Wait Not, Want Not: Six Ways to Run Restaurants Without Waiters 

They’re the restaurant’s human face: ensuring customers feel welcome, answering questions and bringing out each course with efficiency and charm. That’s right, we’re talking about waiting staff.  Waiters and waitresses have always played a big part in the experience of eating out. However, in big cities with high property prices, good ones can be hard to find, never mind pay. That’s why some restaurants are starting to think the unthinkable: is it possible to have a successful waiter-free restaurant?The idea of virtual service came up in a recent report on the UK restaurant sector by Paymentsense. It highlighted enthusiasm for the idea. Indeed, 76 percent of consumers would consider ordering by app, if they could, including up to 92 percent of young families.

So, are waiting staff critical to the dining experience? Or just a cultural hangover from a more deferential age? And what approaches are restaurant businesses using right now to serve customers without servers?…