What is Table Management?

If your restaurant is still using grease pencils and marker boards, you are easier to spot than you might think. When guests walk into these restaurants during peak hours, they may see empty tables, guests crowded around the host stand, and staff yelling out party names amongst a group of hungry customers. These restaurants are typically pretty chaotic and filled with frustrated guests and confused servers. We’ve all been there. And seeing how the host stand is frequently the first interaction that guests have with your restaurant, it’s important that a customer’s first impression isn’t a scrambling front of house staff. Luckily, there’s a solution to this ongoing problem: table management. Let’s take a look at what the table management function of a front-of-house system is and what it can do for you.

What is Table Management?

Table management is often a feature of most guest management systems. The table management function of most systems will have a floorplan of your restaurant that is accessible from an IPad or server. Some floor plans are customizable based on the exact design of your restaurant, while other tools may offer more generic options. Creating a floor plan that resembles your restaurant can improve the flow of how your front of house operates. Not only will you be able to see what tables are available in your restaurant and what stage of the meal customers are in, but the analytics function will provide insight about how long diners have been seated and when they were sat. In addition, a restaurant’s staff will know the tables that are reserved, open, and which ones need to be cleaned. This will help to seat, bus, and flip tables more efficiently. Even more, a FOH tool with a table management function will tell you the size of the tables available so you can coordinate it with the number of guests in a party. This is particularly helpful when reservations are on the books for larger groups.

The Guest Experience

No one likes an angry customer. Successful table management can improve the guest experience in two ways: it will get your guests seated quickly and will make sure that hosts aren’t double or triple seating your wait staff. The vital analytics that table management provides will keep your staff organized, improve communication, and make their jobs more pleasant. These insights will also help you identify trends and make better business decisions as it relates to staffing management.

Table Management and Your Restaurant

Implementing new technology may seem too complicated or expensive but it has its perks. A table management system will save restaurant staff time and money. It will also create a smoother experience for guests and everyone else involved. Want to learn more about restaurant technology that improves efficiency and enhances the guest experience? Use the button below to check out our Technology eGuide.

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About the Author

Emily Wimpsett was a Content & Social Media Specialist at QSR Automations. Emily was born and raised in Louisville, but considers herself a die-hard University of Kentucky fan. For college, Emily attended Indiana University Southeast and obtained a degree in Communications with a track in Advertising. In her free time, Emily enjoys just about every water related activity, but she is partial to kayaking and whitewater rafting.