Busy hospital cafeterias present uniquely complex challenges. Unlike resorts or campuses, they must serve clinicians, patients, families, and visitors: each with different schedules, urgency levels, and expectations. Throw in made-to-order meals and kitchen complexity, and you have a recipe for chaos during peak hours. That’s why Cleveland Clinic has taken a fundamentally different approach: instead of trying to race the rush, they aim to dismantle it.
The U.S. foodservice industry continues to struggle with labor shortages. About 70% of operators report job openings that are difficult to fill, and nearly half don’t have enough staff to meet demand. Hiring extra staff just to manage a short lunch rush is unsustainable. Kitchens are also feeling the strain; back-of-house teams at some New York City operations are running at just 50% capacity due to staffing gaps. Spread a few big orders all at once, and quality drops.
Demand smoothing offers a way out. By shifting order volume away from peak windows, operators gain predictability. Kitchens can prep more efficiently, staffing becomes more regular, and the guest experience improves, even without adding space or registers.
Mobile ordering is the lynchpin of demand smoothing. Deloitte reports that online ordering increased check averages by 13–26% in quick-service and fast-casual formats. Meanwhile, Purdue University data show that two-thirds of consumers have used a food-ordering app, with nearly half doing so weekly. Convenience is a major driver: 68% of users cite it as the primary reason they choose mobile orders.
For Cleveland Clinic, mobile ordering enables kitchen staff to receive and prepare orders well in advance of peak lunchtime. That eliminates rush-hour chaos and turns the pickup moment into a smooth, predictable handoff.
Bill Bolton, Director of Retail Operations at Cleveland Clinic, describes the rationale clearly:
“Throughput becomes one of the biggest challenges. This is why mobile is such a huge push for us, because we have to try to keep people off our floor. They have a very limited amount of time to come in here and navigate what to eat, and then to get through the lines.”
It’s a simple observation with significant implications: when time is tight and schedules vary, encouraging people to pre-order is the most effective way to keep lines from forming in the first place.
Mobile ordering isn’t a complete solution. Not everyone will pre-order, especially guests or families. That’s where Byte tablets come in. Placed in dining areas, they allow on-site ordering without the need to line up at a cashier. This shifts the initial ordering interaction away from the serving line, further smoothing the flow.
The combination works like this:
That aligned flow reduces bottlenecks in both the kitchen and the queue.
Adopting a demand-smoothing strategy isn’t as simple as turning on new technology. It requires thoughtful adjustments across the entire operation. Menus often need to be adapted to fit mobile and tablet ordering formats, ensuring that items are easily selectable and kitchen workflows stay efficient. Pickup zones must be clearly defined and separated from traditional cashier lines to avoid congestion when guests arrive for their pre-ordered meals. Kitchen scheduling also needs to evolve, aligning prep times with the flow of incoming mobile orders to prevent last-minute surges and ensure consistent food quality. Finally, operators must actively promote mobile adoption among guests, using signage, communication campaigns, loyalty programs, and targeted incentives to drive behavior change and encourage pre-ordering.
Demand smoothing delivers the most value in operations where customer schedules are highly variable and unpredictable. Healthcare environments like Cleveland Clinic are ideal examples, with staff working across multiple shifts and patients and visitors arriving throughout the day. The model also excels in settings where kitchens manage complex or highly customized menus that benefit from more predictable prep pacing. Space limitations can also make smoothing attractive, as it reduces the need for additional cashier lines or kiosk stations. Ultimately, this approach works best when the operational priority is not simply maximizing transaction counts during short peaks but creating a steady, controlled flow that optimizes labor, maintains food quality, and improves the overall dining experience.
For operators embracing demand smoothing, the benefits compound:
Demand smoothing enables operators to manage unpredictable dining patterns without resorting to costly staffing increases or significant infrastructure modifications. By shifting orders earlier in the day through mobile pre-ordering and offloading on-site ordering through self-service tablets, operations like Cleveland Clinic can maintain better kitchen pacing, reduce congestion, and improve the overall guest experience. This isn’t just about avoiding long lines; it’s about building a system that operates smoothly throughout the day, regardless of who’s ordering, when they arrive, or how complex the menu may be.
In the final post, we’ll explore how operators can combine throughput maximization and demand smoothing to create hybrid strategies. You’ll learn how to decide when to scale kiosks, when to invest in ordering tools, and how exterior factors (like space, volume, menu, and customer behavior) guide your peak strategy.