Rise of robot food servers raises questions of employment, hospitality in metro Detroit

In 1989, “Back to the Future Part II” made waves on the silver screen with its fantastical depiction of life in the early 21st century — specifically, 2015.

Since 2015, media sleuths have made part-time careers of dissecting the film, rounding up the far-fetched gizmos that were predicted to power our everyday lifestyles and the ones that eventually came to fruition. Today’s innovation of hoverboards and Apple Watches and flying cars, make the case that the creative minds behind the “Back to the Future” franchise were more prophetic visionaries than filmmakers.  

From a food perspective, we may not be hydrating pizzas, and the average person isn’t commanding a basket of fruit delivered by spacecraft to drop from the ceiling above their kitchen table (though the capability doesn’t seem entirely out of the realm for those with smart homes or voice-activated virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa.)

But one invention is beginning to take off.

At The Cafe 80s, Marty McFly, played by Michael J. Fox, is greeted by a robotic waiter with a retro box TV for a head and Ronald Reagan onscreen announcing the cafe’s daily specials. Nearly 35 years after the film’s release, the robotic servers that are cropping up in Detroit-area restaurants are not unlike the sliding, talking Reagan head depicted in the film.

Skeptics vs. robotics

At Pho-Shi, a recently opened Asian fusion restaurant in Troy, a robotic server glides across the floor serenading diners with classical music as it makes its way to deliver beverages, appetizers, entrees and desserts to your table. Once your order is delivered, you tap the screen to send the robot back to its post at the register.

No, the bot at Pho-Shi is not crowned with a TV and the sitting president is not taking your order, but when your only interaction with a human employee is to place your order and pay the bill, dining at Pho-Shi conjures an existential realization that we are, in fact, living the filmmakers’ wildest dreams about the future of dining.

When I posted to social media a clip of Pho-Shi’s robotic server handing off a piping-hot bowl of pho filled with crisp vegetables and a tender cut of bone-in Angus short rib, my peers were not impressed. An informal poll revealed that a resounding 91% of the post’s viewers were decidedly against the idea of a world in which human servers were replaced by bots. A similar survey conducted among subscriber’s to Eat Drink Freep, a new Free Press food newsletter, garnered the same aversion.

“I am not going to any restaurants with robots,” Kevin McGuinness, of Ann Arbor, wrote via email. “I like people. It is bad enough having to deal with them when I call help lines. I don’t want to hear a machine with no feelings or emotion wish me a good day.”

The robots have entered the chat

Three years into a global pandemic, when we’ve only recently begun to quell the craving for human interaction, the concept of robotic servers in dining, one of the few industries that thrives on connection, may seem untimely and counterintuitive to the very nature of hospitality.

Yet continuing labor shortages in the restaurant industry, another pitfall of the pandemic, are the driving force behind the innovation for some.

In a survey conducted last summer by the National Restaurant Association, 93% of restaurant operators in Michigan said their establishment had job openings that were difficult to fill and 73% reported not having enough employees to support customer demand.

Citing job instability, harsh working conditions and demanding hours as the catalyst, food service workers have fled the restaurant industry in droves, seeking job opportunities in industries with more security, benefits and overall quality of life. In response, many restaurateurs have increased hourly wages, implemented automatic gratuity models and limited restaurant hours to create sustainable work hours for employees.

More:Restaurant workers find greener pastures in coding, hairstyling and auto manufacturing

Chef Mike Nassar, executive chef and co-owner of Detroit 75 Kitchen in southwest Detroit, is a fierce advocate for paying employees livable wages and dismantling unhealthy environments within the kitchen.

“The way you treat people always pays off and when they make a decent living, they’re happy and they don't have to look for anything else,” said Nassar, whose business operates eight-hour workdays on weekdays — 10 on Fridays — and remains closed on weekends.

Ahmad Nassar, co-owner and creative director at Detroit 75, said the restaurant’s deliberate decision to limit business hours is largely what has sheltered the team from the challenges of the labor shortage.

“There is certainly a shortage, but if your workplace is desirable, you're always going to be in demand for people in this industry,” Ahmad said.

Other restaurant owners haven’t had the same fortune.

Li Zhai, owner of Noodle Topia, has openly discussed the hardship the Madison Heights restaurant has faced as a result of the labor shortage. His solution: Hire a robot.

“We had a big problem on the staffing during the COVID time period,” he told the Associated Press in April. “We needed some help, but I cannot find people. The robot is very helpful for the restaurants.”

In addition to offering service support, Bella, Noodle Topia’s robotic server who resembles a cat, is a novelty that appeals to a curious audience, driving business to the restaurant.

Innovating, not replacing

Hideto Sugimoto, vice president of system and menu development at Kura Sushi USA with locations in Novi and Troy, said the introduction of robot servers was not a response to the labor shortage, but the new technology did allow the team to streamline the chain’s workforce significantly — not from a cost-reduction standpoint, but for efficiency's sake.

