North Sydney Restaurant Replaces Menus with iPads

[Lotus Esprit]

The Global Mundo Tapas restaurant has replaced its' menus with iPads. According to the article, patrons can browse the entire virtual menu and see pictures of the food as well as get recommendations for complementary wine. The iPad sends the order back to the kitchen and the back end database keeps track of stock as well so if something is sold out it automatically gets removed from the menu.

This is just the beginning. In the near future I can see the tablet devices replacing paper forms that are filled out in places municipal and doctor's offices.

Any thoughts?

Source: Restaurant Replaces Menus with iPads

[Fotoman]

That's a very cool use of the iPad althopugh I have to wonder how the devices will stand-up to all that handling in an environment fraught with liquid hazards

[Lotus Esprit]

Originally Posted by Fotoman

That's a very cool use of the iPad althopugh I have to wonder how the devices will stand-up to all that handling in an environment fraught with liquid hazards

I guess that you would have to see a statistic for how many times liquid is spilled on a restaurant table.

[Fotoman]

Originally Posted by Lotus Esprit

I guess that you would have to see a statistic for how many times liquid is spilled on a restaurant table.

All I know is that with me in the restaurant the average would go way up

[FizzyWater]

And, wow...how are they going to police the customers to make sure no one walks out with one?!

[Lotus Esprit]

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

And, wow...how are they going to police the customers to make sure no one walks out with one?!

Seeing how most establishments only have a front door that patron's walk in and out of it isn't going to be that hard.

They will probably have a sensor that goes off if the iPad goes past it.

[Caleb]

Did anyone else see the article on engadget (might gave been gizmodo) of the bacteria counts they found on the iPad test units at the NYC Apple Store?

[FizzyWater]

Originally Posted by Lotus Esprit

They will probably have a sensor that goes off if the iPad goes past it.

Ah, good point. Just seems an awful expensive gimmick! But who knows, maybe those printed menus are more expensive than they look.

[Lotus Esprit]

Originally Posted by Caleb

Did anyone else see the article on engadget (might gave been gizmodo) of the bacteria counts they found on the iPad test units at the NYC Apple Store?

Why would you find less bacteria on a traditional menu? At least you can clean the iPad. How many restaurants clean their regular menus?

[MsAstoria]

Course the patron needs to be familiar on operating an iPad and it's still pretty new, especially out of the US. Wondering if this the the beginning of an Urban legend?

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I get my iPad wallpapers from pictures I have downloaded to my iPad

[b0ned0me]

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

Ah, good point. Just seems an awful expensive gimmick! But who knows, maybe those printed menus are more expensive than they look

Originally Posted by MsAstoria

Course the patron needs to be familiar on operating an iPad and it's still pretty new, especially out of the US. Wondering if this the the beginning of an Urban legend?

Quite a few restaurants have already played the high-tech angle over the years, and it wouldn't surprise me if buying a few dozen iPads and coding up a simple app was cheaper than e.g. the e-table approach of projectors and touchpads (as used at Inamo for the last couple of years).

It's almost certainly more flexible and simpler to maintain since nothing is fixed to the tables or ceilings, they're just interchangeable wireless devices.

[Bremen Cole]

The first time a four year old picks it up and it crashes to the floor, they will see the folly of their experiment.....

Heck, the first time a klutz like me picks it up and ...............

[Trubu]

They'll have to hire a full-time staff member just to wipe down the screens in between customers. Love my iPad, but man does that screen get greasy quick. Even when you're not eating!

[kjk]

New iPad Restaurant Ordering Program Launched

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-iP....html?x=0&.v=1

-orderTalk, Inc., the leading provider of on-demand software and service solutions to the restaurant industry for online ordering, has announced the launch of a new program allowing servers and guests to place food orders while in line or right from the table through an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch.

Now available for quick service and full service restaurants, the proprietary ordering platform is downloaded as an application for servers or for patrons. Already in use, the program replaces hand-held terminals and allows servers to take table and in-store orders on an iPad. The orders are then sent directly to the point of sale or a ticket printer in the kitchen, which eliminates errors and allows for quicker, more efficient service.

[HarryT]

What? No tables with touch-sensitive LCD tabletops?