TouchBistro Review

• TouchBistro is a POS system for restaurants looking to manage their tables, menu and staff.
• We chose TouchBistro as the best POS for the guest experience because of its flexible, customer-friendly features like tableside ordering.
• TouchBistro offers affordable pricing, with monthly subscriptions starting at $69.
• This review is for restaurant owners looking for a POS system with inventory management features and CRM tools like those offered by TouchBistro. 

TouchBistro is our best pick for a point-of-sale (POS) system that prioritizes the restaurant guest experience, thanks to its customer-focused features like tableside ordering. The company offers an affordable solution that meets the needs of restaurants seeking mobile POS systems. TouchBistro has tons of helpful features like payment processing, loyalty programs and inventory management.

Impressively, TouchBistro allows you to create a customized solution to fit your specific business. You can start with the $69 monthly plan and add on additional features as needed. This creates a scalable solution that can grow alongside your company. 

TouchBistro Editor's Score: 94/100

Why TouchBistro Is Best for Guest Experience

TouchBistro is a POS system for full-service restaurants, coffee shops and cafes. It's our best pick for food businesses focused on the guest experience because of features like online ordering, reservations and customer loyalty programs. You can use the software to monitor seating and table arrangements, update the menu, split tickets, and send orders to the kitchen. 

We love that TouchBistro is a flexible solution for restaurants of all sizes. If you're a smaller restaurant or food truck, you can get started with a low monthly subscription and minimal upgrades. As your restaurant grows, you can add additional features and hardware to support your business. This makes TouchBistro a scalable solution for restaurants of all sizes. The vendor continues to update the platform to offer more services that busy restaurant owners need. 

Tip: TouchBistro no longer offers self-service kiosk software, so if this is something you need, consider another POS system.

Source: TouchBistro

Pros

• The TouchBistro interface is easy to use and train your staff on. 
• The platform comes with tons of restaurant-specific features. 
• The software integrates with multiple payment processors. 

Cons

• TouchBistro doesn't offer a free trial or any kind of free plan.
• If you upgrade your account with a lot of add-ons, it can quickly get expensive.
• The software has limited third-party integrations. 

Usability

TouchBistro's software is incredibly intuitive and easy to use. It works on iOS devices and comes with a separate training mode to train your staff without disrupting normal business operations.

The platform has a simple, uncluttered ordering screen, which makes it easy to find the items you're looking for. We love that you can customize the software to meet your business's needs. For instance, add-on features like online ordering and reservations make the software more functional. If you run into any problems along the way, TouchBistro provides 24/7 customer support via phone, email and chat. 

Features

TouchBistro stands out against other POS systems thanks to its feature-rich software. The company updates the software regularly, adding new features to support restaurants that really want to improve both the guest experience and behind-the-scenes operations. Here is an overview of some of the best features from TouchBistro. 

Restaurant Management 

You can use TouchBistro to manage your entire restaurant, including creating a digital floor plan. The drag-and-drop tools allow you to manage your tables and seating, ensuring your restaurant stays at full occupancy with minimal wait times. With this tool, you also can easily change your floor plan at any time. For instance, let's say you recently renovated your restaurant and the seating chart is different now. All you have to do is drag and drop the elements to their new locations to update your display. 

Inventory Management

TouchBistro offers a robust inventory management system that lets you track orders at the ingredient level. This ensures that you never run out of your most popular menu items. This feature also helps you manage your recipes by flagging items that are running low. And if you happen to run out of an item, TouchBistro will remove it from your menu. Unfortunately, you can't reorder items through the POS system, which is a bummer. 

However, you can add inventory items manually or use a barcode scanner. The software shows you the cost of each menu item, which can help you determine which ones are making you money and which ones you should scrap. 

Customer Management

Source: TouchBistro

With TouchBistro's customer management software, you can create customer accounts to track preferences and past purchases. You can then use that information to create new promotions and loyalty programs, which is one of the reasons this vendor is an excellent choice for businesses that want to emphasize the guest experience. We also like that the customer loyalty features make it possible to collect customer data to develop branded gift cards and other rewards. [Related article: CRM Metrics You Should Know]

For $99 per month, TouchBistro Loyalty gives you access to these features:

• CRM platform
• Customer loyalty accounts
• Customer web app
• Marketing tools for targeted email marketing promotions
• Reward options
• Marketing and rewards reports

If you don't want to spring for the TouchBistro Loyalty add-on, consider the best CRM software instead.

Employee Management

As a TouchBistro client, you can add an unlimited number of users to your account. Multiple employees can seat tables and ring up customers without your having to pay for additional accounts. You can create new profiles for each employee and assign staff roles within the software. This ensures that you have the final say over who has access to what information. 

The POS software also has a built-in time clock and scheduling integration, and you can use the in-app messaging feature to communicate with employees during their shifts. As an alternative, check out our recommendations for the top time and attendance software, which serves the same purpose.

