Two-Way Radios for Restaurants – Our Top 5 Picks

Running a successful restaurant is a challenging job because it requires the utmost attention to detail. When you’re managing hundreds of people, everything from food preparation and customer service, to cleanliness and staff motivation must all be perfect. In order to deliver these high standards across the board, restaurant employees often need instant communication with one another across long distances or large areas.

This is where two-way radios are so useful! These devices are becoming more and more popular among restaurant owners and employees because of how easy they make communication between different restaurant employees and departments.

In this article, we will discuss why two-way radios are so important in the restaurant industry, how different types of restaurant workers use them, which features are most important for these devices in restaurants, and finally, review five of our favourite two-way radios for restaurant use.

Need help choosing the right two-way radios for your restaurant? 

Get in touch by phone at 0151 263 9993 or send us an enquiry.

What are the Unique Challenges of Running a Restaurant?

Restaurants have a wide range of different employees – from servers and hostesses to managers and chefs. Communication between all these staff members is crucial during a busy lunch and dinner service to ensure that everything is synchronised and coordinated. This organisation is key to serving diners quality food on schedule which will ensure they come back to your restaurant and tell all their friends.

While cell phones can be used as two-way radios, they might not work in every part of the restaurant lot due to a lack of signal coverage. This can leave restaurant workers without an effective method of communication which can slow down restaurants operations. Furthermore, cell phones are not designed for use in noisy restaurants where customers are dining and talking loudly over the music which makes them difficult to hear.

Any kind of communication disruption will ultimately impact the quality of the food and service and restaurant guests will suffer as a consequence. It is therefore crucial that every restaurant invests in a quality two-way radio system.

Need help choosing the right two-way radios for your restaurant? 

Get in touch by phone at 0151 263 9993 or send us an enquiry.

How do Different Restaurant Employees Use Two-Way Radios?

With the necessity for various departments and roles to come together as one cohesive unit, it is important that the communication needs of every restaurant worker are met. Here are just some of the use of two-way radios for different employees:

• Restaurant managers use two-way radios to communicate with employees on the floor. They can advise them of changes or help out in an emergency. Two-way radios also enable managers in different departments to coordinate with each other to make sure the guests’ needs are met.
• Servers rely heavily on their walkie talkies when checking reservations, directing customers to tables, taking orders, serving food, refilling drinks and synching with the kitchen. If they are not able to hear over the noise of customers talking, then it is easy for mistakes to be made.
• Chefs need two-way radios to coordinate kitchen functions. They use their walkie talkies to relay information about the orders, tell cooks what dishes need to be prepared, and let waiters know when food is done.
• Bussers need two-way radios so that they can communicate with servers if necessary or ask managers questions without interrupting other staff members during busy lunch and dinner services.
• Hosts rely on being able to quickly communicate with employees in the back of house as well as guests out front, especially at large parties where there are several runners taking multiple requests simultaneously.
• Bartenders rely on their walkie talkies to relay drink requests from customers at the bar as well as inform waiters of which tables are ready for another round.

Need help choosing the right two-way radios for your restaurant? 

Get in touch by phone at 0151 263 9993 or send us an enquiry.

What are the Most Important Two Way Radio Features for Restaurants?

Lightweight and Durable

Two-way radios for restaurant use need to be lightweight and easily portable so that employees can carry them around with ease. They also need to be tough enough for daily use, as many restaurants will constantly have employees using the radios throughout their shift. It is easy for two-way radios to pick up a few knocks during a busy service so restaurants need to make sure their radios have solid casings and that all their components are well-made.

Dustproof and waterproof rating

Restaurant kitchens are busy, messy places, which means that kitchen walkie talkies may be exposed to some harsh conditions. To ensure they work well in dirty environments, restaurants need two-way radios with dustproof and waterproof features. Two-way radios are given an IP rating for their dust and water resistance. For example, a radio with IP67 has a dustproof rating of 6 and a waterproof rating of 7. This will mean that the radio is very well protected from both solids and liquids. Understanding exactly what these ratings mean can be a little difficult, so you can find out more about the different levels of protection by clicking here.

Push to talk button

With chatty customers, restaurant music, and busy staff, restaurants can be extremely noisy places. To make sure that employees are able to communicate without any problems, push-to-talk buttons are crucial. These will allow employees to talk directly over their radios by simply pressing down on the microphone button whenever they need to communicate.

Emergency Button

If there is ever an emergency in which managers or restaurant employees need assistance then two-way radios with an emergency button can be very useful. These allow individuals to alert the rest of their team if there is a big problem like a medical emergency or an unruly guest.

Clear audio

In a loud environment like a busy restaurant, clear audio is essential so it is very important that restaurants choose radios with well-made speakers that always deliver crisp, clear audio. This will enable servers, chefs, and managers to communicate effectively, and will ensure the restaurant operates smoothly without any avoidable mistakes.

