Just when I thought there was a mobile application for anything and everything under the sun, I came across an article in “Market Watch” magazine that proved me wrong.  TabbedOut, the newest phone application, allows people to order drinks, manage their tab, and even pay their tabs all from their smartphone. Company CEO and co-founder Rick Orr says that he got the idea from a bad dinning experience that he had when the waitress didn’t come back for 55 minutes after she dropped off his tab.

In a way, I think this is awesome and at the same time slightly unnecessary.  If I was at a bar, and it was crazy busy with no waitress to help me, I would love having this application. I would have a drink whenever I wanted, and I wouldn’t have to wait on someone else’s time to get it. Also, I wouldn’t have to worry about giving my card away to hold my tab for a server or bartender to misplace or charge the wrong tab on it.

On the other hand, I would be spending more time on my phone, ignoring my friends, and would be leaving half the tip because the waitress did half the work. Most importantly, if this app blows up like I think it will, bars and restaurants won’t need as many waitresses working so more jobs will be lost.

As a waitress myself, I understand that having a table that can simply send me a message of just what they want and I don’t have to repetitively ask if my table needs anything sounds great. But, what if my table gets too drunk. Ever hear the term “drunk texting?” Yeah, I can only imagine what drink orders will look like from an iPhone to a waitress.

TabbedOut is free to download, but only charges 99 cents for each time you pay your tab. It is already available in about 90 different bars in eight states (Apps For Buying Drinks). Not only is this application available through your iPhone, it is also available on Android and Blackberry.

The future of this application seems bright, but how secure does the future look for waitresses? How much will their work tasks be altered? Are there going to be any cutbacks because the application handles nearly 1/2 of a cocktail waitresses job? What do you think?