Manhattan's Union Square Cafe Will Outfit Managers With Apple Watches to Improve Hospitality

[MacRumors]

Union Square Hospitality Group and Resy, a restaurant reservation startup, tonight announced at the TechTable Summit that every manager and sommelier at the Union Square Cafe will be outfitted with an Apple Watch to help improve customer service, reports Eater. The Union Square Cafe is set to reopen in late October and is the flagship restaurant of Danny Meyer, founder of Shake Shack.

Photo via Union Square Cafe​

​

The Apple Watches will be outfitted with restaurant "control center" app ResyOS. Floor managers and sommeliers wearing the watches will receive notifications when VIPs enter the restaurant, when new tables are seated, when guests have waited too long to order, when menu items run out and more.

An iPad running ResyOS will act as the command center at Union Square Cafe's host's stand while the Apple Watches will pull the info inputted into the iPad in real-time. The Apple Watch's function will be focused on cutting out steps and increasing response time. For instance, when a guest is finished dining a manager will get a notification, allowing them to ping a server for the check or the guest's coat. Sommeliers will get wine orders sent to their Watch, rather than having to wait for a manager to relay the information to them.

Maureen Cushing, Union Square Hospitality's VP of Technology, tells Eater that ResyOS and the Apple Watches are "another way to respond and listen to our guests." She also notes that the Apple Watch will not replace communication between servers and management, as servers will not be receiving Apple Watches with ResyOS.

This isn't the first time that the food and beverage industry has embraced Apple products to improve hospitality. Many smaller restaurants and food trucks have opted to use iPads or iPhones as POS systems in lieu of more traditional options.

Article Link: Manhattan's Union Square Cafe Will Outfit Managers With Apple Watches to Improve Hospitality

 

[44267547]

The Apple Watch broadens the scope from fitness to the restaurant business.

 

[gamrin]

"inputted"

 

[Gooberton]

What's with everyone giving these things away? Can I sign up for a free one?

 

[unisz]

First world solution. You would never trust a waiter with payments in South Africa, as you can be pretty damn sure the restaurant won't see the money. Card skimming devices are all over the place here, used by waiters. Now you're asking me to pay a third part OS via a device on the waiter's arm? How will I know it's not a fake third party app? Am I missing something here?

 

[theheadguy]

Now that the 7/7+ deliveries are speeding up, we're back to scrambling for news...

 

[maxsix]

What's with everyone giving these things away?

Never underestimate how clever Apple is at marketing it's products.

Apple Watch is a somewhat nascent product requiring plenty of internal help to keep it selling. Fortunately Apple's so wealthy they can keep the watch on life support forever.

 

[lolkthxbai]

First world solution. You would never trust a waiter with payments in South Africa, as you can be pretty damn sure the restaurant won't see the money. Card skimming devices are all over the place here, used by waiters. Now you're asking me to pay a third part OS via a device on the waiter's arm? How will I know it's not a fake third party app? Am I missing something here?

Unless I missed something, they Apple Watch won't be used to take payments. It'll be used to supplement the ways the someliers and managers can communicate.

 

[MysteriousStain]

This is what is required when you hire millennials

 

[tmiw]

First world solution. You would never trust a waiter with payments in South Africa, as you can be pretty damn sure the restaurant won't see the money. Card skimming devices are all over the place here, used by waiters. Now you're asking me to pay a third part OS via a device on the waiter's arm? How will I know it's not a fake third party app? Am I missing something here?

Good thing this is being done in America, land where restaurant staff are given enough trust to take cards to the back of the restaurant to run them. (Also, your comment presumes that you don't trust Apple's app store vetting--otherwise fake apps shouldn't be a problem.)

 

[unisz]

Unless I missed something, they Apple Watch won't be used to take payments. It'll be used to supplement the ways the someliers and managers can communicate.

ResyOS:

"On the consumer side of the equation, ResyOS lets diners to pay with ResyPay, a digital payments solution that allows users to split the check and pay with their smartphones."

 

[unregbaron]

It sounds good but feels unnecessary in a well-managed restaurant with happy, motivated staff.

Maybe I'm old but I wouldn't appreciate working in a restaurant and having alerts going off on my wrist like I was a kind of automaton telling me my next task.

 

[truthertech]

First world solution. You would never trust a waiter with payments in South Africa, as you can be pretty damn sure the restaurant won't see the money. Card skimming devices are all over the place here, used by waiters. Now you're asking me to pay a third part OS via a device on the waiter's arm? How will I know it's not a fake third party app? Am I missing something here?

You are misunderstanding how Apple Pay works. It is the customer, not the business who wears their Apple Watch that is tied to the customer's iPhone. The ones worn by employees are for communicating among employees
[doublepost=1475135414][/doublepost]

It sounds good but feels unnecessary in a well-managed restaurant with happy, motivated staff.

Maybe I'm old but I wouldn't appreciate working in a restaurant and having alerts going off on my wrist like I was a kind of automaton telling me my next task.

You aren't old. You just can't envision how technology can be useful in these types of environments. They aren't telling you your next task; they are updating you and other team members with important information so you don't have to waste time and quiet with constant repetition of info.

 

[unisz]

You are misunderstanding how Apple Pay works. It is the customer, not the business who wears their Apple Watch that is tied to the customer's iPhone. The ones worn by employees are for communicating among employees

As mentioned above, this is from RemyOS:

"On the consumer side of the equation, ResyOS lets diners to pay with ResyPay, a digital payments solution that allows users to split the check and pay with their smartphones."

