Surveillance Cameras: A Restaurant’s Protection System

Last updated on May 26th, 2021 at 04:30 pm

Is food missing from your kitchen or pantry? Are your restaurant’s registers come up short more often lately? Perhaps you’re concerned about what your employees are doing when you’re not there. Are vagrants damaging your business’s appearance with graffiti? These are all constant worries of those in the restaurant industry.

Everyone knows that being a restaurateur is not a 9-5 job. It’s not uncommon for you to work 60-70 hours a week. Yet, reality is you cannot be there every second of every day. You spend your day not only overseeing the daily operations of the restaurant  but also going on bank runs, processing incoming orders, and chatting with customers. In the end, you are entrusting the success of your restaurant on your waitstaff and management and if they are violating this trust, your restaurant will be at risk of failing.

85% of restaurant thefts are committed by employees, accounting for $3-$6 million dollars in annual losses. So, what can you do to protect yourself and your business. Our advice is to install security cameras throughout your restaurant as well as at the back door and front door to monitor employee and patrons activities. They are your eyes and ears when you are not there, reduce the risk of theft, and keep improve your bottom line.

Make sure to install cameras in high-risk areas, such as….

• Overlooking safes and cash registers will prevent employees from pocketing money when the register is open, as well as customers or thieves who may snatch money when employees are not looking.
• Parking lot cameras will catch the type of car a thief was driving and make it easier for them to be caught.
• Kitchen, including the pantry, walk-in cooler, and working station cameras can keep a look out for an employee who is taking food without paying for it and also ensure that safety and cleanliness practices are being followed.
• Common customer areas to protect yourself from false customer claims which are all too common in the food industry.
• Bar Areas where most thefts occur, especially by employees.
• Doorway cameras are great for ensuring food isn’t slipping through the back door and monitor who is coming in and out of your establishment.

Select the right type of Restaurant Security System for your business…

• Standalone DVR Restaurant Security Camera Systems… For basic restaurant security camera installations, this system is a great choice. They provide the ability to record from your cameras onto a digital video recorder, so that you can watch live cameras on a television on-location or even over the internet.

• PC-Based Restaurant Security Camera DVR Systems…For the serious restaurant owner, a PC-Based security camera system is generally preferred. These systems provide higher resolution recording, better remote viewing capabilities, a DVR Card and software that installs into a PC in your restaurant, and will record from all of the cameras simultaneously in high resolution onto the PC’s internal hard drive

Select between Bullet and Dome Cameras…

• Bullet Cameras… These are a more overt way to conduct surveillance as they are blatantly targeting a certain area. Bullet cameras are also a more economical solution.
• Dome Camera… With a dome camera, there is no way for someone to tell in what direction the camera is pointing since it is covered by a dark dome.

Does your restaurant use surveillance cameras?