Technology in the restaurant industry is constantly evolving, and sometimes, it can be challenging to determine if the latest trend is right for your food truck, coffee shop, or restaurant. How big of a kitchen or business do you need to make digital order tickets a practical part of your business plan? What does a kitchen display system do? You may be considering a KDS and just aren’t sure if the investment will benefit your kitchen.

So, who needs a digital order ticket system?

Keep reading and we’ll explore how a restaurant KDS works and what kinds of businesses benefit from using one.

What is a KDS?

A kitchen display system (KDS) is a set of one or more digital screens that organize and display orders at a prep station. It can replace a paper printer, handwritten tickets, writing names on cups, or verbally calling orders back to the kitchen. A KDS integrates with your point of sale (POS) system and may connect to other kitchen hardware, like a label printer or customer-facing order status screen. 

Modern kitchen display systems go beyond being just a digital printer. Restaurant operators benefit from KDS features that help prioritize, organize, change, and track orders. A KDS can improve your kitchen’s speed of service, reduce costly errors in food production, and save money by eliminating waste. 

Who Needs a Restaurant KDS?

The short answer is: restaurants and food service companies of all sizes and service types can benefit from a kitchen display system. 

Using a KDS can improve efficiency for most restaurants and commercial kitchens, so every restaurant owner should at least consider it. With the rise of lightweight, affordable systems even smaller food service operations (like food trucks, coffee shops, and juice bars) can use a KDS to streamline their kitchens or production stations. Similar to how POS systems replaced cash drawers, KDS is steadily replacing other ticket management methods.

The extremely versatile and mobile nature of the KDS makes it easy to fit into every kitchen space and business model. At Fresh, we’ve designed a KDS that connects to just about any POS, such as Square, Clover, and Lightspeed. And our solution lets you use your own screen or iPad (we support Apple and Android devices alike). Our system is designed to work for you with the robust features, easy set up, and integrations you need.

Already have a POS? Check out the list of Fresh KDS integrations.

What Does a KDS Do? 

Kitchen display systems can help you streamline your operations, manage your orders, communicate with your customers, and keep your kitchen staff on the same page. With the clutter-free nature of a digital kitchen ticketing system, you benefit at every step of your process.

• Orders are routed to the appropriate food preparation stations, including splitting items to different stations.
• Sound alerts notify the kitchen when new orders arrive or are updated so nothing is missed.
• Color-coded headers inform kitchen staff when orders have been open too long and need to be prioritized.
• A customized KDS layout makes it easy to work with your kitchen’s unique flow.
• The easy-to-use system is highly interactive, allowing kitchen staff to adjust, recall, and bump orders.
• Display order status for front-of-house staff or patrons on an Order Status screen.
• Automate SMS texts to alert customers about their food preparation status and expected completion time. 

Why Use a KDS?

Imagine facing the morning or lunch rush with a line of customers eagerly awaiting their orders. 

With a traditional order system, you're constantly juggling physical chits or struggling to decipher handwriting. Not only do you have to make sure the tickets don’t fall on the ground or into your workstation, but you can’t easily edit or organize them. 

A kitchen display system makes it easier to instantly visualize the requests and needs in front of you.

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A KDS will help your team optimize kitchen operations, reducing the stress and errors that often happen during your busiest times.

8 Benefits of Fresh KDS

No matter the size of your restaurant, there are many reasons to implement Fresh KDS. Here are just a few of the ways a KDS will benefit your business.

1. Provide Faster Service

Orders are sent to the kitchen immediately, so employees handling other customers don’t have to be rushed to give the order to the kitchen and can handle other tasks. Plus, your KDS automatically organizes your digital tickets by fulfillment times and stations.

2. Eliminate Errors 

Paper kitchen order tickets are extremely easy to misplace, and losing them can result in rushed and incorrect orders. Fresh KDS solves this by eliminating printed order tickets and replacing it with an easy-to-read digital display. The result? Fewer mistakes and more satisfied customers.

3. Clarify Responsibilities

Orders are automatically separated and routed to the proper stations to help increase efficiency in the kitchen. Work is assigned to stations and your team can see orders progress in real time to keep everyone on the same page.

4. Enhance Communication

Written requests can easily get overlooked or misinterpreted, and restaurants can end up with disappointed customers. Important considerations like allergy alerts or hold times can make it difficult to manage orders without a digital system. Fresh KDS eliminates miscommunication. Servers update the POS, and the information is communicated to the Fresh KDS in real time.

5. Real-Time Tracking

Fresh KDS displays a timer on each order and the header color changes from green to yellow to red as ticket times approach and exceed speed-of-service standards. This allows managers and staff to see how well they're performing in real time and take action before the kitchen falls behind.

6. Ensure Food Quality

Fresh KDS ensures that all items for a table are timed so that the meals come out together so patrons can enjoy their meals as a group. Plus, with customer communication tools, you can also ensure to-go orders are picked up when the food is at the optimal temperature and freshness.

7. Improve the Takeout Experience

Food delivery apps are now increasingly popular among consumers and as restaurants increase takeout offerings to expand their reach, these additional orders create new logistical challenges that impact kitchen efficiency. Fresh KDS is built to service the omni-channel kitchen experience and sends online orders directly to the kitchen. Takeout orders can also be marked on the screens to ensure that they are packed appropriately.

8. Reduce Waste

Since orders are made correctly the first time with clearer instructions on your KDS, you can reduce food waste, canceled orders, and refunds. By eliminating the need for kitchen printers, your business will also use less paper. Consider the number of orders your restaurant prints in a day, and compare that to what you can save over time using a KDS. Don’t forget to factor in the positive environmental impact your business can make by switching to digital.
No matter the size, every restaurant can benefit from having Fresh KDS.