Cha chaan teng (Hong Kong-style cafe): A Practical Guide to Getting Started with Digital Tools
Most cha chaan teng (hong kong-style cafe) businesses run on a mix of phone calls, spreadsheets, and memory - and it works, until it doesn't. This guide covers what to fix first if you're considering software for the first time, without the sales pitch.
Are you ready to digitize?
- You can name the ONE workflow that currently wastes the most staff time - not "everything," one specific thing.
- You're willing to track that workflow's numbers for 30 days before and after switching, so the improvement is measurable, not a guess.
- Your team can be trained on a new tool before it goes live, not figured out live in front of a customer.
- You have a manual fallback ready for the first two weeks - no switch to new software is instant.
Where to start: Data Science
Bakeries over-produce some items and run out of others by the afternoon, wasting fresh stock that can't be sold the next day. The practical starting point: A bake-quantity dashboard comparing yesterday's production to what actually sold, by item and hour.
How to try it without committing to anything
- Open the live demo below and walk through it as if it were a normal day at your business - not a guided tour.
- Note what matched how you actually work, and what felt off or missing.
- Message us on WhatsApp with that list - specific feedback gets a specific answer, not a generic pitch.
Published 23/9/2026 by Training Trains