Too Many Choices

[LostinPOShell]

Hello there IT gurus. I am so confused. I'm opening my first QSR counter service restaurant and am lost as to which direction to go for my POS needs. I've been in touch with Micros, Revention and Radiant. I know there are a littany of other POS providers out there. Frankly, every rep I've spoken with frightens me. It feels like they all want to sell me a nice expensive system and will promise me the world on how great it is. One even claims 100% customer satisfaction rate. . . never had a complaint! I know problems will occur, I just want that to be exception and not the rule. All I want is a POS that does its job and doesnt break (and if it breaks, I want it to be back up and running within 24 hours). They all seem to do the same thing, so which system do I buy so I don't have to call on you smart people for assistance during my lunch rush?

 

[mixerjv]

My experience has mostly been with Aloha (Radiant) (10yrs.)- 2 restaurants.

In general, I think it's one of the best written pieces of code out there (very small memory profile, and runs fast even on old pentium 133's), I've never seen the code itself crash, only for other issues such as bad HDD and networking issues (or my own stupidity). Lots of flexibility in the menu programing. These things are very important to a restuarant operator.

The only thing I wish radiant would do is provide more direct support, at least perhaps a knowledge base, for end users. But if your are availing yourself of a reseller, that is a non-issue, just keep the software maintenance contract going.

 

[justafellow]

Run as fast as you can from Revention they market by completely twisting the truth about what they can do and smearing the competition. The owner has been kicked off of at least three other message boards. Almost all of the "Users" in there ads were given a free system. They sell on fear and misleading statements.
Look for a company that has been in business for a while that has users within a few miles of you. Ask people what they think of what they are using next time you buy a cup of coffee or a sandwich. A good system will cost a bit more but it really does pay off in the long run.

 

[zahead31]

My experience is with Aloha as well. I have maintained our system for over 6 years, so I am extremely used to it and I love it. I agree with mixerjv, keep a maintenance contract with your POS provider. No matter what POS you go with, there will be problems some day, and these guys will get you back up and running quickly.

If I were you, I would go to other QSR's that are similar to your concept. See what POS they are using, talk to the employees, and see how they like it. Talk to the managers and see how they like it. Of course you want your audit reports and your accounting reports, but you also need something that will work well with your operation when you are rocking a busy lunch or dinner.