Bookatable launches mobile pay-at-table feature

Developed in partnership with mobile payment technology providers MyCheck and PayPal, the new feature will allow users to search for participating restaurants and pay or split the bill via PayPal or a registered card on a MyCheck account.

Busaba Eathai is the first restaurant to sign up to the feature, which is set to expand to more than 200 London sites by the end of June and more than 500 by the end of summer.

Bookatable currently works with over 12,000 restaurants, generating 2m bookings a month.

Joe Steele, CEO of Bookatable, said: “Pay-at-table technology has already brought about a fundamental change in consumer behaviour within the restaurant space.

“Being able to pay through a mobile device at the table not only increases loyalty and customer engagement, it also boosts revenues through capitalising on an increased number of table covers and allows restaurants to spend more time on customer service that would have otherwise been spent preparing the receipt.”

Bookatable’s announcement follows a report from Orderella and the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR)​ which found that customers increasingly viewed technology as a ‘necessity’, with hospitality businesses continually failing to meet expectations.

Shlomit Kugler, CEO from MyCheck, said that the 'booming' restaurant sector was driving more operators to differentiate themselves by offering features such as mobile payment. 

He added that the technology was giving customers a more personalised experience that began in the restaurant and continued through digital engagement after they left the restaurant.

Rob Harper, director of mobile commerce, PayPal UK said: “Customers love being able to pay the bill at their table without having to attract a waiter’s attention and wait for a card machine. Why wait for the bill when you can pay at the table on your smartphone?”