Newk’s Eatery’s is rolling out its new online ordering platform. For more than a decade, the fast-causal restaurant brand has served up food experiences for both its in-house and takeout diners, engaging guests around its tables in an inviting atmosphere, while also offering busy customers a separate Grab N’ Go entrance with a custom refrigerated selection of popular menu items made daily. After the mid-November debut of Newk’s online ordering program—to be implemented nation-wide by year’s end—guests will have two ways to take Newk’s dishes on the road or home for dinner. For online purchasers, Grab N’ Go entrances will serve as a convenient pick up point for Newk’s made-to-order meals.
“The online ordering tool and Grab N’ Go concepts not only offer guests a chance to pick up a flavorful meal on the go, but they also serve as a valuable revenue stream for our franchisees,” says Alan Wright, vice president of franchise operations and marketing. “Newk’s delivers some of the highest unit-level economics in the industry, and we expect the efficiency of our rapid-order programs to further contribute to the restaurants’ bottom line value while enhancing our guests’ experience.”
When the online ordering platform test launched at 12 restaurants in Birmingham, Alabama and in Newk’s homebase in Jackson, Mississippi earlier this year, the company found the average ticket price for individual online orders was $5 higher than dine-in. During the test phase, web developers also fine-tuned the user experience with a group order portal that makes placing individual orders for an entire office nearly as simple as ordering lunch for one. Through the group portal, office administrators invite team members to submit their custom order from their own computer or tablet, eliminating the daunting task of keeping up with multiple meal preferences within the larger order.
“We have uncompromising standards for quality and service in every guest experience, including our ordering technologies,” says Adam Karveller, Newk’s director of information technology. “Our web-based ordering platform has paved the way for future growth in Newk’s technical offerings, including mobile apps that would allow guests to more quickly and easily place orders through Apple and Android devices.”