In other words, ApplePay talks to an unknown app to make payment happen. And that unknown app may or may not belong to the restaurant. Sure, Apple will try to filter out illegitimate apps, but the organisations behind these scams will also have ways to bypass it, guaranteed.

 

[djcerla]

Never underestimate how clever Apple is at marketing it's products.

Apple Watch is a somewhat nascent product requiring plenty of internal help to keep it selling. Fortunately Apple's so wealthy they can keep the watch on life support forever.

Life support? Yesterday night I was in a bar, saw many Watches on real people .This thing is reaching critical mass, not "life support"!

The fact that institutions give away Apple Watches doesn't mean they obtained them for free. It's Samsung that packs a free smartwatch in seemingly every dish washer or smartphone in order to look less bad in market stats.

 

[BlueMoon63]

Life support? Yesterday night I was in a bar, saw many Watches on real people .This thing is reaching critical mass, not "life support"!

The fact that institutions give away Apple Watches doesn't mean they obtained them for free. It's Samsung that packs a free smartwatch in seemingly every dish washer or smartphone in order to look less bad in market stats.

Funny - and true. The crazy giveaways from Samsung if you buy one of their phones... Now I saw that their washing machines might explode.

This is Apple marketing at its finest. Get the device in front of more people by having it worn by people seen over and over again each day.

My wife and I are on vacation in Cape Code and we went to a fancy restaurant and sat outside on their patio. There was probably 20 tables - all full - and as I looked around, at least 10 tables had at least one person with an Apple Watch. I was shocked so I kept looking around. Saw a total of 12-13 Apple Watches - most with sport bands - saw one Hermes with the double wrapped band.

 

[maxsix]

Life support?
It's Samsung that packs a free smartwatch in seemingly every dish washer or smartphone in order to look less bad in market stats.

What's interesting is Apple Devotees insecurities surface during a routine discussion of the product causing fear to make them bash Samsung for relief.

 

[2457282]

First world solution. You would never trust a waiter with payments in South Africa, as you can be pretty damn sure the restaurant won't see the money. Card skimming devices are all over the place here, used by waiters. Now you're asking me to pay a third part OS via a device on the waiter's arm? How will I know it's not a fake third party app? Am I missing something here?

Actually you may have missed the sentence that states they will not be giving the watch with the ResYOS to the waiters. Therefore all your comments about accepting payments don't seem to be in context. As a matter of fact the article specifically says that the manager will ping the server for the check. It is silent on how the payment will be received.

 

[aristobrat]

In other words, ApplePay talks to an unknown app to make payment happen. And that unknown app may or may not belong to the restaurant. Sure, Apple will try to filter out illegitimate apps, but the organisations behind these scams will also have ways to bypass it, guaranteed.

Is that right?

Seems like you'd be using the "PAY WITH RESYPAY" part of the official Resy app, not some unknown app. Screen shot of the (below) from the App Store shows that ApplePay integrates directly into that app.

Not saying it's impossible for someone to scam an app, but that scam app will have to be able to connect to the ResyOS system within the restaurant that you're sitting in and know how to pull down the check for your table. That seems like a pretty tall order for a scam app, IMO.



[doublepost=1475149514][/doublepost]

What's interesting is Apple Devotees insecurities surface during a routine discussion of the product causing fear to make them bash Samsung for relief.

Said the guy that brought the thought about Apple Watch being able to be kept on life support forever into a "routine discussion" about a potential new market for it.

A lot of your posts remind me of a fisherman. You throw out the bait, and then when someone bites, you reel them right in.

 

[Taz Mangus]

Said the guy that brought the thought about Apple Watch being able to be kept on life support forever into a "routine discussion" about a potential new market for it.

A lot of your posts remind me of a fisherman. You throw out the bait, and then when someone bites, you reel them right in.

LOL! Touche'. Some people come across like they want an Apple product to fail. FUD rears its ugly head.

 

[definitive]

If you need a watch to improve hospitality, then you're doing it wrong...

 

[neutralguy]

You are misunderstanding how Apple Pay works. It is the customer, not the business who wears their Apple Watch that is tied to the customer's iPhone. The ones worn by employees are for communicating among employees
[doublepost=1475135414][/doublepost]


You aren't old. You just can't envision how technology can be useful in these types of environments. They aren't telling you your next task; they are updating you and other team members with important information so you don't have to waste time and quiet with constant repetition of info.

How important the information is at a restaurant that needs Apple Watch? Texting is no good?

 

[lolkthxbai]

ResyOS:

"On the consumer side of the equation, ResyOS lets diners to pay with ResyPay, a digital payments solution that allows users to split the check and pay with their smartphones."

Ah gotcha, had to read the original article on Eater. So it's a third party app and it's handled on your phone, not the Apple Watch. The watch is just for communications between the staff. I'm assuming, because today this is what would possible, is that you download a third-party app called ResyOS or ResyPay from the App Store and pay for your bill there.

 

[Taz Mangus]

If you need a watch to improve hospitality, then you're doing it wrong...

So you are saying that a company should not use whatever tools they have at their disposal to possible improve and make the process of hospitality better. Because no company should look at possibly doing things better and/or more efficient. Got it.
[doublepost=1475166590][/doublepost]

How important the information is at a restaurant that needs Apple Watch? Texting is no good?

I would say seeing the message without having to physically pull out a phone and looking at it would help streamline the communication between people.

 

[RedOrchestra]

I trust you can also pay straight up with Apple Pay without having to download some dorky 3rd party app.

Do you still have to go through the Starbuck's App to use Apple Pay or can you pay straight up now?