#A graduate student in his 30s, surnamed Ahn, visited a restaurant in Mapo-gu, Seoul. As soon as he and his friend sat down at the table, he scanned the QR code attached next to the table with his smartphone. Each person selected their menu and completed payment, finishing the order without any staff assistance. Ahn said, "With table order, one person has to pay for everyone and settle up later, which is inconvenient. But with QR order, each person can pay separately, so it's much more convenient." He added, "Some restaurants allow you to participate in events via QR code, so if I win a drink coupon, I sometimes come back on purpose."

A small QR code on the side of the table is changing the landscape of restaurants. Recently, smart order systems using kiosks or tablets have become increasingly common in restaurants and cafes. However, the high initial installation costs and ongoing maintenance expenses have been cited as drawbacks. In this context, QR order, which can be operated without additional cost burden, is emerging as a practical alternative.

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According to industry sources on July 2, QR order systems require a low installation cost of around 10,000 won. Depending on the customer's smartphone settings, accessibility features such as adjustable text size and voice guidance can also be implemented. In the future, stores installing new kiosks will be required to use products with accessibility features. However, by adopting QR order instead of kiosks costing several hundred thousand won, stores can achieve similar effects without being subject to these regulations.

With the focus on cost savings and reduced regulatory burden, interest in QR order is increasing and related startups are moving quickly. A representative example is Mokoflex's table order service, 'QRO.' With QRO, scanning the QR code at the table with a smartphone opens a mobile order page, and voice guidance is also provided for digitally vulnerable groups. QRO is equipped with an AI-based marketing solution that offers features such as point accumulation and review event registration. A Mokoflex representative explained, "Due to the impact of accessibility issues, the number of stores adopting QRO increased by 62% in the first half of this year alone."

In tourist destinations, QR order has also become a tool for serving foreign customers. 'HandOrder,' a mobile menu ordering service operated by ArchiSeoul, provides QR-based multilingual menus at 400 major restaurants in Seoul. HiKFood is also achieving results in attracting foreign tourists by offering its QR menu service 'K-ple,' which supports 20 languages, to restaurants in Jecheon and Danyang, Chungbuk Province.