Restaurant Technology

I’ve noticed in the past year that so many restaurants are getting the latest and most updated technology. One restaurant I love to go to is Panera Bread. When I was there I saw that they have a new system for ordering food. You just have to text them your order and you can go pick up your meal. Starbucks does this too. You just text them your order and it is there when you get there! This is great for the restaurants because it prevents long lines and promotes business.

                Another place that has a similar way of ordering is Noodles and Co. My family went on vacation this past summer and we had four little kids with us; two crazy little girls and two baby boys. It was hard for our whole family to go out to a sit-down restaurant and eat so we ordered in. All we had to do was get on the iPad and go to the website, order our food, and go pick it up. It was much easier than herding all the kids into the car and going out.

                These advances in technology are giving restaurants business they might otherwise not have. If a person can order on their phone, don’t you think they would rather do that than wait in line for ten minutes? I know I would!

                Even sit-down restaurants are starting to add iPads to the table. People can order from them and play games on them! I think this is probably good and productive for businesses, but is it good for the people using the iPads?  What happened to face to face communication, and families actually talking at the dinner table? I already see enough families go out to eat, and instead of talking they all stare absently at their phones like their devices are more important than the people sitting across from them. So it makes me wonder, is all this technology beneficial or is the good old fashioned way (that’s worked this whole time) good enough?