How KDS can Elevate the Customer Experience by Supporting Menu Innovation

Meal delivery isn’t the only fast-moving thing in the quick service restaurant (QSR) sector; customer attitudes also evolve rapidly. Restaurant operators must work hard to stay abreast of changing consumer appetites, and their menus must reflect the latest trends. That makes menu innovation a key differentiator in this challenging industry. How can restaurants keep up while also maintaining operational excellence?

Technology is a powerful tool in the battle to keep menus relevant to current tastes. Kitchen display system (KDS) technology is an especially useful component in kitchen automation when it comes to supporting experimental and permanent menu updates. Epson has designed its TrueOrder KDS specifically with flexibility in mind, empowering restaurant managers, servers, and kitchen staff to support adaptable menu options that will delight customers.

Current trends in menu innovation

Modern QSRs are heavily focused on menu customization as they respond to shifting consumer requirements. One in four customers say that they would eat at QSRs more regularly if they offered a wider variety of menu options.^[1] It’s no wonder, then, that we regularly see chains such as Subway introducing more sandwiches to their menu, Sonic introducing more beverages, and Popeyes offering more wing flavors.

In a competitive industry chasing distracted consumers, exciting new options are mandatory. Sometimes, these menu innovations support demand for international flavors. Other times, they take advantage of temporary opportunities around movies, events, or holidays. Prominent brands have featured celebrity tie-ins.

Menu innovation is about more than pure variety or capitalizing on customer affiliations with celebrities or events. Subway’s introduction of a foot-long cookie for under $5 demonstrated the drive for consumer value^[2] in a market where 35% of QSR customers complain of ‘shrinkflation’.

Another driver is the need to serve new or under-addressed audiences. Burger King’s Impossible Whopper launch targeted a vegetarian audience in an attempt to expand its market reach.^[3]

Whatever the innovation, the emphasis is on fresh and exciting menu updates to attract customers. In some cases, restaurants might pilot these to see how consumers accept them before making these temporary meal configurations permanent if they perform well.

The role of technology in menu innovation

These menu changes might drive more sales, but they’re also difficult to engineer. They can place an extra burden on staff, who must learn how to build the dishes. And then they’ll probably have to cope with a greater variety of incoming orders.

KDS technology is instrumental in supporting rapid menu changes and more customization options. Epson’s TrueOrder KDS features an intuitive and flexible user interface that helps enable QSR operators to easily customize menus and underlying meal production workflows. This empowers them to introduce short-term offers and seamlessly turn them into permanent products if needed.

This support for menu innovation extends to interaction between TrueOrder KDS and other systems. For example, restaurant operators can connect their KDS with inventory management software to streamline kitchen food purchasing for new menu items.

A KDS can also connect with data analytics systems, creating a data pipeline that will allow QSR operators to easily drill down into sales trends for different menu combinations. This facilitates fast testing of new menu innovations and informs potential new offers. Research has found 39% of restaurant owners eager to use data analysis as they hone menus for greater profitability.^[4]

Individual kitchen workstation displays make Epson TrueOrder displays especially suitable for QSRs facing more complex menus. It enables individual workers to see only what they need to, helping to reduce errors.

How to put innovation on the menu

Menu innovation becomes far easier when streamlining kitchen operations using an automated solution like Epson TrueOrder KDS. QSR operators can introduce this with surprisingly little time or financial investment, expanding from a single-workstation offering to a more sophisticated implementation in time. Even a basic deployment can help empower restaurants to experiment with menu changes and drive profitability.

If you’re ready to explore kitchen automation, Epson can help you embrace your customers’ demand for novelty and value with a powerful solution for greater menu flexibility. Learn more about how you can modernize and optimize kitchen operations at Epson.com/kitchen-display-system