From today, customers at ASK Italian restaurants across the UK no longer need to ask for the bill. They now have the option to pay from their smartphone, through the Qkr! with MasterPass app.
The Qkr! app was developed by MasterCard Labs and is already used with great success by diners in Japanese food chain wagamama, who were the first UK restaurant chain to offer the innovation.
Diners can search for nearby ASK Italian restaurants (part of the Azzurri Group) through the App and upon arrival at their chosen venue they will be prompted to ‘check in’. Customers will order their meal as they normally would via their waiter, but as part of the ‘check in’ process the App will have generated a four-digit code.
Sharing this code with the server allows diners to see their order on their phone and enables them to ‘check out’ and pay when they are ready. For other diners wishing to split the bill, they can input the same code into their phone, see the entire order, and select and pay for what is theirs when ready.
Qkr! with MasterPass is quickly building scale of acceptance across UK restaurant chains, with Zizzi’s (also part of the Azzurri Group) and Carluccio’s as both will soon adopt the payment option across their restaurants. The Qkr! app is also used in many other environments across the World, as evidenced in stadia at the Copa America football tournament in South America, paying for schools meals in Australia and cinemas in the US.
Doug Wooten, head of IT for the Azzurri Group says: “Our customers are great at giving feedback and we know that they are looking for faster and more convenient ways to pay. By working with MasterCard and implementing Qkr! our restaurant teams can focus on delivering great service to customers and serving our fantastic food. We know that splitting bills is pain point for our customers and if they choose to pay with Qkr! It offers them a convenient solution, together with paperless receipts on the app for easy reference. This is all within a secure and trusted app that is easy for everyone to use with their card of choice.”
Scott Abrahams, Group Head of Acceptance and Emerging Payments, MasterCard UK&I says: “Qkr! with MasterPass is gathering momentum, more and more restaurants and retailers are seeing the potential to improve their customer experience and save both their customers and staff time. Asking for the bill and waiting to pay shouldn’t get in the way of a good meal, now customers can spend more time enjoying their food and get to their next appointment more easily. The feedback we’re getting from wagamama and their customers is phenomenal and we hope to see this replicated with ASK Italian and other restaurants soon to adopt the App.”
Qkr! with MasterPass app is available for diners at wagamama and ASK Italian, and later in 2015 and early 2016 at Zizzi’s and Carluccios. The app can be downloaded from The App Store or Google Play.