Reporting

Source: TouchBistro

TouchBistro comes with advanced reporting features, and all of your data is stored in the cloud. That means you can access your POS sales data anywhere as long as you have internet access. Here are some of the reports you can run:

• Total sales
• Menu item, category and promotion sales
• Statistical summaries
• Payments
• Staff shifts, activities and tips
• Discounts, deletions and voids
• Taxes and general accounting
• Inventory tracking (by ingredient)

Reservations

Another way to improve the guest experience is by adding on TouchBistro Reservations. With this feature, you can accept reservations on your website, through various apps and via Google. When customers make a reservation, they can include details about any allergies and dining preferences. Once you obtain the contact information through a customer's reservation, two-way SMS and email notifications help reduce your rate of no-shows. 

Integrations

TouchBistro integrates with popular apps like QuickBooks, Xero and Square. The software also has an API for custom integrations, but it's available to select TouchBistro partners only. The vendor's integrations are pretty minimal compared to what other POS systems offer, which is disappointing. If integrations are important to you, we recommend exploring a competitor like Lavu.

Key takeaway: TouchBistro has everything you need to run a restaurant, whether a food truck business or a 10-table dining room. Its software includes inventory management, employee management, CRM POS functions, advanced POS reports and integrations.

Cost

TouchBistro is an affordable POS system, and the company makes it easy to figure out how much its services will cost you. The subscription prices and add-ons are listed on its website, so you'll know your out-of-pocket costs upfront. 

POS Software Plans

TouchBistro is a hybrid POS system, which means the software runs from an on-site server, but the data is stored in the cloud. The advantage of this is that you can continue to ring up sales even if you lose your internet connection, but your data is always available in the cloud. For this service, TouchBistro's subscription plans start at $69 per month and include these features:

• Menu management
• Table management
• Reporting features
• Tableside ordering
• Staff management
• App integrations

You can opt for the following add-ons:

• Loyalty programs – starting at $99 per month
• Online ordering – starting at $50 per month
• Marketing – starting at $99 per month
• Gift cards – starting at $25 per month
• Reservations – starting at $229 per month 

Payment Processing

When it comes to payment processing, you can either use TouchBistro Payments for customized rates or opt for a third-party payment processor. The software integrates with Worldpay, TSYS, Square, Chase and Moneris, which is important since TouchBistro Payments is available to U.S. clients only. Read our review of Square to see if it's the right credit card processor for your business.

POS Hardware

Source: TouchBistro

TouchBistro simplifies the purchase process by using an iPad as part of its POS system. You can use an iPad, iPad Pro or iPad Mini to take orders and process payments right at the table. You can also connect the system to a television or other screen to turn it into a digital menu board.

TouchBistro supports the use of third-party hardware, which gives you more flexibility to shop around. You'll have to contact TouchBistro for specifics on hardware pricing. 

If you choose to purchase hardware through TouchBistro, make sure its equipment meets your restaurant's needs. As noted in our review of rival POS provider Clover, some vendors are better at hardware than others.

Did you know?: While TouchBistro is a great POS option for restaurants of all sizes, competitor Revel is ideal for established restaurants, while Upserve is great for small restaurants. Read our full Upserve review for all the details.

Setup

Once you become a TouchBistro customer, you'll be assigned a dedicated onboarding specialist. This individual will help with the software and hardware installations and provide training on using the TouchBistro system. 

The user-friendly dashboard is fairly simple to use and train your employees on. However, if you choose to modify certain features like the table layout and menu, the system may take a bit longer to set up. 

Customer Service

TouchBistro provides excellent customer service, with 24/7 access by phone and email. So if you own a bar or establishment that runs late at night, you'll always have access to the help you need. The company also provides a detailed knowledge base, video tutorials and how-to guides on its website. Our own guide on how to understand and use POS systems may be helpful for you too!

Drawbacks

There's a lot to like about TouchBistro, but there are a few drawbacks to consider. For example, TouchBistro is a hybrid system, which means it'll be more expensive than a cloud-based solution. You'll also need an on-site server to manage the software. 

Also, as noted above, TouchBistro doesn't allow for as many integrations as other POS systems on the market. While the software has a lot to offer businesses in and of itself, if it's not compatible with your preferred apps, the investment may not be worth it.

Methodology

To evaluate this POS system, we attended an hour-long demo with the TouchBistro team. During this demo, we got a behind-the-scenes look at how the software works and were able to ask questions. In addition, we compared TouchBistro to over a dozen other POS systems currently available. This helped us get a good idea of where TouchBistro stands out and where it could stand to improve. 

We compiled all our picks for the best POS systems in one place for a convenient overview, while also putting together more in-depth reviews, like this one of TouchBistro.

FAQs

How much does TouchBistro cost?

TouchBistro's pricing starts at $69 per month, with the option to pay for additional add-on features like reservations and gift cards. 

Who should use TouchBistro?

TouchBistro is an excellent option for restaurants of all sizes. If you run a full-service restaurant, bar, cafe or bakery, you should consider TouchBistro's POS options. 

Does TouchBistro have positive online reviews?

TouchBistro has a mix of online reviews, but the positive reviews seem to outweigh the negative ones. Overall, most TouchBistro customers seem to have a good experience with the company. 

Overall Value

We recommend TouchBistro for …

• Full-service restaurants, bars and cafes.
• Establishments looking to provide an outstanding guest experience.
• Restaurants that want to integrate the software with third-party hardware or a third-party payment processor. 

We don't recommend TouchBistro for …

• Restaurants looking for a cloud-based POS system.
• Restaurants looking for the maximum number of software integrations.