The sun is shining and every chair on the terrace is occupied. The service is running at full speed and yet, the guests can order shortly after they have sat down at the table that has just become free. A short time later, they are already sipping on pint and spritz and fishing peanuts out of the bowl with the coffee spoon.
The owner of the bar drops by and goes down to the warehouse. The Barkeeper hopes that he will soon reappear with two bottles of Aperol, oranges and a case of Prosecco. Or that he will clear two passes of dishes in and out.
But in one hand he carries two folding chairs, in the other an additional table, at which the guests who had been eagerly waiting for a table to become free sit down.
And yet this is no problem for the well-rehearsed bar team. The sweat may run, but only an extraordinary event could upset the duo. A broken glass in the container with the ice running low? Maybe. A crash of the cash register system? Definitely!
Anyone who has ever boned a five-course meal by hand knows how much easier life has become with modern checkout solutions.
These are the moments that show you how important a well-functioning POS system is. In the food service sector, almost more so, because anyone who has ever manually written the tickets for a five-course meal and then also written the bill manually knows how much easier life has become with modern cash register solutions. The conditions, however, are of course that it is easy to operate and has been programmed correctly.
The latter, in particular, should not be witchcraft, especially not in bars that want to adjust their beverage offer on a monthly basis. Modern cash register systems with touchscreens are now standard in most places. Especially in larger establishments, perhaps with a spacious terrace, you often see mobile solutions as well.
These can make communication between service and bar faster, but at the same time there is a risk of losing some of the charm here if the service employee stares at his or her phablet instead of the guest's face when serving drinks.
In the best case, however, it is not only the bar manager or the Barkeeper who benefits from a modern cash register system, but also the guest. Faster ordering, faster service and faster payment. And every minute that the service staff does not wait for the single, central cash register to become free can be put into looking after the guests.
Getting more out of the till
The cash register is not only a necessary tool for smooth service. With every drink tipped, we learn what the guests actually drink. But it also tells us how much they drink. How they pay. When they come and when they leave.
Information is hidden in the cash register that can help you write a better bar menu, define a more reliable operating plan or even prevent food waste. In the best case, the POS system is linked to other relevant systems such as the payment, voucher, reservation, accounting and ordering system.
This tool can even contribute to the guest experience, if you think of a nice farewell and a link to the social media accounts, the in-house newsletter or rating portals on the guest bill. Modern POS systems can do much more today than they did ten or twenty years ago.
But with every new function, the dependency also increases. And with it the risk. Updating old software versions, long and individual passwords, smart setup of the IT system, a separate WLAN for guests. These are all small but important steps to take to prevent a potential fiasco on the terrace.
