if they don’t have any, we go pay at the desk. Nobody gives their card to anyone. That is a problem with much better solutions than online-only menus.
- sentientslug 4y ago
  In the United States they never bring the terminal to the table. I remember the first time I went to Canada being surprised when the waitress did that.
  - pm90 4y ago
    Not never, but definitely its the default. I certainly prefer the terminal wherever its offered. If there was a way to avoid that last step, it would probably save restaurants a lot of time. Guests could leave sooner as they wouldn’t have to wait around for payment.
    - lock-the-spock 4y ago
      The alternative is to pay on the way out. Requires a single terminal at the exit (or just anywhere, s.g. at the bar). It works perfectly fine. Cafes and restaurants across Europe do this more or less as the standard, the more fancy ones bring the terminal to the table.
      - vladvasiliu 4y ago
        I don't know about "Europe", but in France it's pretty common to get the terminal at the table, even at "non-fancy" random eateries. Sure, you could pay on the way out, but that's often painful. Many others are having the same idea, so now you have to wait around, lining up in a place that wasn't designed for people to wait around, bothering waiters who need to run around serving clients. It's usually less of a hassle to just wait around at the table for the waiter to bring the terminal to you. My pet peeve with the terminal at the table thing is that, despite card payment being extremely common in my area, the waiter will not bring a terminal over when you ask for the check, you'll have to wait some more.
InCityDreams 4y ago
> and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned. Holy heck! People do still give their credit cards to strangers to dissapear with? I last saw that in the 90's (Europe).
bambax 4y ago
But how does it even work if there are more than one person? Does each person pay for what they order? What if you're inviting someone? Do you have to order in their stead so that their plates show up on your bill? Or can they somehow transfer their orders to your phone? It seems this is a "solution" to a problem that never existed in the first place.
- Woeps 4y ago
  You peeps don't have easy "hey could you pay this amount" apps? Even if the app doesn't have split billing you can still transfer money afterwards
- fphhotchips 4y ago
  Here's how it's implemented on the one that's used pretty much everywhere where I live. Option 1: Everyone orders and pays independently. Website takes payment through all the usual options + Apple/Google pay. So long as the whole table orders within 5 minutes, all the orders come through at once. Option 2: One person sets up a tab, which generates a QR code. The other guests scan that code instead of the one at the table. People can order their own food/drinks as above until the tab owner closes the tab. If you forget to close the tab it closes itself at the close of business.
- bigbacaloa 4y ago
  In Spain it is normal for the terminal to come to the table and the payment gets split up however those at the table like.
SergeAx 4y ago
Young people now never pay with their cards, they are using phones with NFC function. So the POS terminal is brought to the table, because no one will give their unlocked phone to someone to take away)
Handytinge 4y ago
For anyone playing along at home, a "check" is the bill. It took me quite a while to work out who was checking on the QR code.

dmitriid 4y ago

> It was totally seamless and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned. In most countries I've been the waiter brings the PoS terminal to you and you pay at the table.

