Top Apps Every Restaurateur Should Have

Last updated on May 26th, 2021 at 03:53 pm

There are apps for just about everything these days, from fertility to free text messaging to crazy games like Angry Birds. If you look hard enough you’ll also find some pretty cool apps to make your life as a restaurateur easier. Here are just a few. Post your favorite apps in the comment section below.

Yelp… Monitor what people are saying about your restaurant. Do they love the Greek Salad? Think your waitstaff is rude? Find you overpriced? Yelp is a great way to gauge the public’s perception of your establishment. You can also comment on their reviews- just don’t be a jerk if you get negative feedback.

Pinterest… Show your customers just how amazing your food looks. Upload pins of your plates to create Boards like,”Italian Night” and “The New Fall Menu.” Your followers can also comment on the pictures and repin your pins on their own boards to spread your goodies to their followers. It’s really a fun and highly-addictive app to have.

SteakTimer… There is nothing worse for a customer than having an over or undercooked steak presented to them. Download this app for your chefs to ensure that the steak they are serving up is served up perfectly. We like the app from Kansas City Steaks because it also has really good steak recipes, is interactive, and includes a reference library. It’s like your one-stop steak center.

PayWithSquare… Turn your iPad into a register with a simple Card Reader. You can organize your POS by adding names, photos, and prices to make it easy for your waitstaff to check people out. All you have to do is then swipe the customers card with the Square Card Reader. This app also allows you to reward existing customers with a simplified rewards program. Insightful analytics will help you make smart decisions to identify busy or slow days and times that can be exported to spreadsheets.

ShelfLife… Keep track of your inventory by setting up food expiration reminders. With this app, you can keep track of your inventory while tracking each item’s age. There is also a global database to help you seamlessly search for foods as well as their expected life span. The handy Green (New) to Red (expired) color scale will let you instantly know the edibility status of the items. So let’s say you just had a shipment of Fresh Spinach arrive. All you have to do is input the name and quantity and ShelfLife will automatically tell you the shelf life of the item- in this case, 11 days.

ChefSheet… No more overspending on the ingredients you need. Say good-bye to unorganized inventory check-lists. ChefSheet is a FREE restaurant inventory app that lets you shop for the best products at the best prices and even anonymously compare what you’re paying for products to other anonymous restaurateurs in your area. Inventory can be organized based on the items location, ie., Walk-In Cooler, Bar Area and Prep Room.

InMyBar… Don’t let your bartender get stumped by a customer. With the InMyBar app, your employees will have hundreds of different drink recipes at their fingertips. The app can also tell you what kind of drinks you can make with the brands and ingredients that you have and what ingredients are needed to make a customers favorite drink. You can add the ingredients you need to a Shopping List and no Internet connection is needed.

WhenIWork… No more sitting around and writing out a long schedule sheet that your employees have to copy. WhenIWork is  a better way for busy restaurateurs like you to handle employee scheduling and keep everyone connected.  You can create, edit, cancel and view shifts, have employees make time off requests, monitor employee time-off requests, share and have access to employee contact information, and send email or SMS text messaging to your staff.

Facebook Page Manager… No Top App list is complete without a Facebook mention. Every restaurant should have a Facebook Page to share what is happening with your customers. To make it easier on Page Managers, Facebook came out with this app to streamline the process for you. Set up notifications and you’ll receive a pop-up notification every time someone posts on your wall or comments on your restaurant’s post.

Did we miss your favorite app? Share it with the world by posting it in the comment section below.