Introduction

Welcome to “Byte to Bites,” your essential guide for forward-thinking restaurateurs looking to navigate the rapidly evolving digital dining landscape. Unlike traditional restaurant reviews that focus primarily on the quality of a restaurant’s food and service, we are first-hand experience and reviewing a customer’s journey and experience with a brand, and how a restaurant uses digital tools and tactics to help create first-class customer experiences. At Oddle, we believe a first-class customer experience results in happier customer outcomes, which ultimately leads to more sales from repeated business and word of mouth marketing.

Why read this series?

Understand Digital Trends: Quickly grasp how digital advancements can enhance the dining experience and create better customer outcomes for your restaurant.

Identify Opportunities: Spot potential improvements in your own current consumer journey experience.

Implement Solutions: Gain practical tips on adopting technologies and tactics that can elevate your restaurant’s appeal and efficiency.

Today, we have a very interesting study of a household brand and is personal go to restaurant of mine, so let’s get started!

A Consumer Journey Review at Din Tai Fung

Din Tai Fung - A Household Brand that needs no introductionDin Tai Fung, a name synonymous with Xiao Long Baos and long queues, has come a long way since it was first introduced to Singaporeans in 2003. 

For those of you that grew up without smartphones, you would know that back in the day, Din Tai Fung used to hand out order forms like these (pictured below) with your queue number attached. 

Gone are the days where you would have to wait nearby and listen attentively to the host calling for your number. Today you can simply take a queue number with your phone and wait till your table is ready. Din Tai Fung’s transformation and use of such tools makes it an excellent case study for understanding the impact of technology on customer experiences.

A typical order form and queue in the “dumbphone” era at the Paragon Outlet

Queue system today where everyone has smartphones at the MBS Outlet

Pre-Arrival Experience at Din Tai Fung

Our visit to Din Tai Fung at Suntec City was on a typical busy Friday night. The sight of a crowd outside the restaurant was daunting but not surprising given its popularity. What caught my attention was a prominently placed standee equipped with a QR code inviting customers to join the queue digitally.

Joining the Digital Queue:

Upon scanning the QR code, I was directed to a webpage displaying the current wait time—25 parties ahead. This transparency allowed my party to make an informed decision: to wait or to dine elsewhere. Opting to stay, I entered my name and contact details into the system. Almost instantly, a confirmation SMS pinged my phone, affirming my queue position and providing a link to monitor real-time updates.

Large Signage & Queue Number Display

Timely SMS with link to track queue status

Webpage to join the queue

👍🏻 Pre-Selection of Dishes:

The system didn’t just stop at queue management; it prompted me to pre-select our dishes through an online ordering platform. Reminiscent of Din Tai Fung’s paper-based ordering system, this digital counterpart felt both familiar and innovatively efficient. I browsed the menu, made our selections, and saved the order, ready to be finalised at our table.

Webpage with call-to-action letting you know that you can preselect items while waiting

Saved order which can be finalised upon seating. Made sure to to order the Oriental Salad of course.

Dining Experience: From Digital to Dish

👍🏻 Robot Assisted Host:

The moment our table was ready, I received a notification, urging us to return to the restaurant where we were greeted by the Host on duty. The host instructed us to follow a reception robot which would lead us to our table — a futuristic touch that added an element of delight to our experience.

Friendly Looking Reception Robot which brought us to our table

👍🏻 Finalising the Order:

At the table, a waiter warmly greeted us and presented a QR code to access and confirm our pre-order. This seamless transition from digital queuing to dining was impressive. The dishes we had selected online were swiftly served after confirmation, significantly reducing the waiting time typically associated with ordering in-house. No more awkward hand raises while trying to flag a waiter, especially good when you have a party thats hangry.

QR code to finalised the order which I had pre-selected and saved while waiting

Post-Dining: Engaging Beyond the Meal

The efficiency didn’t end with the meal. Payment was processed swiftly at the counter, where the cashier also took the opportunity to inquire about our dining experience—a personal touch that closed the meal on a high note.

👎🏻 The Follow-Up Survey:

At around 10:30PM, an SMS survey arrived, asking for feedback on various aspects of our dining experience. The survey was comprehensive, yet I couldn’t help but notice missed opportunities for personalisation and use of data collected —some of the questions like “which outlet did you visit today” felt redundant given that the system already had information about my visit and when I was seated.There were a total of 12 survey questions – and I couldn’t help but wonder about customers who might have given up half way because the survey was too long.

I also gave Din Tai Fung my email address so that I could receive future emails & promotions from them, but as of the time of writing, have yet to receive any communications or promotions from Din Tai Fung 

Final Thoughts: A Digital Dining Blueprint

What Stood Out

The digital queue system and pre-ordering feature significantly enhanced the dining experience, setting a high bar for operational efficiency.The use of technology, from service robots to QR code-based ordering, streamlined the process without overshadowing the warmth and quality of service.

Recommendations for Improvement:

• While data capture at the point of queuing was efficient, this system effectively only captured the profiles of ~25% of all customers walking through the door (assuming average party size of 4). Ding Tai Fung could implement some sort of rewards programme to capture signups – for example, offering guests a free welcome drink or soup when they sign up to become a member.

• The post-dining survey, though timely, could have leveraged existing data to reduce the number of questions, giving rise to a higher completion rate.

• For guests that have given permission to receive marketing, Din Tai Fung could have automatically sent a welcome email so as to stay top of mind and let the customer know about their various offerings. This not only leaves a good first impression, but allows the brand build a stronger relationship with those that have given permission to do so. For example, Din Tai Fung’s welcome email could have included links to their reservation system or food delivery links.

• For guests that left happy (as indicated by their survey answers), there was a lost opportunity in turning these guests into advocates. Din Tai Fung could have asked guests to leave a simple Google Review which would in turn help with getting more customers through the door. (Oddle has a feature to do this, which helps to improve your google review scores by at least 30%. Find out more below, or ask us here.)

Tsukada Nojo’s Check-in Redeemable which entitles each diner to redeem their own combo when they sign up

Sum Kee’s marketing email which lets the customer know that they can order online or reserve a table for their next visit

Oddle’s Survey tool which prompts customers to leave a google review if they enjoyed their experience. Guests also do not need to fill in their information again as it it integrated with Oddle’s reservation System.

Overall Verdict: A Model Blueprint

Din Tai Fung’s adept use of digital tools creates a consumer journey that’s not just about dining but about experiencing the future of hospitality. While there’s always room for growth, particularly in personalisation and data utilisation, Din Tai Fung serves as a compelling case study in digital dining excellence.

As we continue to explore the evolving landscape of digital dining, Din Tai Fung stands as a testament to the possibilities that lie at the intersection of technology and traditional hospitality.

Our Scores:

• Digital Engagement – 4/5

• Digital Integration – 5/5

• Personalisation – 3/5

• Customer Delight Factors – 4/5

• Follow-Up Engagement – 4/5

• Data Utilisation – 3/5