reaperducer 4y ago
In most countries I've been the waiter brings the PoS terminal to you and you pay at the table. We've had this in America for over a decade at big chain suburban restaurants like Ruby Tuesday's and Applebees.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- motoxpro 4y ago
  He means most countries that are not the USA. Haven't been to Applebees in ~5 years or so but they didn't do it then either. USA doesn't bring you a terminal on average. I travel around the world for work and my experience is that most countries outside the USA do. Ah, you edited your response. Mine still is valid I guess.
  - reaperducer 4y ago
    Haven't been to Applebees in ~5 years or so but they didn't do it then either. Must have been the Applebees that you went to. I went to one in 2014 that brought the POS to the table. I remember the year because it was in a state that I've only been to once, for a business trip.
    - jakear 4y ago
      Beat middle class restaurants tend to use tableside POS systems. Applebees, Chili’s, Rock Lobster, Outback, etc etc. I understand them and love them for what they are, but it always feels jank to have to deal with a computer when I’m out for dinner. I’d pay more to not have to do that, which is the experience higher end restaurants provide. I don’t have a computer screen in my car for the same reason. Software engineers tend to produce shit tier user experiences. (Speaking as one)
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
vasco 4y ago
I've only seen this madness in the US. The first time they took my card away from my sight I went with them to see what the heck they were doing. Crazy system, unsafe for no reason, they can bring terminal to you in the same amount of time, no signatures needed either. All of Europe works as you described, few countries in Africa I've been in the same, I wonder how it came to be like this in the US.
- ryanschneider 4y ago
  > I wonder how it came to be like this in the US. Before credit cards were handled electronically the server used to have to use one of these to make a carbon paper imprint of your card: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_card_imprinter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_card_imprinter While they a weren’t _huge_ they weren’t very easy to bring to the table and use, so I imagine we just got used to the experience of the server running off with our card. In wasn’t until the pandemic that I noticed most restaurants using handheld terminals.
  - erik_seaberg 4y ago
    In 2005 we were still using knuckle busters with airport shuttle customers who didn’t prepay. Also alpha pagers, VHF radios, and Thomas Guide paper maps. I have to admit they were all reliable out in the middle of nowhere.
  - sircastor 4y ago
    I actually used one of these at an Apple Store a several years ago because their payment processing was down. I didn’t have a iPhone at the time, so the alternative was the least-elegant, non-Apple-ish solution ever.
    - brewdad 4y ago
      Even that solution wouldn't work today. My cards are all moving to a smooth surface with the card number printed on the backside. I still have a few cards with the raised numbering but each new replacement card I get, as the old ones expire, is the flat style.
temporallobe 4y ago
I think one reason we don’t use those PoS terminals too often in the US is because of tipping culture. There is this insane expectation to tip at least 18%, and in fact most receipts have suggestions for 18, 20, and 22%. Any time a server has brought me one of those portable PoS terminals, it felt really awkward, as they stare at me thinking about how much tip I should give for the half-ass snooty service. I imagine many others feel this way, which is probably why it’s not popular. I spend quite a bit of time in Europe and have seen more of the PoS terminals used there, but it makes way more sense because there’s no expectation of a tip.
- kazamaloo 4y ago
  Flipping that iPad with 20, 22, and 25% tip presets for a takeout really grinds my gears. But even for non-tip services, people tend to use iPhone attachements to scan the card rather than using a POS machine in the US.
- bruce511 4y ago
  Here we both tip, and use the portable POS. First the check arrives (on paper) and you can check that. At that point you write in the tip amount. 10% is normal. Then the waiter returns with the machine, enters the total (including tip) - you touch your card to the machine (and if the amount is high enough enter a pin.) The waiter does not handle the card. There is no awkwardness at all. I recently joined a newly-arrived US friend at a restaurant, and he paid, but clearly didn't understand the edit-the-bill process, so we tipped in cash then gave quick education. It's a system that works well, is effecient and secure. Overall you stay in control of your card and your card is only processed once.
- stormbrew 4y ago
  Canada has the same tipping culture as the US and we've had portable PoS systems in restaurants for like 10-15 years now (and I feel like I'm being conservative there). The machine just asks for a tip and lets you put a % or $ amount in, usually with a suggested amount. I'm not sure what difference you perceive here between writing it on a piece of paper and entering it on a terminal.
TomDavey 4y ago
I hugely dislike the POS terminal for exactly this reason: "The waiter brings the POS terminal and you pay at the table." The experience I dislike goes like this: The server gives you the hand-held terminal and then stands watching you, tapping his/her foot impatiently, while you hurriedly verify the check, then calculate a tip amount under the server's scrutiny. I guess I'm a wimp. With the server's eyes on me, I feel the pressure to tip generously, no matter how poor the service or the overall experience. By contrast, I find the traditional system, where the server would drop off the paper check for you to examine on your own time, to be private, un-rushed, and less prone to error. After three decades of paying my restaurant checks without a POS terminal, I've never encountered any monkey business during the brief time the server is in possession of my credit card. Is "restaurant credit-card fraud" really a thing?
- winnie_ua 4y ago
  In my country they bring in the receipt first, and let you take a look at it. Perhaps negotiate with your peers who pays what amount and so one. And than in 10 minutes waiter arrive with hand held POS.
- lxgr 4y ago
  It does happen, but thanks to the chip rollout, the value of a skimmed magnetic stripe read is falling drastically. No idea if there is non-negligible fraud in the form of staff copying down the card number and security code for online payments fraud, though.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- oneeyedpigeon 4y ago
  Some places, the waiter leaves the POS with you and collects it after a minute. Those are good places.

filoleg 4y ago

Fully agreed on both points. QR code menus 99% of the time just link to the website menu (which existed before the QR code for menus became popular, and is still wack). And it usually sucks just as much as it did before. QR for a check is a beauty. Exact same experience as yours, there is a local restaurant that did it, and I was prepared for the worst. But I scanned the code, it did the Toast app clip, and the entire process was extremely smooth. I went to that restaurant multiple times since then, and I would be lying if I said that the "qr to pay the check using the app clip" didn't at least partially contribute to that.

lxgr 4y ago

I find these extremely annoying: - You need good signal or connect to wi-fi to pay (not a given in many restaurants) - The restaurant can get your email address by default when paying with Apple Pay - Much slower than just tapping my card or phone on the POS Compared to the waiter walking away with my card, handing me a receipt to sign and top to fill in, I kind of understand the trad-off – but at-the-table POS solutions have existed for many years now.

