It all starts with understanding restaurant operations first-hand. We know that every owner has individual reasons and stories behind the opening of a restaurant. We also understand that each establishment has its own unique characteristics, processes, and services.
That’s what inspired us to design iCHEF as an easy-to-use system that integrates seamlessly into your business. Current POS systems on the market just won’t do. Having iCHEF on hand streamlines your restaurant operations, bringing order to where there is potential for chaos. iCHEF does what a POS should do for you: it's there when you need it, but it doesn’t get in your way with clutter. And it’s flexible enough to work in ways that suit you, making it an indispensable tool for the service staff.
Below, we share the guiding principles that make iCHEF your most trustworthy companion.
“Communications That Make Sense”
A restaurant is one of the busiest of all workplaces because of the high volume of information that's exchanged. Based on our own restaurant experience, we know how busy it gets. And we understand why it’s critical to manage the flow of information between the service staff, customers, and the kitchen and service area.
That’s why a POS needs to make sense of all this communication, in the most efficient way. It acts as a bridge that generates, exchanges, and stores the information produced during ordering, seating, and payment. This information needs to be easily understandable for managers and service staff, and has to be stored and accessible in the form of statements, tables, and operation status. iCHEF simply helps you make sense of all that complexity, turning noise into useful information.
“Designed to Go with the Service Flow”
Restaurant operations are like a tidal wave – anything that obstructs the flow will be swept away. While many POS systems on the market offer a wide variety of functions, in practicemost of the functions are never used.
For example, a common POS feature is an authorization function. A password is required to give discounts and to place an order. It’s supposed to be accessible by authorized personnel only. In practice, this tends to be inconvenient, and over time almost everyone who works at the restaurant knows the password. Or, if a swipe card is needed, the card is left at the counter for general use.
Our deep understanding of the service flow in a restaurant ensures that iCHEF is designed according to the process for which it is used. Staff members are assigned the functions that they need and presented with an interface that’s easy for them to use. The information they wish to obtain is relevant for their specific work procedure. And all the information exchanged between various staff members is produced and stored, giving managers transparency for effective analysis.
“Less Gives You More”
A function is only as good as its design. If a function is difficult to use, then it eventually becomes redundant. For instance, if waiters have iPads to take customers’ orders, but the devices are difficult to operate, then the waiters will simply use a pen and paper.
Another good example of excessive functions is something we observed at a flower shop where the owner uploaded the entire inventory of several hundred flower types onto the POS. Thinking that this would produce the most accurate billing statements, the owner was surprised when the statement showed only a list of three flowers. As it turns out, the clerks did not have the time to search for specific flowers when they were billing, and simply used the first three flowers on the list and adjusted the billing price.
With these considerations in mind, we created iCHEF with a practical layout, interface, selection menu, and functions that are just right. Everything serves a purpose.
“Works the Way You Want to Work”
As a cloud-based operating system, iCHEF gives you many flexible capabilities that fit well with your working style, including:
- Easy-to-change hardware locations – iPads and wireless printers can be placed in the most optimal positions according to the unique layout of your restaurant.
- Cloud control interface – you can easily adjust the menu on the cloud, add customized selections, and make customized changes as needed.
- Flexible remote adjustment – menus can be adjusted at any time, such as when individual meal prices change, and special notes can be added to match current menu requirements.
- Customized according to operational needs – you might prefer using pen and paper to take customer orders, in which case you can simply use iCHEF on the iPad as a traditional POS. iCHEF’s flexible design allows you to adjust restaurant service flow at any time and match your habits.
“A Trustworthy Companion”
A restaurant’s most important asset is its people. We understand that service plays a key role in differentiating individual restaurants. iCHEF respects and supports the uniqueness of your restaurant, and works to preserve flexibility so that your service staff can shine and distinguish themselves.
As a system that complements rather than replaces restaurant staff, iCHEF helps them to be more efficient, and to work smarter and more accurately than ever before in the service of customers. Our system simplifies things so you can maximize the benefits of spending time communicating with and serving customers.