7 best restaurant automation systems

Running a restaurant can feel like quite the juggling act—keeping orders flowing, inventory stocked, and staff coordinated, all while trying to provide a top-notch customer experience. 

Luckily, nowadays, “there’s an app for that”, and technology has stepped up to help take a load off. Developments in automation now help streamline operations, freeing up valuable time and helping businesses run more smoothly. 

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the top restaurant automation systems available today. 

These tools will help you save time, reduce errors, and become more efficient. 

But which to choose? The million-dollar question. We look through what to look for and the best options on the market. 

How to choose a restaurant automation system

Here are the key features you should prioritize:

• Ease of use: Look for systems that are intuitive for all levels of staff, from seasoned employees to new hires. The less time you spend training staff on complicated software, the more time they can spend serving customers.
• Effortless automation: Your automation system should seamlessly replace a variety of labor-intensive processes that reduce your restaurant’s efficiency. This reduces manual work and ensures consistency across all operations.
• Customization: No two restaurants are alike. Ensure the system allows you to customize workflows, menu items, and even employee roles to fit the unique needs of your restaurant.
• Scalability: Whether you manage a single location or multiple, the system should grow with you, providing scalable solutions that adapt as your business expands.
• Support and training: Does the provider offer ongoing support? Choose a solution that includes customer service to troubleshoot issues and ensure your team gets the most out of the system.

A system that checks these boxes will help automate operations, reduce human error, and improve restaurant efficiency, all while supporting your restaurant’s unique demands.

Best overall restaurant automation system – Operandio

Operandio is a mobile-first, all-in-one solution designed to help you boost efficiency and stay on top of compliance.

Wondering how it can make your life easier? Here’s how Operandio streamlines everything from task management to food safety.

• Food safety automation: With features like automated temperature monitoring, Operandio ensures food is always stored and prepared safely, helping you stay compliant with health regulations. You’ll get instant alerts for any issues, so you can jump in and fix them right away.
• Auditing & site visits: Operandio simplifies compliance auditing with built-in tools that make it easy to track audits, site visits, and operational checks. Whether you run a single location or multiple, ensuring consistency has never been easier.
• Task management & digital checklists: Customizable digital checklists make daily processes like cleaning schedules and opening/closing procedures simple to manage. By automating these tasks, you reduce the risk of human error and ensure important duties aren’t missed.
• Food prep label printing: Operandio makes food prep more efficient by providing food prep label printing, so that you can easily track and label items in compliance with safety standards.
• Employee training & certification management: Operandio helps you manage and track employee training and certifications, keeping your team up-to-date with industry standards and compliance requirements. You can create and distribute custom training materials directly through the platform’s Knowledge Base.
• Internal communication: Stay connected with your staff across all locations with Operandio’s internal communication tools. Whether you need to send quick updates or discuss important changes, this feature improves coordination and reduces miscommunication.

With these powerful features, Operandio delivers a full-scale restaurant automation solution that can handle both back-of-house tasks and compliance responsibilities. 

Ready to upgrade your restaurant’s operations? Book a demo today to see how Operandio can transform your business.

#2 Restaurant365 

Restaurant365 is a cloud-based platform aimed at helping restaurants manage various aspects of their operations. It integrates smoothly with existing systems, making it particularly useful for restaurants with multiple locations.

Key features:

• Reporting: Offers insights into sales, labor, and inventory, enabling restaurants to make data-driven decisions.
• Inventory management: Provides real-time tracking and cost analysis to help minimize food waste and optimize stock levels.
• Labor management: Automates processes like scheduling, payroll, and attendance tracking, helping streamline staff management.
• Recipe costing: Ensures accurate calculation of menu item costs, supporting more effective pricing strategies.

Restaurant365 is valued for its wide-ranging functionalities, and ability to centralize restaurant operations, although its steep learning curve can be a drawback for teams who need it to hit the ground running, and it lacks Operandio’s modern mobile-first approach. 

#3 CrunchTime 

CrunchTime is an operations management platform designed to manage multi-unit operations in the restaurant industry.

Key Features:

• Inventory management: Tracks inventory levels in real-time, allowing for more accurate ordering and minimizing waste.
• Recipe and menu management: Ensures precise recipe costing and helps optimize food margins by comparing actual vs. theoretical costs.
• Labor scheduling: Assists with staff scheduling, tracking hours worked, and reducing labor costs through optimized shift planning.
• Compliance and safety monitoring: Automates food safety and public health protocols to keep all operations compliant with regulations.

