World’s First Robot Restaurant Complex in Guangdong, China

Chinese property development company Country Garden is claiming to have built “the world’s first-ever robot restaurant complex” in Guangdong. The facility was opened on June 22 in the province’s Shunde area by Qianxi Robot Catering Group, a subsidiary of Country Garden. 

The complex has separate restaurant sections each powered by artificial intelligence. They offer a wide variety of choices such as fast food, hot pot, noodle shops, and regional Chinese cuisines.  The robots will make dishes such as clay pot rice, beef, and even ice cream. 

Robot Restaurant Can Handle 600 Customers

The complex is over 21000 square feet and features 20 in-house developed robots. There are 200 menu items that can each be served up in as little as 20 seconds. The robot technology can serve nearly 600 customers at one time.

“The Qianxi robot restaurant has innovatively achieved both software-hardware integration and man-machine cooperation. It helps to better run a smooth operation through the practical application of robots,” said Zhao Chunsheng, mechanical engineering specialist and academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

While impressive, the robot run restaurants can serve another purpose during the current COVID-19 pandemic. They help restaurants reduce human-to-human contact protecting both employees and customers. This new style of dining could be a trend for the foreseeable future.

Country Garden plans to open more robot restaurant complexes in the near future targeting places such as Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao. They also hope to achieve mass production of their restaurant robots with an expected output of some 5,000 units per year.

Source: Robotics and Automation News

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