Taco Bell to accept orders via smartphones later this year

[Shawn Knight]

If standing in line to order food at the local fast food joint is too much of a chore for you, Taco Bell has you covered. The fast food chain is planning to roll out a mobile ordering platform nationwide later this year according to a report from Nation’s Restaurant News.

This isn’t a new course of action for the chain, however. Instead of relying on existing services, Taco Bell spent the past two and a half years developing their own mobile ordering platform. Here’s how it works.

The app will use GPS to locate the nearest restaurant and show menu pricing. Orders can be placed before the customer arrives for pick-up but the food won’t actually be prepared until the app determines they are near the store.

Once a user arrives, they will be able to pick up orders either inside the restaurant (at a special to-go line, no less) or by going through the drive-thru. Taco Bell accepts gift cards or credit cards for payment and we’re told that frequent shoppers can store their favorite order for quick reference in the future.

The chain recently conducted a closed beta at five stores in Orange County and will be rolling out the service to other locations in the coming weeks to sort out operational challenges ahead of a full-scale rollout by the end of the year.

Do you think you’d use an app to order your food at a fast food restaurant or is it not worth the hassle?

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https://www.techspot.com/news/55674-taco-bell-to-accept-orders-via-smartphones-later-this-year.html

 

[Kibaruk]

I would! I definitely would!! I hate waiting for my food on restaurants when I want to take out, so I usually call first and then arrive pay get my food and leave, if this works for Taco Bell it would push other fast food stores and restaurants to hop in the hip wagon and implement and/or improve the system. It would also avoid the hassle of paying to a cashier or wait for people to make up their mind when ordering.

 

[TS-56336]

We now live in a world where fast food simply isn’t fast enough. Yikes.

 

[Kibaruk]

We now live in a world where fast food simply isn’t fast enough. Yikes.

When there are lots of people who won't decide on what to get or pay with cents you can actually slow down quite a lot the "fast" food

I'm mostly interested in seeing this tech on restaurants, the ability to see the updated prices on different places near you, really great idea!

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

We now live in a world where fast food simply isn’t fast enough. Yikes.

The fast food moniker stuck around like 'dialing' a telephone number. Back in they those places used to have food prepared before you got there... there would be hamburgers etc already wrapped behind the counter and they'd just throw one on your tray when you ordered. (Some places like Rocky Rococo's Pizza still do it this way because pizza is slow to make) now they make everything to order except the fries.

I think this would be a big hit. Especially with the younger crowd who already go to Taco Bell every Sat at the end of a long night.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Well I haven't ordered take outs... must be close on five years now, so I'm surprised something like this is not already commonplace among fast food chains. No, a service like this wouldn't interest me in the least and neither would the app.

 

[insect]

I'd use this. Should result in fewer incorrect orders.

 

[Mister_K]

If only there were more Taco Bell restaurants in UK *cries*

 

[Axiarus]

I'd use this. Should result in fewer incorrect orders.

Actually, as a current Taco Bell employee, I can tell you that this will result in more incorrect orders. Taco Bell's have two food prep lines, one for Drive Thru and one more Dining Room. One of these lines is going to have to pickup and make that order in the midst of what might be a very busy night. They are not going to have a separate line installed and manned for this.