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>Just let me walk up to the counter, read a physical menu, place my order with a human being and get out of there. Seriously. Seems like so many physical busi

>Just let me walk up to the counter, read a physical menu, place my order with a human being and get out of there. Seriously. Seems like so many physical businesses are going fully digital with little reason to do so. Following a trend, I guess. But the utility of interacting with a human versus navigating an app (of which it seems every restaurant or fast-casual-takeout has their own) is just so much higher. The cost to build and maintain that app too eats into the establishment's costs, which in turn mean the end consumer's costs are higher. I'm already paying high prices as-is, and my experience isn't drastically better doing everything digitally. As you said, maybe there's a scale at which digital processes are indeed faster and less cumbersome (like a McDonald's level operation), and offers higher marginal utility, but most places I order from aren't at that scale. Few are.

gspencley 3y ago
I brought up the scale, to be fair, because my wife and I have a Disney World vacation booked in a couple of months and for quick service restaurants at the parks it looks like mobile ordering will be a life saver. But we're talking a theme park with enormous crowds and long lines. It's not your typical environment. I know there are some busy restaurants in major urban areas that get long lines out the door, particularly at peak times of day ... but how typical is this for most restaurants? Not very I suspect. Pick the right tools for the right problems.
crazygringo 3y ago
> going fully digital with little reason to do so In many areas, there's a huge reason -- the availability of labor has decreased, so cost of labor has skyrocketed, along with inflation generally that can't always be passed on to customers. Restaurants that used to be able to afford 2 servers can now only afford 1, so customers have to order digitally because otherwise it's too many tables for 1 server otherwise. You don't have to be McDonald's scale. I'm talking about independent small restaurants. (I agree it sucks for the customer -- I'm just saying restaurants are being forced into this. They're not doing it for fun.)
- lotsofpulp 3y ago
  I prefer ordering via software and busing myself. Save a bunch of money not feeling like I should tip and the order is more likely to be accurate. And I save time not having to wait for waiters.
  - slipperlobster 3y ago
    Yeah. I feel like any time this comes up on HN, the comments heavily skew towards moving _away_ from integrating technology into the dining process. I'm all for it. I don't want to do the whole song-and-dance of chatting with a server, I don't want to deal with them coming to the table mid-bite to ask if everything is OK. Just let me order via a QR code and table number. Hell, I'll even clean the table when I'm done. This obviously does not apply to fine dining, only really fast casual/fast food.
    - gspencley 3y ago
      I don't mind restaurants that have tablets on the table in place of paper menus. There is a sushi restaurant in my city that does this and I love it. This avoids the same problems you're talking about, with servers coming to check on you etc. Where I have an issue is when the restaurants expects me to have my own device, to install their app, or even just jump through hoops (scanning a QR code) etc. I'm not attached to my cell phone. I often like to leave it at home. And I'm sure as hell not going to install a restaurant's app on my device. Another thing the tablet does better is just better UX. My phone screen is tiny and my old man eyes are poor. A tablet is often much easier to read and use.
      - slipperlobster 3y ago
        I've only seen QR code -> PDF menu (and one where it was QR code -> web interface to order food/drinks). I agree with you re: app, but I think it's completely reasonable in 2023 to expect the general public to carry their mobile phones around with them.

gspencley 3y ago

I brought up the scale, to be fair, because my wife and I have a Disney World vacation booked in a couple of months and for quick service restaurants at the parks it looks like mobile ordering will be a life saver. But we're talking a theme park with enormous crowds and long lines. It's not your typical environment. I know there are some busy restaurants in major urban areas that get long lines out the door, particularly at peak times of day ... but how typical is this for most restaurants? Not very I suspect. Pick the right tools for the right problems.

crazygringo 3y ago

> going fully digital with little reason to do so In many areas, there's a huge reason -- the availability of labor has decreased, so cost of labor has skyrocketed, along with inflation generally that can't always be passed on to customers. Restaurants that used to be able to afford 2 servers can now only afford 1, so customers have to order digitally because otherwise it's too many tables for 1 server otherwise. You don't have to be McDonald's scale. I'm talking about independent small restaurants. (I agree it sucks for the customer -- I'm just saying restaurants are being forced into this. They're not doing it for fun.)

lotsofpulp 3y ago
I prefer ordering via software and busing myself. Save a bunch of money not feeling like I should tip and the order is more likely to be accurate. And I save time not having to wait for waiters.
- slipperlobster 3y ago
  Yeah. I feel like any time this comes up on HN, the comments heavily skew towards moving _away_ from integrating technology into the dining process. I'm all for it. I don't want to do the whole song-and-dance of chatting with a server, I don't want to deal with them coming to the table mid-bite to ask if everything is OK. Just let me order via a QR code and table number. Hell, I'll even clean the table when I'm done. This obviously does not apply to fine dining, only really fast casual/fast food.
  - gspencley 3y ago
    I don't mind restaurants that have tablets on the table in place of paper menus. There is a sushi restaurant in my city that does this and I love it. This avoids the same problems you're talking about, with servers coming to check on you etc. Where I have an issue is when the restaurants expects me to have my own device, to install their app, or even just jump through hoops (scanning a QR code) etc. I'm not attached to my cell phone. I often like to leave it at home. And I'm sure as hell not going to install a restaurant's app on my device. Another thing the tablet does better is just better UX. My phone screen is tiny and my old man eyes are poor. A tablet is often much easier to read and use.
    - slipperlobster 3y ago
      I've only seen QR code -> PDF menu (and one where it was QR code -> web interface to order food/drinks). I agree with you re: app, but I think it's completely reasonable in 2023 to expect the general public to carry their mobile phones around with them.