TouchBistro vs CAKE POS

talech

PayPal Point of Sale

Lightspeed Retail

talech is a secure and easy-to-use cloud-based iPad point of sale (POS) system which allows restaurants, retail and service outlets to take orders, manage tables, manage inventory, process payments, take & manage appointments and timed-service, deliver real-time analytics and reports and much more

The PayPal Here app is a mobile point of sale (POS) software designed to help businesses securely process debit or credit card payments and generate invoices. The application enables retailers and manufacturers to create and organize product lists and add details including photos and descriptions.

Lightspeed is a unified point of sale and payments platform designed for retail, restaurant, and golf course businesses. The software offers inventory management, omnichannel sales capabilities, real-time reporting, and integrated payment processing. It includes features such as cloud-based operations, API connectivity for third-party integrations, wholesale buying tools, and multilocation support for businesses operating across multiple sites.

Restaurant Consultant

Frequent Outages & Forced Updates: Even on Friday nights and busy holidays such as Cinco de MayoCustomer Service & Support: Rarely helpful and requires customers to provide lengthy email summaries of past service calls (that they SHOULD have a record of in their CRM)Weird "hallucinations" appearing on customer facing online ordering platform: Root Beer appearing as a bread option/'As Weapon' & 'Ass Bacon' appearing as modifiersThere's not enough room in this field's character limit to continue

Manager

Customer service is slow and they don't have a system service statues website so when you call with an issue, you'll have to wait a long timeto talk to someone.

TouchBistro’s All-in-One Restaurant Management system offers all the technology you need to run your restaurant on one easy-to-use platform. Designed for and by restaurant service staff, TouchBistro meets the specific needs of the industry with 24/7 expert support.

Access Controls/Permissions

Accounting Integration

Activity Dashboard

Alerts/Notifications

Billing & Invoicing

Built-in Accounting

Cash Management

Clock In/Out

Contact Management

Customer Accounts

Customizable Reports

Data Import/Export

Delivery Management

Discount Management

Electronic Payments

Employee Management

Food Delivery Dispatching

For Bars/Clubs

For iPad Devices

For Restaurants

Gift Card Management

Inventory Control

Inventory Management

Inventory Tracking

Item Management

Kitchen/Menu Management

Loyalty Program

Mobile Access

Offline Access

Online Ordering

Online Payments

Order Entry

Order Management

Payment Processing

Point of Sale (POS)

Pricing Management

Promotions Management

Real-Time Analytics

Real-Time Data

Real-Time Monitoring

Real-Time Notifications

Real-Time Reporting

Real-Time Updates

Receipt Management

Reporting/Analytics

Reporting & Statistics

Reservations Management

Restaurant POS

Retail Inventory Management

Returns Management

Sales Order Management

Sales Reports

Sales Tax Management

Separate Checks

Split Checks

SSL Security

Staff Management

Status Tracking

Stock Management

Table Management

Third-Party Integrations

Time Clock

Tips Management

Wait List Management

Reviewers indicate TouchBistro offers reasonable pricing for small businesses and appreciate unlimited hardware and licenses. However, some users say ongoing fees, extra costs for add-ons, and high integration expenses reduce overall value for money.

Value for money

By industry, TouchBistro reviewers are most commonly professionals in restaurants (58%). The most frequent use case for TouchBistro cited by reviewers is restaurant POS (68% of reviewers).

TouchBistro

Windows

Linux

iPad

Web-based

Square Point of Sale

Toast POS

Clover

SpotOn

Revel Systems

Aloha Cloud

Lightspeed Restaurant

CAKE POS

TouchBistro POS

Difficult cancellation and refund process

Owner

continued charges after cancellation), overall poor communication and a lack of accountability.

Managing Director

We are having to hire a lawyer just to get our refund (even though the contract specifies we could get refunded.)

95% of reviewers feel negative about TouchBistro’s cancellation and refund process. Users report facing significant obstacles when trying to cancel their service, including unexpected fees, continued billing after cancellation, and unresponsive communication from the company. Many mention being promised refunds that were never delivered and describe the process as time-consuming and stressful. Reviewers often feel trapped by contracts and express frustration over the lack of accountability and support during cancellation.

Consistently negative user experiences

Have been using it for less than 3 weeks and it has been a complete nightmare.

96% of reviewers feel negative about their overall experience with TouchBistro. Users describe their interactions as overwhelmingly frustrating, citing persistent issues from installation to daily use. They report feeling let down by the product’s reliability and express disappointment with both the system’s performance and the company’s handling of problems. Many reviewers mention that their expectations were not met, leading to regret over their purchase and a strong reluctance to recommend the product to others.

Unreliable technical support access

I just called and 24/7 tech support means someone who knows NOTHING answers the phone and tells you to call back the next day or go on your tablet and submit X to data support team tomorrow.

85% of reviewers feel negative about TouchBistro’s technical support. Users say it is difficult to reach knowledgeable support staff, often experiencing long wait times and unresolved issues. They report that support representatives frequently lack the expertise to solve problems, leading to repeated calls and ongoing technical difficulties. Many reviewers express frustration with the lack of timely assistance, especially during critical business hours, and feel that the support team is overwhelmed and inconsistent.

Significant financial impact on users

General Manager

This cost us thousands of dollars in new equipment, lost sales/transaction, and man hours.  

82% of reviewers feel negative about the financial impact of using TouchBistro. Users report losing substantial amounts of money due to system crashes, costly hardware, and recurring fees. They mention that technical issues and downtime result in lost sales and increased labor costs. Many reviewers feel misled by aggressive sales tactics and express regret over the investment, stating that the expenses far outweigh the benefits. Some users highlight the strain these losses place on small businesses.

Slow and ineffective communication channels

80% of reviewers feel negative about TouchBistro’s phone and email support. Users indicate that reaching support by phone is challenging, often requiring them to leave messages and wait hours or days for a response. They say emails frequently go unanswered or receive delayed replies, which is especially problematic during urgent situations. Many reviewers express frustration with the lack of timely follow-up and feel that the support team is unresponsive, making it difficult to resolve issues efficiently.

Visually appealing interface design

79% of reviewers feel positive about TouchBistro’s user interface. Reviewers appreciate the visually pleasing and customizable layout, which they say enhances usability for both staff and customers. Users mention that the interface is intuitive, making it easy to locate menu items and perform tasks efficiently. They value the flexibility to personalize screen layouts for quicker access and note that the system’s design supports fast navigation and daily workflow. Many find the interface’s visual clarity and organization beneficial for quick training and smooth operations.

Quick staff training process

85% of reviewers feel positive about TouchBistro’s training and learning curve. Users report that new staff members adapt to the system rapidly, often within minutes or hours. They highlight that minimal training is required, which is especially helpful for businesses with frequent staff turnover or seasonal employees. Reviewers find the system’s intuitive design and familiar iOS-based interface make onboarding straightforward. Many say the ease of training contributes to improved efficiency and allows staff to focus more on customer service rather than learning complex software.

Intuitive and simple operation

93% of reviewers feel positive about TouchBistro’s ease of use. Users indicate the system is intuitive and straightforward, making it accessible for both tech-savvy and less experienced staff. They appreciate the minimal learning curve, noting that the interface is visually clear and easy to navigate. Reviewers say setup is uncomplicated, and they value being able to quickly train new employees. Many mention that the system’s design, especially on iPads, feels familiar and user-friendly, which helps streamline daily operations and reduces the time needed for onboarding.

owner

You have to turn it on before your connection signal goes out meaning you have to deal with manually batching out cc payments. If your internet goes out and you don't have offline mode on you are SCREWED and can't even send an order to kitchen.

Confusing and time-consuming to program, unstable system (menu items, modifiers, and printer settings randomly disappear or change), frequent glitches and crashes that disrupt service, ;ong wait times for customer support, questionable billing practices (incl.

bookkeeper

I wish I could make changes to the TB numbers after the day is closed, so it refects online what I had to do offline to balance.

Occasionally, system updates can also cause brief slowdowns during busy hours.

Constant POS crashes (almost every order), poor customer, expensive integrations and little to no customer or technical support.

Operations Manager

The customer service is non existent and they have new weasel words every time you call them in order to delay your resolution.

As a result, our business suffered a loss of sales exceeding $$$$$ over a 7-month period. Despite our agreement, this company did not deliver the marketing services as promised.

I feel like they give you too much information even though a lot of information is good a lot of it is also nonsense

I did enjoy using the software, but dealing with tech support and closing my account has been absurd

It is easy to use, helps manage orders efficiently, and works well for daily restaurant operations.

Server

It froze and had to restart the point of sale all the time.

Also, with each successive update, we lost some degree of functionality.

THEN after they do an investigation, they’ll decide whether I get refunded or not…

Used a Moby8500 that would disconnect every single day leaving us with a terminal down.

This lack of communication only added to our frustration and further delayed resolution of the issues we faced.

It is now clear why they are unwilling to take it back—because the devices are old models that are no longer supported.

You cannot refund exact amounts from in-house, even when it is a TouchBistro error due to the POS and V400m allowing for a bill to be paid in full twice after an error code has been issued, but no credit card authorization is noted on the POS.

The functionality of the POS with our iPad minis for order taking is great, and saves our staff time that was traditionally reserved for having to go directly to a work station.

They are constantly updating and changing how reports are accessed rendering some reports completely inaccessible one day to another. When I decided the close the restaurant due to losses and the interest rates they harassed me for payment, would not negotiate a reasonable cancellation fee.

Support

We are opening a restaurant and wanted a Valentines POS, they wanted $300 a month for hardware and licenses.

You can not lock so they can not delete bills after a bill reopened and then deleted a lot of cash is taken this way and no record once a bill is deleted

weeks now I have been trying to cancel our subscription with TouchBistro.

They also charged us for loyalty services and never set it up.

Based on my experience and the consistent feedback from other business owners, I would strongly advise choosing a different POS.

They always have the right answers for me and I like how easy their system is to work.

We signed thinking we could cancel if we didn't get to open.

Any staff can see information as you need admin code and the staff need it for when there is no manager on shift.

The customer service representatives try to be helpful with the insurmountable issues we have had, but they need to consult with their "payments team" or "hardware team", both whom are unavailable on Friday evenings through Sunday.

President

The mobile units do not communicate with the main POS, so we have to had write orders and then type them in.  

They have admitted to me that all the glitches we experience on a DAILY basis are software related and the senior tech support team has been incapable at fixing our issues.

Unfortunately it said >menu item deleted> Showed up correctly on pos, printed correctly, but on KDS, received deleted item message.

Good working restaurant system and in the beginning was a well run customer focused company

It also meant that for 4 days every employee had their worst days ever in the building, hand writing orders, hand delivering order to the kitchen, hand writing CC orders, tax, reciepts, etc (many payments didn't end up going through either)

Everything worked fine with exception of online ordering. When I placed test order, it showed up in a flash.

No response or resolution to most problems.

They are now trying to charge me $125 a month for a non processing fee while I wait on them to set up the processing….

Sales team works fast to get you signed up

Venue and Events Manager

Very easy product to use and beneficial that it can be easily integrated with other products!

I would not recommend this company if they gave you the equipment for free.

They are in breach of service agreement and will switch to Toast for all 3 businesses totally 5m + in cc sales.   

Poor customer service from the beginning.

Menu items, groups, modifiers and printers disappear and change.  

Owner-GM

Tech support (while they are nice on the phone) takes a VERY long time. For us to spend hours on the phone with tech support weekly is not out of the ordinary.

Any payroll issues, major menu changes, adding staff etc, you have to be in the restaurant, on the Ipad, on the same wifi as the "brain".

Customer Support

Technical Support

Cancellation and Refunds

Restaurant Operations

Printing Issues

Sales Tracking

Updates

Ease of Use

Small Business

Mid-size Business

Large Enterprises

Freelancers

Restroworks

Restroworks powers 25,000+ restaurants worldwide with a cloud-based platform combining POS, inventory, kitchen automation, kiosks, and analytics, helping restaurant brands streamline operations, gain real-time insights, and scale efficiently.

Toast POS solution is a cloud-based restaurant management platform for restaurant owners to reduce staff & operational costs and improve customer experience

SpotOn Restaurant is a cloud-based point of sale (POS) solution designed to help small to medium businesses in the hospitality industry streamline online payments, tableside orders, and fraud protection. The labor management module lets users handle employee hours, gratuities, shifts, and more.

The equipment was faulty when received and the company couldnt fix it.

Terrible, have had to call several times for them to complete simple task and still not done after a week.

Admin Manager

Above all the support we get from the staff.

I'm 61 years old and was able to set up our store with little instruction. When I did need help, the customer service was always outstanding.  

CAKE's restaurant solutions are designed to meet the unique needs of your restaurant. Simple, intuitive and cost friendly.

TouchBistro vs CAKE POS Comparison (2026)

TouchBistro

CAKE POS

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives