6 companies using technology to help bars and restaurants reopen

As England’s bars, pubs and restaurants are allowed to open once again this weekend, trade bodies are urging them to follow the rules so that they can keep their staff, and punters, safe.

Cashless payment as a socially distanced business.

Months of hibernation has allowed time for some tech-savvy people in the hospitality sector to get creative and build solutions that will help venues operate safely.

In fact, lockdown has practically created an entirely new sub-category within the on-trade.

Tech providers like OrderPay, which provides contactless ordering for groups such as PizzaExpress, Five Guys, Cote, Slug & Lettuce, Be At One, Walkabout, and Craft Union Pub Company, stand to gain a lot of ground in the “new normal”.

“Smart mobile technology will play a major role in facilitating table services to allow pubs and restaurants to reopen safely,” said Richard Carter, OrderPay’s founder.

“Mobile technology will provide smart solutions to help venues operating at reduced capacity facilitate social distancing. NFC tap-and-go functionality can get people in and out quickly by enabling customers to pay for a product simply by tapping their phone on shelf labels.”

“For operators wanting to eliminate or manage queuing, mobile phones can also be turned into ‘buzzers’ to inform customers when their order is ready for collection.”

But technology’s role in the restaurant sector will go beyond table reservations and online payments. Companies are also creating software that helps venue owners carry out their own health and safety audits, enabling them to use customer data to track and trace Covid-19, even build body temperature scanners to make sure staff are fit for work.

We’ve taken a look at some of the newer software that has emerged during lockdown, and how they could be used to reopen a bar, pub or restaurant safely this month.

Creventa: contactless ordering

Three entrepreneurs in the UK have developed an app for contactless tableside ordering, to help UK restaurants maintain social distancing this month.

Sommelier-turned-wine bar owner, Jake Crimmin, Andrew Norton, founder of wine-focused Oxford restaurant The Jam Factory, and music mogul Luke Ireland developed their app, called Creventa, in two weeks.

Diners scan a QR code or input a web address into their smart phones when they sit down. They are then taken to an online menu and, once they’ve made their selection, the order is sent to a computer behind the bar, and the guest is charged either via their credit/debit card or Apple Pay.

The table number is registered from the QR code/web address, so staff know where to send the order.

Theirs is, of course, not the only contactless ordering app on the market…

Stroodl

Customer scanning QR code, making a quick and easy contactless payment with her smartphone in a cafe

Another app launched officially this year is Stroodl, which lets restaurant and pub owners upload and change details of their menu, pricing and promotions in real-time. Customers can then use geo-localisation or scan a table QR code to select their venue, make their order and pay.

Transactions are handled by payment platform Stripe. Per sale, venue owners pay a small flat fee and percentage of the total sale.

The launch comes after the app was trialled at a restaurant chain in Paris.

Seatd

Manchester-based nightlife tech experts Craig Davies and Stephen Powell have created their own take on the contactless menu app, called Seatd.

The app lets customers buy food and drink from their table, will have no upfront setup costs, and in addition, customers using the service to order food will be given an option to donate to a local charity. This incurs no additional cost with the host venue.

Better still, customers don’t need to download the app, they can just scan a QR code to be taken directly to online ordering and payment.

The pair worked with former Google employees, Matt Gibbs and Jack Woodward, who also helped them set up their nightlife booking app Viper, on the project.

iAuditor

The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) partnered workplace safety company SafetyCulture on an app to help pub managers take care of risk assessments.

Called iAuditor – the app contains a digitised version of the UK government’s reopening guidelines, helping pubs to put  safety measures in place and assess potential risks for customers and staff with simple checklists.

SafetyCulture developed the app, which supplies hundreds of audit frameworks for businesses, depending on their line of work. BBPA supported with developing the list of pub protocols, in line with the government guidance, and is recommending to all of its members that they use the app.

You can search the app to schedule an inspection either you or a member of staff can carry out on sight, and then go through the checklist to see if your venue meets the government’s standards. Tourism board Visit Britain has created a new “Good to Go” accreditation, which you can achieve by passing the iAuditor assessment.

The app is available to all BBPA members and is free to use. Groups such as Greene King and Shepherd Neame have already signed up.

VueNet EasyScan

Making sure your staff are fit to work will pay dividends, not just for their peace of mind, but also your customers. Many larger groups have said they will run regular body temperature checks on employees to monitor their symptoms.

To assist with this and reduce contact between staff, Leeds-based security company CCTVdirect has non-contact wrist temperature reader.

Users simply approach the terminal, place wrist into position by the intelligent temperature reader for body temperature to be read. Once users are scanned they’re instructed to proceed, or if found to have an abnormal temperature, an alert will be raised and operators can intervene safely.

The scanner is capable of detecting wrist temperature within 0.3 ℃ from 1-4cm in under one second, according to the company.

It is designed to be placed in entrances and lobbies of public places like restaurants, hotels, bars, healthcare facilities, and offices.

The terminal itself sits on a heavy-duty stand to allow for ease of access, along with visual cues to aid visitors as they approach the machine.

Stampede: data collection and bookings/walk-ins

Scottish technology firm Stampede has launched a new contactless service for collecting customer data, which it said would allow outlets to accept walk-ins as well as pre-booked guests.

The venue can then delete the data after 21 days, as per the government requirements in England. Once a user has visited an establishment and registered their details, Stampede will automatically register the visit, without the need to re-register.

Stampede said its service will retain “the spontaneity of the pre-pandemic pub visit”. Venues have the option of managing the technology themselves, or allowing Stampede to perform the service.