Dubai, UAE: Restaurants in the UAE food market have identified API integration, waiter ordering apps, real-time restaurant reports, and Face ID systems as the most useful new technological tools, in addition to traditional POS (point of sale) terminals, according to research conducted by Syrve MENA.

Syrve MENA, the leading restaurant management solutions provider, has conducted an extensive study on digital and tech trends in the UAE's thriving food and beverage market. The research data shows the most popular and impactful technological solutions embraced by Emirati restaurateurs among which are API integration (Application Programming Interface) with e-commerce support partners, the waiters' mobile terminals for order taking, dashboard apps with online real-time reports, Face and Finger ID systems, and call centres. These advanced technologies, alongside the tried and tested POS (point of sales) terminals, are widely used to increase the level of automation in the UAE restaurant industry.

Based on comprehensive data collected from over 1,300+ restaurants and cafes across the UAE, Syrve's MENA research showcases the reliance on these digital solutions among Emirati food and beverage venues. The top 5 tech solutions identified by Syrve MENA's study include:

1. API integration with third-party platforms - 89%
2. Waiters' mobile terminals for quick order taking - 40%
3. Web and mobile dashboard – Online Reports for Restaurants - 27%
4. Face and finger ID – attendance log and dangerous operation control - 9%
5. Call Center – centralized order taking and registration - 7%

"The UAE is dominating in the Middle East food tech and POS software market due to surging growth of hospitality and food and beverage industry, increasing focus toward the tourism. The evolving market is creating a growing interest in innovative technological solutions and digital transformation and the need for effective management of restaurant operations by using advanced technologies. I believe that these cutting-edge tech solutions will be able to speed up the UAE food industry development opening new possibilities for the restaurateurs,"
— Alexander Ponomarev, Syrve MENA CEO commented.

API integration with third-party platforms emerges as the most useful tech tool for UAE restaurateurs (chosen by 90% of study participants), allowing them to tap into e-commerce support partners, and connect with leading delivery services and aggregators. Waiter mobile ordering apps have emerged as one of the most favoured digital tools for the UAE restaurant market (40%) enhancing service speed and communication between staff and customers. Dashboard web-mobile apps (used by 27%) with online reports provide real-time analytics and monitoring for restaurant owners on their smartphones. Face and Finger ID systems (9%) are in demand for their secure streamlined authentication using biometric data saving restaurants from fraud. Internal call centre systems (utilized by 7% of restaurateurs) enhance customer service with centralized order-taking and registration, customer data storage, order monitoring, and quality control.

According to State of Restaurant Tech Report data, 75% of food operators are willing to adopt new technology in the next year (among fine-dining restaurants, that number rises to 85%). Moreover, a staggering 71% of restaurants have expressed their intention to boost technology spending in 2023, demonstrating a clear and growing demand for contemporary restaurant technology solutions. On the global level, the Point-of-Sale Software market size is expected to reach $20 billion by 2028, rising at a market growth of 10.6% CAGR during the forecast period, according to KBV Research. Restaurants, cafes, and other businesses are driven to seek new tech solutions and cloud-based point-of-sale (POS) software to manage cashless transactions, monitor sales and inventory data, and enhance sales strategy using analytics.

About Syrve MENA

Syrve MENA is a part of Syrve Global, a leading hospitality point-of-sale (POS) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) provider headquartered in UAE. The company provides food and beverage businesses with cutting-edge tech to run their operations, developing innovative solutions for the global food service market (54+ countries) to automatize bars, restaurants, and hospitality businesses. The group operates across MENA and Europe with offices in Dubai, London, Milan and the recently founded Cairo branch. Syrve MENA’s strategy is to automate up to 80% of daily routines in the Food & Beverage industry in the MENA region and across the globe by offering the latest technologies such as FaceID, AI Forecasting, and a powerful Application Program Interface (API). 

Syrve MENA was chosen by Caterer Middle East as one of the top Tech & Digital Pioneers 2023.

Media Contact:
Valerie Shabelnikova
Syrve MENA Public Relations Manager
valerie@prhub.ae