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The cocktail list is one of the highest-margin sections of any bar or restaurant menu. It's also one of the most under-sold. Staff are busy, tables are rushed, and when a customer doesn't see the cocktail menu or doesn't think to ask, that's revenue that simply doesn't happen.
House on Hood in Hamilton changed that on night one. The first evening of tablet ordering produced a 28% increase in cocktail sales compared to the previous week. By the second night, staff had to temporarily turn cocktails off in the system because they couldn't keep up with demand — they'd never had to make so many before.
That's not a one-off. It's what happens when every table sees every drink on a photo-rich menu — and has time to browse it at their own pace.
The Real Numbers From Real Venues
Across more than 3,000 venues using Ai-Menu systems across Australia and New Zealand, the same pattern emerges consistently. When customers order from a visual, photo-rich digital menu at their own pace, they spend more — specifically on add-ons, sides and drinks that they either didn't know existed or didn't think to order from a staff-described menu.
Burgster & Co on the Gold Coast saw their drinks percentage jump from 15% to over 30% on the first Friday of tablet use. In four previous years of trading, that had never happened. A Mexican restaurant tracked guacamole add-ons go from 16 units to 384 in a fortnight. The menu item existed before. Customers just weren't ordering it.
"The second night, staff turned cocktails off in the system because they couldn't keep up. They'd never had to make so many before."
— House on Hood, HamiltonWhy Drinks Are the Biggest Upsell Opportunity
Drinks — particularly cocktails, premium spirits and wine — carry the highest margin of anything on your menu. A $22 cocktail with a $4 cost of goods is an 82% gross margin line. When a table of four each orders one, that's $88 in cocktail revenue that might not have happened at all without a visual prompt.
The problem isn't that customers don't want cocktails. It's that the ordering experience rarely gives them a proper chance to consider them. A verbal recitation of the specials during a busy Friday service, with a staff member who has three other tables waiting, doesn't do what a full-colour photo menu browsed over five minutes does.
Why a Digital Menu Sells Better Than Staff
This isn't about replacing staff — it's about giving customers a better chance to find and order what they want. A digital menu does three things no staff member can reliably do every single time:
How Ai-Tablet Works at the Table
Ai-Tablet is a purpose-built customer ordering device — not a stripped-down staff POS. It's designed to be picked up by anyone and used intuitively within seconds. Android-based and available in Small (8") and Large (10") formats, it sits on the table and replaces the printed menu with a photo-rich, always-current digital experience.
Customers log in with their own name, browse the full menu, order directly, and split the bill themselves at the end — with zero staff involvement in the ordering process. Orders fire directly to the kitchen via Ai-BumpX or the printer. The menu stays current because it pulls live from Ai-PosX — a price change or new special updates instantly across every device in the venue.
"The cocktail list exists on every printed menu already. The difference is whether customers actually see it — and have time to want it."
— Ai-Menu, July 2026Making the Switch
Your cocktail list is already written. Let customers find it.
Talk to our team about Ai-Tablet and see what a photo-rich digital menu does for your drinks margin.
FAQ: Tablet Ordering for Bars and Restaurants
Common questions from Australian venue operators