BHSPitMonkey 4y ago
It isn't "much slower" when you actually account for the time spent waiting for the server to come around, getting their attention to ask for the check, waiting for them to come back with it, waiting for them to do their lap and come back to collect the card, waiting for them to go run it, and finally waiting for the card to come back.
- lxgr 4y ago
  No need for the waiter to walk away with my card if they have a mobile POS, as I mentioned above. Tapping my card and selecting a tipping option takes less time than even opening my camera app. Ironically, many of the QR payment places I‘ve been to actually have these as well. I get that jumping from a central POS to a device per waiter is an investment – but why switch to QR codes if all your staff is already equipped with a strictly superior solution?
  - hamandcheese 4y ago
    > if they have a mobile POS That’s a big if in the US.
    - j16sdiz 4y ago
      This is pretty standard in many parts of the world. I just can't understand why wireless credit card payment and mobile pos ain't available in US.

arcanemachiner 4y ago

I like the Binary Eye app. It's open source and comes with a Quick Settings toggle. I wish it was built into the AOSP camera app, but it's not.

zaptrem 4y ago

Coincidentally I encountered this system for the first time last night. Unfortunately it never finished loading and I embarrassingly had to switch to a physical card after stalling for 30 seconds.

agluszak 4y ago

> It was totally seamless and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned In Poland we have Blik[1] for that, it's a national, standard payment process. Works with any bank, in any restaurant, no need to download an app. 1 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blik https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blik

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

sails 4y ago

Agreed, these are great and especially useful at reducing the friction of splitting bills Or if the staff lose interest and you want to leave and keep asking for the bill (seems to happen if you don't order alcohol)

kergonath 4y ago

> It was totally seamless and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned. In the civilised world, we don’t do that. Instead, the waiter brings a terminal to the table, or if they don’t have any, we go pay at the desk. Nobody gives their card to anyone. That is a problem with much better solutions than online-only menus.

sentientslug 4y ago
In the United States they never bring the terminal to the table. I remember the first time I went to Canada being surprised when the waitress did that.
- pm90 4y ago
  Not never, but definitely its the default. I certainly prefer the terminal wherever its offered. If there was a way to avoid that last step, it would probably save restaurants a lot of time. Guests could leave sooner as they wouldn’t have to wait around for payment.
  - lock-the-spock 4y ago
    The alternative is to pay on the way out. Requires a single terminal at the exit (or just anywhere, s.g. at the bar). It works perfectly fine. Cafes and restaurants across Europe do this more or less as the standard, the more fancy ones bring the terminal to the table.
    - vladvasiliu 4y ago
      I don't know about "Europe", but in France it's pretty common to get the terminal at the table, even at "non-fancy" random eateries. Sure, you could pay on the way out, but that's often painful. Many others are having the same idea, so now you have to wait around, lining up in a place that wasn't designed for people to wait around, bothering waiters who need to run around serving clients. It's usually less of a hassle to just wait around at the table for the waiter to bring the terminal to you. My pet peeve with the terminal at the table thing is that, despite card payment being extremely common in my area, the waiter will not bring a terminal over when you ask for the check, you'll have to wait some more.

InCityDreams 4y ago

> and far better than handing my credit card to a server to get lost or cloned. Holy heck! People do still give their credit cards to strangers to dissapear with? I last saw that in the 90's (Europe).

bambax 4y ago

But how does it even work if there are more than one person? Does each person pay for what they order? What if you're inviting someone? Do you have to order in their stead so that their plates show up on your bill? Or can they somehow transfer their orders to your phone? It seems this is a "solution" to a problem that never existed in the first place.

Woeps 4y ago
You peeps don't have easy "hey could you pay this amount" apps? Even if the app doesn't have split billing you can still transfer money afterwards
fphhotchips 4y ago
Here's how it's implemented on the one that's used pretty much everywhere where I live. Option 1: Everyone orders and pays independently. Website takes payment through all the usual options + Apple/Google pay. So long as the whole table orders within 5 minutes, all the orders come through at once. Option 2: One person sets up a tab, which generates a QR code. The other guests scan that code instead of the one at the table. People can order their own food/drinks as above until the tab owner closes the tab. If you forget to close the tab it closes itself at the close of business.
bigbacaloa 4y ago
In Spain it is normal for the terminal to come to the table and the payment gets split up however those at the table like.

SergeAx 4y ago

Young people now never pay with their cards, they are using phones with NFC function. So the POS terminal is brought to the table, because no one will give their unlocked phone to someone to take away)

Handytinge 4y ago

For anyone playing along at home, a "check" is the bill. It took me quite a while to work out who was checking on the QR code.