“It's not really a labor reduction, but with these technologies, we were able to consolidate all of the locations into operating under a proper amount of servers,” he said.

The idea to add Kur-B the KuraBot to the Kura Sushi team began well before the pandemic and the labor shortage that ensued. Robotic servers, managers believed, would bring an exciting new advancement to an already innovative space. Kura Sushi, the global enterprise known for its revolving conveyor belt that delivers sushi directly to diners, has a number of technological features consistent with new innovations popularized in Japan, including a touch-screen check-in device, digital toy dispensers, a tableside ordering system and a water channel running underneath the conveyor belt that transports dirty dishes to the restaurant’s dishwashing area.

“We've always thrived on having technologies in our service model,” Sugimoto said. “To add on to that, our president thought it would be a wonderful idea to have a robot deliver the food items.”

Robotic servers began delivering beverages and condiments to tables at all Kura Sushi locations last May, and Sugimoto sees a future where guests will have an opportunity to experience more of the KuraBot’s skills.  

Someday, Kur-B may be responsible for guiding guests to their tables and checking IDs before serving alcoholic beverages.

Robotics on campus

The future of robots in food service is quickly advancing, with a segue into robotic delivery in Detroit well underway.

At Wayne State University, a partnership with Starship Technologies allows students to have orders from six fast-casual restaurants placed in the GrubHub mobile application navigated directly to their location on campus via an autonomous robot.

“We wanted to be innovative and offer a new solution for students to receive their food,” said Timothy Clark, marketing manager of dining services at Wayne State University. “We thought Starship Deliveries was the best option, and so far, it has been received very well and we're excited to grow it.”

Discharged from a hub at the intersection of Anthony Wayne Drive and Kirby Street, the robots are outfitted with a navigation system, 12 cameras, sensors and an internal speed monitoring system that keeps them at a steady 4 miles per hour to safely deliver food and grocery items directly to customers.

“We did want to find a solution to relieve our operations because, like everyone in the industry, we definitely experienced that labor shortage throughout the pandemic,” Clark said. “This has definitely been in support of that. It’s also a huge time-saver, especially for students that are studying all day and don't want to get out and wait in lines.”

A similar partnership between the Knight Autonomous Vehicle Initiative — a collaborative effort involving the Urbanism Next Center at the University of Oregon, Cityfi, the cities of Detroit, Pittsburgh, San Jose and Miami-Dade County — and food delivery service Kiwibot is also in beta testing.

Kiwibot was deployed in Detroit in late 2021, delivering prepared food from Bobcat Bonnie’s and the Goblin to consumers. In that period, the robots racked up 450 miles and 400 simulated orders and deliveries. The intention of the pilot was to test the potential and efficacy of autonomous vehicles in urban communities. Detroit specifically was tapped for its role as the hub of the U.S. auto industry and its proximity to Mcity, a mobility research facility in Ann Arbor. Here, the program was overseen by tech incubator Newlab Detroit, which is housed at Michigan Central in Detroit.

More:Newlab at Michigan Central is for startups working toward a future of mobility

Findings of the pilot showed an excitement for the possibilities of the Kiwibot as well as some challenges. In some instances, the Kiwi Bot was unable to cross large streets quickly enough before facing oncoming traffic.

Mike Nassar sees the use of robots in the food industry as an opportunity to support workers’ productivity and potentially increase jobs. Offloading mundane responsibilities, such as lifting the 70-pound boxes of potatoes the restaurant goes through daily, dishwashing and other housekeeping chores, could create openings for dedicated staffers to move into higher-paying roles, such as recipe development and customer service.

“If you are going to invest in a tool that will make certain jobs easier in this business, you should take that money and invest into your staff because at the end of the day, that’s what makes the business,” Nassar said.

He and Ahmad Nassar added that new technologies also give way to new opportunities for jobs on logistical and operations teams that support the quality assurance of the robots.

While the duo sees robots having a valuable place in the kitchen, they don’t see them becoming a replacement for humans.

“I like working with people and I think it may be a good opportunity to have some robotic elements, but replacing the humans in this industry, I really don't see it. At the end of the day, we like the human touch,” Mike Nassar said. “The other question is: Are humans going to enjoy that type of service? When you go out to eat, you want to be treated. Service is really big part of going out to eat.”

Ahmad Nassar added: “You can't remove all human element from this industry. Otherwise, I don't know how hospitable it would be anymore.”

“Back to the Future Part II” might’ve seen the robotic server coming, and “The Jetsons” got the food machine right — ZaBot, a pizza vending machine located in Southfield and Detroit, dispenses pizza pies at the push of a button.

There’s just one element of the dining experience they failed to cover: Does your robot server deserve a tip?