In the fast-paced and competitive world of the restaurant industry, efficient and reliable communication and connectivity are crucial to ensuring a smooth operation. This is where SD-WAN comes in, offering a powerful solution to address these needs. But not all SD-WAN solutions are created equal, and it’s important to find the right balance between features and cost.
Restaurant Internet Redundancy
One of the most important features of SD-WAN for restaurants is redundancy. This means that if one internet connection fails, another can take over seamlessly, ensuring that the restaurant’s operations are not disrupted. For example, if the primary internet connection goes down, the SD-WAN solution will automatically switch to a backup connection, such as LTE, ensuring that the restaurant can continue to take orders and process payments without interruption. This is especially important during busy periods, where any downtime could result in lost revenue and dissatisfied customers.
Internet Access and Delivery Apps
Redundancy is incredibly important for any restaurant that uses (or, especially, relies on) delivery apps like Uber Eats or Door Dash. All of the major delivery apps rely on your business showing signs of life. If your DoorDash or UberEats tablet isn’t able to be reached (internet access isn’t available), they pull you from the options their users see. If your internet goes offline for a few minutes, those apps simply don’t show your restaurant to users.
What we see most often, then, are restaurant owners paying for multiple LTE services – one for each tablet. While this ensures that your tablet has its own connection, it doesn’t really protect you against the loss of those connections.
OnePort SD-WAN for Network-level Failover
Fidalia’s OnePort service protects your entire network, not just your delivery apps. By using OnePort, restaurant operators can combine multiple internet connections at the edge to protect the entire restaurant network. Restaurants remove the LTE from a standalone delivery-app tablet and move it upstream to protect all tablets, POS, and the restaurant’s internal network. For the cost of one connection, the restaurant, in essence, protects the entire network.
Same-IP Failover and Restaurants
What’s more, is that OnePort can be configured to support same-IP failover – a configuration that makes multiple connections appear as one. If one connection goes offline, your network’s public IP address (the address it uses to reach the outside, online world) doesn’t change when the network traffic fails over to the backup connection. This means that any phone call (reservations, orders) and any video/ambiance that comes in from the internet doesn’t drop. With OnePort, the restaurant is able to survive a network outage with an imperceptible failover from, say, a fibre connection to an LTE backup.
SD-WAN and LAN Management
Another key feature of SD-WAN for restaurants is LAN management. This allows the restaurant to manage their local network, ensuring that all devices and applications are running smoothly. For example, if there are issues with the point-of-sale system, the SD-WAN solution can quickly identify and address the problem, reducing downtime and improving overall efficiency. In addition, SD-WAN can prioritize certain types of traffic, such as orders or payments, ensuring that they are given priority over less important traffic, such as social media or streaming.
OnePort SD-WAN and LAN Management
One of the features available through OnePort is the ability for the service to route traffic between multiple LANs – so your guest network can be separate from corporate. OnePort also allows users to manage their guest Wi-Fi directly from the service. So if you have a small restaurant reliant on tablets that can’t physically connect, the OnePort service can create a Wi-Fi network that is both redundant and secure.
SD-WAN and Restaurant Network Security
Security is also a critical factor for restaurants, as they handle sensitive customer information and financial transactions. SD-WAN solutions can provide advanced security features, such as firewalls, intrusion detection and prevention, and VPNs. These features help protect against cyber attacks and ensure that customer data is kept safe and secure. In addition, SD-WAN solutions can be configured to block unauthorized access to the restaurant’s network, reducing the risk of data breaches and other security incidents.
OnePort SD-WAN for Multi-Site Restaurants
One of the major benefits of using OnePort SD-WAN for Multi-Site restaurants is the ability for remote site-management and access. A five-site restaurant may have shared resources across the Wide Area Network. OnePort allows for users and applications from one location to be accessible at other sites. A digital menu, signage, inventory, and analytics – all able to be accessed without the need for multiple licenses or servers.
OnePort SD-WAN and Fidalia Phone Systems
The next major benefit of SD-WAN for restaurants is in centralizing the VoIP phone system. By putting all restaurant sites in an SD-WAN, each phone can get a stable, private IP address, prioritized VoIP traffic (via QoS) and same-IP failover to protect against call drops.
Other Restaurant-Friendly SD-WAN Features
In addition to redundancy, LAN management, and security, there are other features that restaurants should consider when selecting an SD-WAN solution. These include:
- Cloud-based management: This allows the restaurant to manage their SD-WAN solution from anywhere, providing flexibility and convenience.
- Scalability: The SD-WAN solution should be able to scale with the restaurant’s needs, whether they are opening new locations or experiencing rapid growth.
- Ease of deployment: The SD-WAN solution should be easy to deploy and integrate with existing systems, minimizing disruption to the restaurant’s operations.
- Cost-effectiveness: While SD-WAN solutions offer many benefits, they should also be cost-effective and provide a good return on investment.
Finding the Right SD-WAN Solution for Your Restaurant
When selecting an SD-WAN solution for your restaurant, it’s important to find the right balance between features and cost. While redundancy, LAN management, and security are critical, other factors such as ease of deployment and cost-effectiveness should also be considered. Working with an experienced SD-WAN provider such as Fidalia Networks can help you find the right solution for your restaurant, ensuring that you have the connectivity and communication tools you need to succeed in today’s competitive restaurant industry.
Frequently Asked Questions about SD-WAN for Restaurants
What happens if a restaurant’s primary internet connection fails during dinner service?
An SD-WAN solution such as Fidalia’s OnePort can automatically fail traffic over to a secondary connection such as LTE, cable, or another ISP connection without requiring manual intervention. This helps restaurants continue processing payments, online orders, reservations, and VoIP calls during outages.
Can SD-WAN prioritize payment terminals and POS traffic over guest Wi-Fi?
Yes. SD-WAN platforms can prioritize critical business traffic such as POS systems, payment processing, online ordering platforms, VoIP phones, and kitchen systems over lower-priority traffic like guest streaming or social media usage.
How does OnePort help multi-location restaurant groups?
OnePort provides centralized SD-WAN management across restaurant locations, allowing businesses to standardize security policies, monitor connectivity health, manage VLANs, and maintain operational consistency across all sites from a single platform.
Can restaurants use multiple internet providers at the same time with SD-WAN?
Yes. SD-WAN solutions can combine or intelligently route traffic across multiple internet services including fibre, cable, DSL, fixed wireless, and LTE. This improves resiliency and reduces dependency on a single carrier.
Does SD-WAN improve restaurant cybersecurity?
Modern SD-WAN solutions often include integrated firewall services, VPN capabilities, intrusion detection, segmentation, and traffic monitoring to help protect customer payment information and restaurant systems from cyber threats.
Can a restaurant keep the same IP structure and internal network while using OnePort?
Yes. Fidalia’s OnePort architecture is designed to minimize disruption to existing environments while improving resiliency and network continuity. This simplifies deployment and reduces operational complexity for restaurant operators and IT teams.