Android your dinner: these Dutch restaurants are replacing waiters with robots
They have been around in China and Japan for years, and now that everyone is looking for creative solutions for the one-and-a-half-metre society, they can also be found in Dutch restaurants: robots serving customers.
James, Amy and Aker are the new helpers at the Asian restaurant Dadawan. One welcomes guests, scans their temperature and takes them to their table, another delivers orders, and Aker helps with clearing up. The testing phase begins in Maastricht, but the three robots will also be serving customers at the branches in Eindhoven and Arnhem.
What can the robots do?
And from now on, robots can also be spotted in Renesse, Zeeland. More precisely, in the service at the Asian restaurant Royal Palace. What do they do? Welcome people and deliver orders. The robots cannot take orders yet, and although they can navigate to the tables independently, guests still have to lend a hand by taking the food and drinks from the tray themselves.
Both restaurants acquired the robots before the coronavirus crisis. Shaosong Hu of Royal Palace: “The plan had been in place for some time,” he tells Editie NL. “I saw them in China and thought they were quite fun. So I ordered them too.”
A smart move?
FavorFlav’s Vincent van Dijk also talks about it on Editie NL. “Of course, it is a trend that has been predicted for some time. Corona has brought that trend forward. It is a smart way to keep your distance and generate extra attention. People really like such a gadget and also want to have their picture taken with it.”
And what about the conviviality?
Whether it will catch on to such an extent that other restaurants will also make the switch remains to be seen. “It is a good replacement for part of the staff, which might give others time again to have a chat or make a joke, because that remains very important in this industry.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CAsF6leFWCd/?igshid=772amvtvjbeh
https://www.instagram.com/p/CApbMrphL7R/?igshid=1a6vpw27fg0th
Image: Royal Palace Renesse
Also read:
