Waiting for their waitress to bring them their check after having brunch on New Year’s Day of 2011, Gennady Spirin and Jeff McGregor developed an app to help move things along.
The app, Dash, has finally arrived in New Paltz. This smartphone application allows patrons of affiliated restaurants to pay their bill or bar tab from their phone without having to flag down a server or wait for the bartender.
Dash has been in service at locations throughout New York City and Chicago, as well as other venues nationwide, since its launch in November of 2013. It has now made its way to local bar and restaurant P&Gs.
P&Gs has had the app for three months now, according to Manager Amber James. However, it has not been very popular. James said that besides herself and the owner, only one customer has used Dash so far.
“We are the test market and I’m hoping it will gain popularity with the college kids soon,” James said.
To use the app, one must inform their server upon entry that they intend to pay with Dash, and then “check in” on the app itself to allow the server to sync their bill with their account. Then the customer can pay when ready.
James said new tabletop advertisements arrived recently offering $5 off the bill for first time users and she is expecting labeled soda cups soon as well.
Co-founder Gennady Spirin said the app can only work with restaurants running the proper POS (Point of Sale) system whose API (Application Program Interface) is compatible with Dash. Other local establishments that may see Dash in the future include The Gilded Otter, Murphy’s, McGillicuddy’s and Oasis, according to Spirin.
With Dash it is easy to split the bill or add a tip. The app comes with a built-in tip calculator that lets the user choose the percentage they would like to leave and also allows for multiple users to share equal portions of the bill.
Spirin said an itemized split addition, where each user only pays for their food and drinks, is on its way along with other new features. Currently, through a part of Dash called “Venue Vibes,” users can check to see if a venue is more or less crowded as indicated by one to four people icons; one for not busy and four for very busy. According to Spirin, this addition was created to help users make decisions on where to go.
“If you’re going on a date you probably want to find a quieter place,” Spirin said. “Whereas if you’re looking to party you’ll want to find one of the more lively venues.”
Soon users will be able to see how many drinks are being ordered and even get a sense of the girl/boy ratio at affiliated establishments, according to Spirin.
Spirin said after waiting some time for their bill, he and McGregor realized many people must have the same problem and since so many people use their phones for so much already, an app allowing you to pay from your phone just made sense.