In brief
iFoodie simplifies dining by letting customers access digital menus, order, request assistance and settle the bill through one app. This 2014 article argues that its use across participating restaurants, cloud technology and lack of additional hardware requirements make it well suited to Hong Kong’s busy pace of life.
iFoodie in the United States is a classic example of mobile app use in the restaurant industry.
Shashank Bhatia worked with TechAhead to create a very simple mobile app called “iFoodie”. iFoodie can create digital menus for restaurants and lets customers use the app to order dishes, request assistance from waiting staff, settle the bill and more.
Customers simply scan a QR code inside the restaurant using iFoodie, and the restaurant’s menu is automatically downloaded to their phones. Conveniently, iFoodie also works at any participating restaurant, so users do not need to download a separate mobile app for each one.
iFoodie uses cloud technology to reduce waiting times within the app, improve customer satisfaction and even provide customers with personalised digital menus.
The app makes ordering more convenient and enjoyable, while restaurants do not need to invest in any additional hardware. With just a QR code and the customer’s phone, restaurants can offer a different dining experience. It can also help restaurants save on staffing resources.
The services iFoodie provides are all basic: ordering food, asking waiting staff for help and settling the bill. Yet it offers a different dining experience. Compared with the traditional approach, iFoodie lets customers take matters into their own hands.
In Hong Kong, dining during busy periods often means waiting a long time before we can even place an order. Valuable mealtime is wasted on “waiting to order”. When we are already hungry and food is still a long time coming, this not only makes us impatient but also affects our impression of the restaurant.
Apps like iFoodie are well suited to Hong Kong’s busy pace of life. Automating the dining process can save Hong Kong people considerable time. Smartphones are also so widespread in Hong Kong that everyone has one to hand, making apps like these relatively easy to introduce.