Short answer
A restaurant ordering app lets customers order for delivery, takeaway or at the table from the restaurant’s own app and website, with menus, modifiers, payments, live order tracking and loyalty rewards, connected to the kitchen and POS. Infikey builds custom ordering platforms for chains and cloud kitchens. Typical builds cost USD 20,000–50,000.
Updated · Written by the Infikey Technologies delivery team
Ordering platform features
| Area | Features |
|---|---|
| Menu | Categories, modifiers and combos, outlet-specific menus and prices, time-based menus, stock-outs |
| Ordering | Delivery, takeaway and scheduled orders, QR table ordering, group orders |
| Payments | Cards, UPI, Apple Pay and Google Pay, wallets, tips, split bills |
| Delivery | Own riders with tracking, or third-party delivery fleets, delivery zones and fees |
| Kitchen | Orders to POS or kitchen display system, prep times, ready alerts |
| Loyalty | Points, stamps, referral rewards, birthday offers, personalised push notifications |
| Admin | Multi-outlet dashboard, promotions, customer insights, ratings |
Direct ordering vs aggregators
Aggregators such as Zomato, Swiggy, Talabat, Deliveroo, Uber Eats and DoorDash bring new customers but charge high commission on every order and keep the customer relationship. A direct app works best alongside them: aggregators for discovery, your own app for repeat customers, with loyalty rewards that make ordering direct worthwhile.
The model is similar to a grocery delivery app, with faster prep times and simpler catalogues. For hotel outlets, ordering can sit inside a guest app, see the travel and hospitality guide.
Cost
| Scope | Budget (USD) | Budget (INR) |
|---|---|---|
| Ordering website and QR table ordering with POS integration | 15,000–25,000 | 12–20 lakh |
| iOS and Android apps with loyalty and delivery tracking | 25,000–50,000 | 20–40 lakh |
| Add rider app and dispatch for own delivery fleet | +10,000–20,000 | +8–16 lakh |
These are planning ranges, not quotes. Compare app options with the app development cost calculator.
Project blueprint
Own ordering app for a café chain
Based on the requirements we hear most often from buyers like this.
A café chain gets a large share of delivery orders through aggregators that charge high commission. Regular customers would order direct, but there is no app, no loyalty programme and no way to order ahead for pickup.
What we would build
- iOS and Android apps plus an ordering website
- Order-ahead pickup, delivery and QR table ordering
- POS and kitchen display integration
- Loyalty points, referral rewards and push offers
- Multi-outlet admin with menus, prices and stock-outs
How success is measured
- Share of orders placed direct instead of through aggregators
- Commission saved per month
- Repeat order rate of loyalty members
- Average order value in the app