Journey through the past 10 years in a la carte restaurants by the eyes of management: changes in kitchen management systems

Abstract

This thesis looks at how kitchen management systems in a la carte restaurants have changed over the past decade. This topic is important to investigate since the use of technology has been greatly integrated into the everyday operations in restaurants and is only close to reaching its potential. By looking back into the past 10 years in the industry, it is possible to see in which di-rections the industry has moved and what is there to yet improve. The research investigates how moving from paper-based methods to digital systems has affected food preparation, waste man-agement, inventory control, and overall efficiency. Every individual who was interviewed had different kind of ideas on which has worked and what needs improvement in their kitchen management systems. The diversity of the attendants gave different insights of programs used and the outcomes of their every day work progresses. By analysing interviews with industry professionals and other data, this research uncovers key changes, benefits, and ongoing issues with modern kitchen management systems. Interviews were held by supportive open-ended questions and analysed by thematic analysation, which later granted the valuable insights for this research. The results show that digital systems have greatly improved how accurately restaurants track food preparation and inventory, tasks like these are done now daily compared to previously once a week. They also helped restaurants meet new health and safety rules and made operations smoother with mobile technology. Some franchise restaurants have even introduced mobile games to teach their staff about health and safety rules, instead of the older booklet learning method. Challenges still remain, including high initial costs, reliability problems, and the need for continuous staff training. These issues highlight the need for strong backup plans and effective training to make the most of new kitchen management systems. This research offers valuable insights into how technology has impacted kitchen management in a la carte restaurants and suggest areas for further study. It stresses the importance of adapting and innovating to keep up with industry changes, ensuring that kitchen management systems keep improving efficiency and customer satisfaction.