Crunchtime is a comprehensive solution, although its focus on multi-unit brands leaves out single-location or small-chain restaurants, and its interface doesn’t have Operandio’s ease of use, which makes it accessible to staff of all levels. 

#4 MarketMan 

MarketMan is a cloud-based inventory management solution designed to help restaurants keep track of stock levels and streamline their ordering process. 

Key features:

• Inventory tracking: Provides real-time inventory updates, helping restaurant managers avoid over-ordering or stock shortages.
• Automated purchase orders: Generates purchase orders automatically, ensuring your kitchen always has the necessary supplies.
• Recipe costing: Calculates menu item costs based on ingredient usage, helping to maintain profitability.
• Mobile accessibility: Allows managers to track inventory and place orders on the go through a mobile-friendly interface.
• POS integration: Integrates with various POS systems to streamline sales and inventory data.

MarketMan boasts strong inventory and cost management features, although it doesn’t boast the depth of features the top three contenders have, and the time-consuming initial set-up (and 12-month agreement) will put off some potential customers. 

#5 Zonal 

Zonal is a restaurant automation platform that focuses on improving back-of-house operations, specifically kitchen management. Its KitchenIQ system is designed to streamline communication between front-of-house and kitchen teams, for quick and accurate order processing.

Key features:

• Real-time order visibility: Orders are instantly displayed on kitchen screens, reducing wait times and improving efficiency.
• Seamless integration with EPoS: Zonal integrates directly with its own EPoS system, allowing for smooth communication between order taking and preparation.
• Color-coded prioritization: Helps kitchen staff manage multiple orders, prioritizing those that need immediate attention.
• Front-of-house order tracking: Waitstaff can easily monitor the status of orders, keeping customers informed and reducing miscommunication.

However, Zonal’s KitchenIQ is only available as part of their larger EPoS system, making it less accessible for businesses that don’t already use Zonal for their point-of-sale solutions. And, again, it lacks the breadth of features available elsewhere. But what it does, it does well. 

#6 Flybuy 

Flybuy uses advanced mobile location technology to minimize wait times and enhance customer experience by tracking their location in real-time.

Key features:

• Mobile location tracking: Flybuy’s Presence Level™ technology detects customers’ proximity, allowing staff to prepare orders at the perfect time, ensuring food is hot and fresh.
• Order & payment via mobile devices: Customers can place orders and pay directly from their mobile phones, further speeding up the drive-thru process.
• Tablet-based ordering: Staff can take orders directly from customers waiting in line using tablets, improving efficiency.
• Loyalty point integration: Flybuy can automatically redeem loyalty points during checkout, streamlining the customer experience.

Flybuy technology is impressive, although it only deals with ordering and is heavily geared towards restaurants with a drive-through focus.

#7 Lightspeed 

Lightspeed is a restaurant POS and payments system that offers an all-in-one solution for managing transactions, inventory, and customer data. 

Key features:

• Integrated payment processing: Allows for quick and secure payments with support for credit, debit, and mobile payments, all while ensuring PCI compliance and end-to-end encryption.
• Inventory management: Lightspeed offers real-time stock tracking and alerts, helping restaurants stay on top of ingredient availability and reorder thresholds.
• Customizable menu & orders: Users can easily set up menus, modifiers, and track stock, along with specific product options.
• Split bill functionality: The system efficiently manages split checks, allowing for multiple methods of payment.

Lightspeed offers a POS solution that is popular with users worldwide, although, again, it has a narrower focus than some of the more comprehensive options available. The lack of flexibility with its payments (with many users feeling forced to use its proprietary system or face fees) has to go down as a drawback too.

Conclusion

That’s where the right automation system can make all the difference. It cuts down manual tasks, reduces errors, and gives you the breathing room to focus on what truly matters—serving great food and creating memorable experiences for your customers.

But not every system is built for your unique needs. That’s where Operandio steps in. Unlike more rigid platforms, Operandio is a mobile-first, fully customizable solution that adapts as your business grows. Whether it’s simplifying compliance, managing food safety, or streamlining employee training, Operandio offers the flexibility to work the way you need it to.

If you’re looking for more inspiration, here are 16 ways to automate restaurant business that can help streamline operations and save you time.

Let us help lighten your load. Book a demo with Operandio today and see how it can bring clarity and efficiency to your daily operations.