What happens when group buying meets touch, with a tinge of interactivity (and game theory)? Well, Touche Diner is a Bangalore based restaurant that offers interactive menus on guest’s tables and is interestingly, world’s fifth and India’s first touch table diner restaurant.

At Touche, the guests can watch and order from its interactive menu right on their tables, where its featured the images of the actual plating and presentation of the menu items. While the diners are waiting for the food they can enter into a lot of interactive activities and games to make their dining experience a lot more fun.

Here is an interview with Touche founding team talking about the concept and future plans:

Pluggd.in: Tell us about your (and cofounders’)  life before starting Touche.

Jiby Mathews – comes from IT background, was into developing web based database driven applications previously. Shodhan Shetty – Comes from Hospitality background,P and is running serviced apartments based in Blore and Hyderabad in the name of serenity inn.

Pluggd.in: What was the inspiration behind this concept?

Jiby Mathews developed the concept and framework in 2006, and did a pilot as part of the project work during for his masters degree MS in Interactive Multimedia, at Middlesex university in London.

Pluggd.in: How does it exactly work?

Interactive Group Buying : – People Power gets you bigger discounts at Touché

The more you buy the more discounts you earn, the 21^st century way! In a new interactive way inspired by social interaction you can order and share the costs with other diners at the restaurant and it is all online. The more of the same drink the group orders for the more the discounts earned by everyone who orders it in the restaurant at the same time.

This happy hours offer churns out discounts up to 80% on all drinks. When you start a deal for drink, the discount is activated and immediately other customers receive Pop ups on their table screen asking them if they would like to purchase the same drink at a reduced price. The more the people that agree to buy same thing, the more the discount they receive.

Pluggd.in: How many times does it happen that two people have ordered the same thing?

Every time some one orders for an alcohol it throws popups in other tables where there are alcohol orders, saying about the order and telling them the discount they can get if they follow up and order the same item. If anyone buys it, it sends an automated thank you note to the original table that generated the deal and throw them the new price the item is on offer, enticing them to buy more and further reduce the price on all existing orders of the drinks. This is a to and fro motion making between all tables, and resulting in the price of the item getting reduced until it hits the lowest ceiling which can be up to 80% off on all the existing orders of the item.

Discounts of all items can be viewed on all tables and the more the discounts the more people join in to get the drinks at the lowest prices.

Pluggd.in: Is this bootstrapped? What are your future/expansion plans?

This is not boot strapped and are currently looking for expansion plans through calling franchisees in other cities.

Pluggd.in: Who handles the technology part?

Our Software development team handles the technology side.

Pluggd.in: How does the order management system works (once the order is placed via the touch screen)? Do you think an impersonal system works better than a waiter-please-take-the-order?

Order taking :- The guests orders are transmitted to the tablets carried around by the captains, who shall approach the table as and when there is a fresh order and confirm the orders with the guests and take any special instructions on the orders if at all. The captains execute the orders from the tablets which shall directly go to the kitchen or bar.

This way its a good mix of technology and also posses a human factor to make it more personal and at the same time leave no room for errors and miscommunications on the orders.

Pluggd.in:  What about customers’ reaction to the touch screen. Are they comfortable with it?

People have accepted the concept very well and because of the extremely user friendly interface and 100 + games on the table, they are very comfortable with it. The UI is very self explanatory so no one explains how to use the system as the users themselves always find their way around and operate the system comfortably.

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When in Bangalore, do surely give Touche Diner a touch and share your experience. Touche is an example of how technology can be applied to create an experience and importantly, extract more moolah from your customers (increased ARPU). Know of more such businesses? Do connect them with us.