TouchBistro Adds WePay to its Mobile Payments Arsenal

Whether it’s working out particularly well or not, more and more restaurants are starting to add mobile payments to their overall capability. Being able to pay right at the table, instead of waiting for staff to bring a bill to the table, is a point that’s caught quite a bit of attention, and now, TouchBistro is stepping up its own operations on that front with the new TouchBistro Payments service backed by WePay.

The new team-up will give restaurants access to instant payment processing, along with a new device that allows diners to settle up immediately at the table using most of the same payment platforms that the servers would be using in back-of-house operations. Tap-based, chip-based, or magnetic strip-based payment options are all in play. Better yet, those businesses that are already banking with Chase will be able to more rapidly bring the TouchBistro system into the house.

This isn’t the first time TouchBistro’s made a partnership effort like this; back in May, the company started working with Thinking Capital to drive operations in Canada, and before that, Square and TouchBistro started working together to give customers access to a range of solutions from Square.

TouchBistro founder and CEO Alex Barrotti noted “With TouchBistro Payments powered by WePay, our restaurants will onboard instantly, so they can start taking payments the moment they unbox TouchBistro. Both restaurant owners and customers will experience easier payment processing with the new mobile EMV-compliant payment device for digital, credit and debit card transactions.”

While there have been recent reports suggesting that customers aren’t interested in mobile payment options at restaurants, some believe this is owing more toward other factors like a lack of marketing or issues within the restaurants themselves rather than a negative perception of mobile payments. Offering the option is seldom a bad idea; even the most pessimistic reports suggest a third of users are putting mobile payments to work, so why not offer it for those who want it?

A move like this just makes it that much easier for a restaurant to put such tools to work for its diners. While there may be some resistance, or just a general lack of interest, those who do want mobile payments in restaurants are more likely to see these now than ever.