Digital Transformation in the Restaurant Industry: Current Developments and Implications

Abstract

Restaurants are an important area of the hospitality industry. This industry sector has not only experienced severe consequences of the recent lockdowns, but it has also seen the rise of digital technologies. As known from other industries, the digital transformation impacts products, processes and business models alike. Starting from the classical distinction of a restaurant's front-and back-of-the-house processes, this paper presents an overview on current developments in the restaurant industry and based on an analysis of current digital services, it derives some implications for future directions. Among the observations are that restaurants need to cover more touch points, provide more individualized offerings and strive for more automation as well as integration of their systems.