Need help choosing the right two-way radios for your restaurant? 

Get in touch by phone at 0151 263 9993 or send us an enquiry.

Our Top 5 Two-Way Radios for Restaurants

1. DigiX NEO

2. DigiX SUN

3. DigiX SEA

4. DigiX Sky

5. DigiX Star

Our Number 1 Pick: DigiX NEO

The DigiX NEO is our number one choice overall because our number one pick overall because of its superior performance and a full set of features at an affordable price. The NEO is able to operate on multiple channels simultaneously so that employees can communicate instantly both within their own department and with other departments when necessary.

With its clear audio, the NEO also allows restaurant employees to hear each other over the hubbub of a busy dining room or kitchen. In addition, the NEO offers a push-to-talk button so employees can instantly communicate with each other without having to fiddle around with dials or complicated settings when they are busy completing different tasks. This is particularly useful for chefs in the kitchen and for managers and servers who always have their hands full.

All of this makes the NEO one of the best choices for restaurants looking for value and simplicity rather than spending more money on higher-end models which offer similar benefits.

#2 DigiX Sun

The DigiX Sun is a really easy-to-use walkie-talkie that offers a great set of features and at an affordable price. It is ready to use straight out of the box so you won’t need to waste time setting it up or teaching your employees any complex functions. It comes with 16 pre-programmed channels and 32 channels total so that you can connect all of your teams, and is lightweight and compact making it perfect for restaurant use.

The Sun has a water and dust resistance rating of IP54  so it is well protected from all but the worst conditions, and its long-life lithium battery will give your employees 18 hours of continuous use. It also offers clear audio with its powerful speaker and sturdy construction for durability over the course of many busy restaurant services.

All in all, the DigiX is a solid two-way radio for the restaurant industry and will ensure your teams stay connected and are able to deliver a winning service to your diners.

#3 DigiX Sea

The DigiX Sea is our number two pick overall because it offers a complete set of features that restaurants will find very useful. It has an instant communication feature so that employees can contact each other immediately, as well as an excellent speaker and push-to-talk button for quick conversations between coworkers when the restaurant gets loud or busy.

The Sea has dual analogue and digital modes with up to 16 channels available on digital and 32 on analogue, meaning that all restaurant departments and employees can stay connected.  It also has an emergency alert button that will allow employees to contact the entire team at once if there’s ever a serious issue requiring immediate attention.

The DigiX Sea two way radio offers a fantastic combination of features and value for money making it one of the top choices available today for restaurants of all size. This radio will help to simplify communication between different departments as well as improving overall restaurant efficiency which will enable employees to focus more time and energy towards providing a great dining experience for the customers.

#4 DigiX Sky

The DigiX Sky is our fourth ranked-choice overall because it offers a fantastic set of features that restaurant employees will find useful. It operates on multiple channels simultaneously which allows staff members to communicate with different departments in the restaurant quickly and efficiently without needing to go through complicated menus or settings during a busy shift.

The Sky is ready to use as soon as you take it out of the box, has 16 pre-programmed channels, and an IP54 rating to keep it safe from water and dust. It also comes equipped with a top-notch microphone providing clear audio so that employees can hear each other clearly even if there’s a lot of background noise or the restaurant is crowded.

Overall, the Sky is an excellent two-way radio for restaurants of all sizes. It provides all the features needed to synchronise and organise multiple teams and ensure quality customer service.

#5 DigiX Star

The DigiX Star is the last two-way radio on our list but its features are right up there with the others on this list. It comes with 32 pre-programmed channels, with 16 of them digital license-free channels. It is light, durable, and compact, and is compatible with a wide range of accessories.

Like all the two way radios in the DigiX range, the Star has a fantastic microphone, excellent battery, and is highly waterproof and dustproof, with a rating of IP54. All of these are key features that are critical for use in a busy restaurant.

The Star comes with a long-life lithium battery, so you can rest assured that you won’t have any communication blackouts during a busy dinner service.

Overall, the DigiX Star is an excellent two-way radio for restaurants because it does everything that’s needed in a busy restaurant environment without compromising on quality or value.

Need help choosing the right two-way radios for your restaurant? 

Get in touch by phone at 0151 263 9993 or send us an enquiry.

To Sum Up

The top two way radios for restaurant employees should be easy to carry around, lightweight, reliable, and have long battery life and clear audio quality. All of these will enable restaurant teams to communicate effectively even when the restaurant is noisy. Push-to-talk buttons are also very useful so that employees don’t need to stop what they are doing when using their walkie talkies, and additional features like multiple channels and emergency buttons can help to organise staff and keep everyone in the restaurant safe. Finally, restaurants should always look for two ways radios which are durable and have a high dustproof and waterproof rating to prevent the radios from being damaged during the hustle and bustle of a busy restaurant service.