During the COVID-19 pandemic, the restaurant business took an absolute nose dive. Most of the restaurants nowadays are surviving by making food deliveries online. Also many restaurants are going out of business.
It is very difficult to believe, only about six months ago, the restaurant business was absolutely thriving. People just could not eat enough hanging out in fast food shops, setting up an important meeting in a restaurant and discussing the important points of business over food used to be the norm.
But the fear and the risk of COVID-19 absolutely ruined everything. Going to the restaurant is risky for both the staffs and the customers. The staffs can get infected from the customers, or the staffs can infect the customers. It is a very tricky situation.
The main issue here is human interactions.
Just a few days ago I saw a very funny video on Facebook. A customer went to a restaurant to have some food, the waiter was throwing the food towards the customer from a distance, food was getting splattered everywhere. And then the customer was also throwing money when it was time for him to pay. What they were doing was avoiding getting close to each other, so they do not infect each other.
But what if they did not need to come even within 20 feet of each other? How is it possible?
This is only possible using a Robot Waiter or waitress. The chef will prepare food in safety from his kitchen, the robot will carry the food to the customer. The customer takes the food, and then the robot comes back. A restaurant staff properly sanitizes the robot before the chef puts in new food for another customer.
Robots might also help to greet the customers, show them to the tables and make them aware of the rules such as, they must wear mask etc. They also might help to tell the menu to the customers.
During this bad time, restaurant owners must adapt to the changing environments. Otherwise it is only a matter of time till they run of of business.
Here are five types of Robot waiters which might help the restaurant owners to keep running their business.
Exhibition show Local or cloud library dialogues conversation robot Waiter
Price: $20,793.60
This robot waiter holds a big LED screen. This screen can be used to show the menu. AI enables the robot directly interact with humans and answer their queries.
Customize Smart map built Restaurant voice waiter robot delivery Robot
Price: $$4,275.00
This robot waiter more simplistic and effective. It is mainly designed to carry food. You can see the two tier arrangement. It also has an interactive LCD panel behind it. Customers can type in the food they would like to order. After the chef makes the food, it can carry the food to the customer.
Cost effective deliver robot waiter
Price: $5,462.50
This robot is a humanoid robot. So the customers kind of getting an impression talking with a person. There is not much information about the robot. It moves very slowly. It can carry a tray and has an LED display on it’s chest.
Customize hotel Restaurant administrative delivery Service Waiter smart Robot
Price: $7,599.05
This robot waiter is made especially to carry lots of food. It can serve food to multiple customers at once, hence saving time.
Robotics projects under development at research institutes smart Humanoid waiter service robot
Price: $28,499.05
This is a very sophisticated robot. It is very expensive. It is mainly made for interacting with humans. It has got a very big LED display in the front. Personally I am not a big fan of it.
Conclusion
The COVID-19 pandemic is not going anywhere for the next 1-2 years until someone makes a vaccine for it. Restaurants cannot wait for 1-2 years, they will run out of business. Hence they must evolve and make more use of technology, take orders online and deliver foods. Also make use of robot waiters if they have the courage for a change and do something new.