Short answer: the "best" restaurant ordering system is the one that brings you orders without taxing every ticket. Delivery marketplaces give reach but take heavy commissions and own your customer; direct ordering on your own site and QR menus keeps the margin and the relationship; and your EPOS choice should be judged on total cost of ownership, not the headline monthly fee. Here is how the options really stack up for a UK restaurant or takeaway in 2026.
The three ways to take orders
| Option | Upside | Downside |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery marketplaces (Just Eat, Deliveroo, Uber Eats) | Reach and discovery; logistics handled | Double-digit % commission per order; they own the customer and data |
| Direct ordering (your website + QR menus) | Keep the margin and the customer; build your own list | You drive your own demand (but the marketplaces can top it up) |
| EPOS / till systems | Run the counter, kitchen and reporting | Subscription + add-ons + hardware + card fees; watch total cost |
Delivery marketplaces: reach at a price
Just Eat, Deliveroo and Uber Eats put you in front of hungry customers, but the commission per order is commonly in the double-digit percentages, and they own the customer relationship and data. They are a useful discovery channel — but a costly one to rely on. The smart play is to use them for reach while pushing repeat customers to order direct.
Direct ordering: keep the margin
Direct online ordering on your own website and QR-code menus means regulars order from you, not a marketplace — so you keep far more of each order and build a customer list you actually own. It is the highest-value channel for most independents over time.
Choosing an EPOS: look at total cost of ownership
EPOS providers compete on the monthly headline fee, but the real bill is software + per-module add-ons + hardware + card-processing fees — and for busy venues, card fees are usually the biggest variable cost. We broke this down in detail in why restaurants feel the POS stack. When comparing systems, model the total cost at your real order volume, not the brochure price.
The commission-free alternative
We built our restaurant ordering system around a simple idea: your sales should not fund a parallel industry. It combines direct online ordering and QR menus with a clean till workflow, with:
- No per-order commission and no core licence fee.
- Card payments via Revolut Business at 0.8% — among the lowest in-person rates on the UK market.
- Tap to Pay on a phone, so no extra terminal to rent.
- Runs on the devices you already own.
Always confirm current fees on Revolut's own pricing pages before switching. The point is simple: at volume, removing the per-order tax usually beats chasing a slightly cheaper monthly licence.
How to choose
- Want reach and do not mind the cut → marketplaces (as a channel, not your whole strategy).
- Want to keep your margin and customers → direct ordering on your own site + QR.
- High volume, fee-sensitive → a commission-free system and a low card rate beat a cheap monthly licence.
Want an honest answer for your venue? Book a free fit-check and we will model it against your real volumes — no cost, no obligation.
