The ideal POS system for high quality standards

Restaurant Vieux Sinzig, Sinzig

The "Vieux Sinzig" was awarded 16 Gault Millau points

Wild herb guru Jean-Marie Dumaine has devoted himself to the study of wild herbs since the mid-1980s, and puts these to imaginative use in his offbeat gourmet cuisine. His motto “experience and enjoy nature” also plays a central role in his restaurant, “Vieux Sinzig”, which was awarded an impressive 16 Gault Millau points and is located in Sinzig at the mouth of the River Ahr. Bathed in natural light, the airy restaurant boasts a pentagonal floor-plan and is arranged around a pentagonal inner courtyard, in which countless wild herbs grow on natural stone terraces. Water plays in a pentagonal fountain in the courtyard's centre. This fixation with the number five continues inside the lavishly designed “Vieux Sinzig”. The countless daisies sprinkled across the terrazzo floors each have five leaves. In 2000, Jean-Marie Dumaine and his wife Colette purchased the art nouveau building, which dates back to 1873, and turned it into the restaurant of their dreams. The high ceilings and generous use of glass ensure that the atmosphere is both spacious and natural. The main focus is on the green inner courtyard, which Dumaine sees as a type of living stage, changing slowly but continuously and simultaneously emanating peace and quiet. To date, the native Norman has developed over 350 recipes containing wild herbs and published three books on the subject.

Jean-Marie Dumaine with a basket of herbs

Wild herb chef Jean-Marie Dumaine with a basket of freshly-picked herbs

View from the idyllic inner courtyard into the restaurant

POS "à la carte"

The Vieux Sinzig’s high quality standards can only be fulfilled with a well-rehearsed team of culinary and waiting staff. Dumaine sets great store by continual quality management and good teamwork as a result. "Team spirit is very important. We hold weekly meetings during which everyone has an opportunity to make constructive suggestions for improvement, without whining or moaning. This helps us to develop constantly and maintain an outstanding working atmosphere. Our last staff change was years ago." As an additional part of their approach to quality management Mr. and Mrs. Dumaine decided around five years ago to purchase a high-quality POS system. The aim was to simplify operating procedures and improve service even further. The system’s precise requirements were stipulated during intensive preliminary discussions with Vectron specialist trade partner "Registrierkassen Hermann Keutgen" from Mayschoß an der Ahr. The couple finally decided on the Vectron POS ColorTouch. With its generous 30 cm touchscreen and flexible graphic user interface, the POS system can be operated quickly and intuitively. As Dumaine explains: "Registrierkassen Keutgen took all our requirements into account and programmed our POS system exactly as we requested. You could almost say we got an ‘à la carte’ POS system, and are very satisfied with it."

Graphic table map for optimum service

Vectron POS ColorTouch with graphic table map

All guest checks are clearly displayed on the Vectron POS ColorTouch’s graphic table map. Colourful markers indicate which guest checks are occupied and which are free. The number and position of individual seats is also programmed. "We programmed the POS system in such a way that orders are not only booked to the respective guest checks, but also to the guest’s individual seat", explains Hermann Keutgen, owner of Registrierkassen Hermann Keutgen. Dumaine adds: "This allows us to offer perfect service, and ensures that the responsible waiter knows exactly which dish should be served to which seat. The guests are not disturbed by waiters who need reminding, and experience ultra-smooth service. That’s what I call premium service quality."

Menu timing

Precise menu timing is planned to ensure that guests enjoying à la carte meals do not experience overly long pauses between individual courses. Three courses should be served per hour. So that this works, the time targets are printed directly with the kitchen receipt. "The POS system is a great help. The clear guidelines mean that the food is ready on time and my guests are satisfied", explains a pleased Dumaine. Keutgen adds: "Vectron also supplemented the POS software especially for the Vieux Sinzig, so that longer menus with more courses can be booked."

