5 Apps That Are Changing NYC Restaurants

Technology is changing the way restaurants do business, especially in big cities like New York. From the way orders are taken and processed to how staff are selected, there are now seamless and inexpensive tech options to help restaurateurs market their venues, improve their day-to-day operations and increase their bottom line.

Here are the top five apps every New York City restaurant owner should have on their radar.

Jitjatjo

Hospitality turnover rates in America are notoriously high.  The average venue will see more than 70% of its staff leave within a year.

In a city like New York, where staff can easily bounce from job-to-job without issue, turnover rates can be even higher. Not to mention the stress that comes from staff who call out last minute or don’t show up at all, leaving their venues understaffed.

That’s why Jitjatjo, a staff finding app, was created. It was made to solve this problem, specifically in New York City, where a lot of restaurant owners and managers find themselves in staffing predicaments. Now, in as little as 30 seconds by using one of the best apps for restaurants, New York restaurateurs can book an experienced, knowledgeable, thoroughly vetted replacement to arrive within an hour from the time of booking. And the best part? It’s only $19 per hour regardless of role.

Thanks to Jitjatjo, gone are the days New York City restaurant owners and managers have to panic about being understaffed during events, busy nights and because of unprofessionalism and turnover.

TouchBistro

Customers in New York expect to receive their food and drink orders in a New York minute, which can be hard to accommodate with old, outdated, hard-to-use point of sale systems that take ages to send, receive and process orders.

That’s why TouchBistro, a sleek, efficient and mobile point of sale system was created. TouchBistro is an easy-to-use app that’s ranked #1 for restaurants in 40 countries because it helps thousands of restaurant owners worldwide increase their sales, improve their service and make informed business decisions. And the return of investment is easy to justify since TouchBistro starts at just $69.99 per month.

Now servers can take, send and process orders in seconds and owners and managers can make administrative changes, monitor inventory and check sales with the touch of a button. With TouchBistro, serving New Yorkers quickly and efficiently has never been easier!

Aura Rating

New York City is a culinary paradise filled with thousands of restaurants and every cuisine imaginable. But, it can be overwhelming for both diners – having to weed through the city’s maze of blocks and find healthy, locally sourced food – and restaurateurs – trying to promote their farm-to-table venues.   

That’s why Aura Rating, a free farm-to-table restaurant finder app, was founded. Aura Rating takes the “guesswork” out of dining by ensuring all of its 600 plus restaurants are truly farm-to-table. The people behind Aura Rating seasonally check in with each restaurant, request a list of suppliers and producers for all ingredients used and then verify each restaurant’s list with the farmers and producers.

Now New Yorkers can search for farm-to-table restaurant options by borough, cuisine type and restaurant rating. And restaurants that fall into this category can reach out to Aura Rating and have their restaurant featured free of cost.

7shifts

Servers and bartenders in New York City are busy people — many of them double as actors, musicians, students and entrepreneurs. Their outside commitments can sometimes interfere with their work schedules and wreak havoc on employee scheduling, resulting in added stress to managerial scheduling duties.

But thanks to 7shifts, an employee scheduling software made specifically for restaurants, scheduling in New York City has never been easier. Employees can download the app on their phone, check their schedule, request time off, swap shifts with their co-workers and manage their availability on the fly. Managers or owners can control permissions from their phone, approve time off and re-adjust the schedules as needed. The software starts at $24.99 per month and goes up depending on the specific needs of each restaurant.

ChefsFeed

New York City is packed with diners — the average New Yorker eats out more than five times a week and more than 50 million tourists visit New York City each year. For locals this often means being stopped for recommendations, playing tour guide for friends and family who visit, and searching for their next favorite restaurant.

Now thanks to ChefsFeed, the #1 ranked free app for food recommendations by top chefs, New Yorkers and tourists no longer have to worry about finding a restaurant with delicious food or even searching for the best lunch spots in NYC, as they can simply search by genre, price, neighborhood and local chefs. The goal of the app is to bring customers to the doors of up-and-coming chefs who may otherwise go unnoticed.

These five apps are reshaping the New York City dining experience from restaurateur to consumer, and making running a restaurant more efficient and easy-to-do. And the best part? They’re all just a download away!

Was 5 apps not enough? It’s your lucky day…

by Antasha Solomon

Antasha is a Marketing Specialist at TouchBistro where she spends her days advising restaurateurs on their point of sale systems and her nights writing hospitality-related content. A veteran bartender and server, Antasha enjoys bringing her industry experiences to life through blogging. Her three-year-old son and BFF, Elijah, is her self-proclaimed muse for all things creative.

Topics

Technology