Blog
How restaurant technology actually works — what the tools do, what they cost, and what the pricing pages leave out.
Thinking
4
questions to ask
Four questions you can check yourself.
What Makes a POS "AI-Native"?
Every restaurant POS claims AI now. Four questions separate a system built around it from one with a chatbot bolted on — and each of them is something you can check yourself.
Comparison
Tier 3
where your KDS lives
Your KDS is in the top one.
Chowbus POS Pricing: What the Three Tiers Actually Cost
Chowbus publishes three plans and no prices. Delivery and waitlist sit in tier two, the kitchen display in tier three. Here is what is in each tier, what it says about the model, and where Chowbus is genuinely the better buy.
Updated
Deep dive
403
Forbidden
A two-minute test most sites fail.
Can an AI Actually Read Your Restaurant's Website?
Guests now ask ChatGPT where to eat. Whether you show up depends on something most owners have never checked: whether an automated reader can fetch your site at all. Here is a two-minute test, and what we found when we ran it.
Comparison
Tier 4
where your KDS lives
The KDS is three tiers up.
MenuSifu Pricing: Free to Start, Then Four Tiers
MenuSifu publishes one price — $0 for its entry plan. Delivery and the waitlist arrive at Pro, the kitchen display at Premium. Here is what each tier holds, and where a decade of Chinese-restaurant focus genuinely wins.
Updated
Comparison
$249
per month, plus 5%
And your guest pays 5% too.
Owner.com Pricing: What It Costs You and Your Guests
Owner.com runs $249/mo plus a 5% restaurant fee, or $499/mo flat. On both plans your guests pay a 5% order support fee. Here is the full math, what it buys, and the one structural question worth asking before you sign.
Updated
Comparison
$499
per month
And it still ships with a human.
Toast IQ Pricing: Is $499/Month Worth It?
Toast charges $499/mo for Toast IQ Grow and staffs it with a human Marketing Success Manager. Here is what that buys, what the math comes to, and what the bundle says about the product.
Updated