The Future of Robotics in Restaurants
What a restaurant owner thinks about robots
The recent demonstration of the Optimus robot by Tesla got me thinking.
We saw Optimus pouring drinks, dancing, talking to people, and doing all sorts of other cool things.
My first thought was, “Well, that’s awesome”.
My second thought was, “How cool would it be to have a couple of those working for me?”.
Naturally, as a restaurant owner, I started thinking about what this could mean for the restaurant industry.
This is what I came up with.
We already have robots in the industry
The most obvious thought is that we already have robots in the hospitality industry.
Las Vegas has had robots who can pour you drinks for quite a few years. From what I’ve heard from others, they don’t make good drinks though.
But, obviously, that could (easily) change.
All over the world, you’ll find robots who run the food for you to your table to take the burden off the server.
Aside from those robots, we also have other technology which eliminates the need for as much staff.
For example, you’ve likely seen restaurants with conveyor belts with sushi that goes around the restaurant.
On a simpler scale, there are dishwashers instead of people washing by hand along with numerous other machines which simplify tasks resulting in less staff.
None of these are human-like though.
Optimus is.
Human-like robots will replace jobs
Without a doubt, I believe most restaurants will have a large number of humanoid robots replacing jobs.
Aside from jobs like washing the dishes or even cutting vegetables and meats, having humanoid robots who serve food and pour drinks or even seat you at your table makes sense as the basics can be broken down to a science.
It will remove a large number of errors, and guarantee a consistent speed to allow predictable wait times and sales, all while not having to deal with human problems such as people not showing up for work or consistent turnover.
All in all, it would be beneficial for the business owner and I believe most restaurants will end up going this route in the long run.
With that in mind, there will always be a place for human-run restaurants.
The strong will survive
There is one aspect the robots will not be able to replace - the human touch.
We humans crave human social interaction.
We want to talk to the charming servers, know their personal recommendations and watch the bartender shake their cocktails.
There will always be room for this unique experience.
But, this experience will be more unique than ever.
This might be a good thing for restaurant staff… at least for the strong it will be.
The best servers and bartenders will be in demand increasing how much they make, while customers will be willing to pay more for this rare experience.
Restaurant staff wages have been an issue for some time.
The business owner needs to tightly watch their labour and servers often struggle as they rely on unpredictable tips to pay their bills.
In the future, when the experience humans provide is truly unique, the customer will be willing to pay more.
If the customer pays more, the staff can get paid more too.
All in all, we would see a better restaurant experience (it would be needed to survive against the robots) and higher wages for the staff.
There is one more benefit to consider though.
Eating out will be less expensive
With robots working in restaurants, prices will start to drop and people will be able to eat out more often.
This will get humans out more and allow them to connect with each other.
While there will still be room for humans to work in unique restaurants if they’re highly skilled, there will also be restaurants which can charge less because their costs are far lower.
Prices will drop even more if we have more robotic advancements and automation in the supply chain.
For example, what if the delivery trucks were electric and autonomous?
Costs would lower, easing the burden on the restaurant and resulting in lower prices for the consumer.
Closing thoughts
Robots coming for your jobs can be scary. Overall, I do believe the benefits from this could far outweigh the negatives.
This would free up human productivity to focus on bigger problems while lowering the costs for consumers and business owners.
It would also improve the restaurant experience in human restaurants as the staff’s skills would be exceptional. All while giving room for interesting programable experiences with the robot workers.
That excites me for multiple reasons.
Thanks for reading