No special request is overlooked

It is not only important that chronological order is observed, but, above all, that each guest is actually served what he or she has ordered. Special requests are recorded directly in the POS system to ensure that they aren’t forgotten during busy periods. The Vectron POS ColorTouch is programmed so that special requests automatically appear in red on the kitchen receipt. They therefore catch the eye immediately and aren’t overlooked. Dumaine: "That’s a great help for the kitchen and prevents complaints."

Easy PLU management

In addition to the restaurant business, Jean-Marie Dumaine also sells around 30,000 jars of luxury delicacies in the form of his wild herb specialities each year. The product range is as unusual as it is diverse, comprising sauces, pâtés, jellies, stocks, juices and spirits. The delicacies are sold both online and directly at the restaurant. Both the menu dishes and all sale items are saved in the POS system. Minor price- and menu-related alterations are made directly to the POS system by the restaurant’s waiting staff. As Dumaine explains: "That works perfectly. The POS system is very easy to use. And all my employees handle it very well." Additionally, the POS system is connected to a main PC in the office around 3 km away via the Vectron Commander communication software. Data transfer takes place online (via VPN). This allows more extensive changes to be made conveniently at the PC and subsequently loaded onto the POS system. Moreover, the POS data is read out daily with the aid of the Vectron Commander, and is then available for controlling purposes. An invoice printer is connected to the Vectron POS ColorTouch and prints stylish invoices which match the restaurant’s ambience.

Wild herb chef Jean-Marie Dumaine

The kitchen at the "Vieux Sinzig"

SUMMARY

Jean-Marie Dumaine, head chef and owner of the Vieux Sinzig (awarded 16 Gault Millau points): "We are glad that we went with Vectron. We used to do everything by hand. Not only have we saved a lot of time since purchasing our Vectron POS ColorTouch, we’ve also been able to improve service quality even further. The POS system is fast and easy to use, and we've never had any problems. Our POS retailer, Registrierkassen Hermann Keutgen, gave us excellent advice and programmed and installed the POS systems exactly as we wished."

Vectron POS ColorTouch

Stationary POS system
Touchscreen operation
Brilliant image quality via 12.1" (30.7 cm) transflective TFT colour display
Splash-proof designer housing
High-quality, robust construction
High operational safety
Tamper- and virus-proof
Numerous interfaces for the connection of peripherals
Flexible graphic user interface
Future reliability via simple retrofitting options
Numerous special functions for the hospitality industry
Simple data backup via USB stick
Mixed networks possible with various POS models

» Details Vectron POS ColorTouch

Contact information:

Restaurant Vieux Sinzig
Kölner Straße 6
53489 Sinzig
Phone: +49 (0) 2642 42757
www.vieux-sinzig.com
info@vieux-sinzig.com

Download this article as PDF-document.

POS MobilePro: De POS MobilePro zorgt voor een revolutie op het gebied van mobiele kassasystemen. Zeer goed beschermd in een robuuste en lichte magnesiumbehuizing, maakt een supersnelle 64-bits-processor kassagebruik tevens mogelijk op plaatsen zonder radiografisch bereik. Met gekleurde pictogrammen en afbeeldingen op uw heldere display optimaliseert de POS MobilePro de bediening en informeert de gast meteen over uw aanbod.

Toetsenpanelen: Snel nieuwe toetsenpaneelteksten maken? Verander met Word gewoon de toetsenpanelen voor onze demoprogramma’s.

ServiceCall-video: Betere service. Meer omzet. In onze Vectron ServiceCall-video kunt u zien hoe een van de grootste problemen in de horeca met bediening door een nieuwe, innovatieve technologie kan worden opgelost.

POS Modular: De nieuwe Vectron POS Modular kan als afzonderlijke of netwerkkassa, als server en voor speciale toepassingen worden gebruikt. Met de POS Modular doelt Vectron vooral op de gebruikersmarkt van de detailhandel. De Vectron POS Modular is sinds medio februari 2006 leverbaar.

VectroNet: Een Vectron POS-systeem en een internetaansluiting zijn voldoende! Zo kunt u bestellingen via het internet ontvangen, tafels laten reserveren of een filiaaloverkoepelend klantenkaartsysteem invoeren.