QSR May 2022

DEPARTMENT INNOVATE

TheRobot Restaurants They’re being welcomed by staff, whose jobs are easier, and customers, who appreciate the novelty factor. B Y A M A N D A B A L T A Z A R

adds. The cost of Servi, she says, is reasonable given the labor challenges afoot in the indus try. “It’s expensive because she’s a piece of technology but if you break it down, she’s not expensive. She’s helping my team members do more things and not have as much stress.” Keeping employees happy and not over whelmed is key. The restaurant industry continues to suffer from an employee short age, and according to The National Restaurant Association’s 2021 report, 77 percent of quick serve operations and 74 percent of fast casuals say they don’t have enough staff. At the same time, 78 percent of quick-serve operators and 68 percent of fast-casual chains say they expect technology and automation to help more with that this year. Servi has settled in nicely and Roxarzade even refers to it as a “she.” “I think she’s cute,” Roxarzade says. “Peo ple say we should put an apron on her.” Servi has two primary uses: Employees load her up with food and plug in a table number. She then delivers that food and engages in some light chit-chat with customers, along the lines of, “Have a nice day.” Servers can also take Servi along when they bus tables, loading her

Rachel’s Kitchen’s Servi robot helps ease the task load of front-line workers.

A re the days numbered when it comes to blaming order mix ups on human error? It’s surely a thought surfacing of late for restaurants, which is something that’s sped lightyears during the pandemic. Robotics, in particular, have gone from fantasy to back-of-the house tool. And it’s only picking up. Rachel’s Kitchen introduced the Servi robot in its Henderson, Nevada, location last December with the goal of providing an extra pair of hands for front-of-the-house employees. “It’s been increasingly difficult to find staff,” says Debbie Rox arzade, founder and owner of the eight-location fast casual that’s headquartered in Las Vegas. “It’s tough, it’s exhausting, people are getting sick, we’re constantly being thrown things we need to do. So I thought if there’s anything I can do to help the teammembers, I want to do it.” Roxarzade leases Servi and pays an annual cost for an initial two to three years—all programming was done by a technician from Bear Robotics, the company that makes Servi. “We were able to try her for a couple of weeks before we commit ted, but within a week everyone was saying she’s helpful,” Roxarzade

with dirty dishes and sending her back to the dishroom. Custom ers receive their food faster thanks to Servi, Roxarzade points out, and it also gives the servers more time to interact with customers and provide a hospitality touch. Servi’s a big hit with customers, especially children. “People are taking videos and pictures,” says Roxarzade, adding during COVID there’s another advantage of having a robot—some cus tomers are not yet quite comfortable with human interaction. Addingvaluewith technology BurgerFi debuted Patty the Robot at the end of 2020 at a location in Jupiter, Florida. Patty has the same responsibilities as Servi: bring food to tables and bussing. “Patty is not intended to replace folks; it’s an augmentation of our staff and an extra pair of hands,” says Karl Goodhew, chief technology officer for the company, which has 116 domestic stores. “She allows our staff to add value, spending more time explaining our food.” Currently, staff members punch in a table number to send Patty there with food. However, BurgerFi CONTINUED ON PAGE 100

RACHEL'S KITCHEN

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MAY 2022 | QSR | www.qsrmagazine.com