The Setup

Meet Radish Bistro, a (fictional) fast-casual restaurant serving fresh, seasonal fare with a mix of dine-in and online orders. Their kitchen operates a single production line that needs to handle orders from multiple channels—table service, their website, and third-party delivery apps. The challenge? Determining which orders to prepare first and keeping customers informed without overwhelming the front-of-house staff.

Serve every order on time

Fresh KDS keeps orders organized, your team on track and every shift running smoothly so service stays on time.

How They Use Fresh KDS

Intelligent Order Sorting
Radish Bistro's single production line receives orders from multiple sources throughout the day. Fresh KDS's intelligent order sorting feature automatically sequences all incoming orders—whether dine-in, pickup, or delivery—based on promised completion times and preparation requirements. Without this automatic prioritization, online orders were often ready well before the pickup time, which lowered the quality of the food. Additionally, dine-in guests were forced to wait longer while the kitchen prepared the online orders. By intelligently sorting the order queue, Fresh KDS helped Radish Bistro deliver a better customer experience for both groups of customers. 

SMS Customer Notifications
Online order customers used to either show up early and hover near the counter asking "Is it ready yet?" or arrive late when their food had been sitting for twenty minutes. Fresh KDS's SMS messaging feature solved this communication gap. When an order is marked complete on the kitchen display, the system automatically sends a text message to the customer letting them know their food is ready for pickup. The system also sends a courtesy text when the order is first received, providing an estimated ready time. This automation significantly reduced phone calls to the front desk asking about order status, and customers can time their arrival perfectly.

Ingredient All Day Counts
Radish Bistro's menu features items that share common components—grilled chicken appears in four different dishes, grilled steak in three, and fried potatoes in five. Keeping track of the number of portions needed to fulfill all the open orders was challenging, and if the kitchen didn’t drop the grilled items on time the order would end up being late. Fresh KDS's ingredient all day counts feature helps stations know how many of each item to cook, so they can know how much chicken should be on the grill without needing to scroll through the order queue. 

The Result
Radish Bistro efficiently manages mixed order streams from a single production line. Orders are prepared in the optimal sequence, customers receive timely updates without phone calls, and the prep team knows exactly what to prepare. Food waste decreased, ticket times improved, and kitchen staff can focus on cooking great food instead of playing traffic controller.

Fresh KDS Features Used:

• Intelligent Order Sorting - automatically sequences orders from all channels based on promised times and preparation requirements to optimize kitchen workflow
• SMS Messaging - sends automated text notifications to customers when orders are received and when they're ready for pickup
• Ingredient All Day Counts - tracks component usage across all menu items to provide accurate prep quantities and real-time inventory visibility

Ready to try Fresh KDS in your restaurant?