iTray: UK sushi chain launches world’s first ‘flying waiter’

By Trevor Mogg June 10, 2013

British restaurant chain YO! Sushi has launched what it says is the world’s first flying tray, a kind of airborne waiter capable of delivering food to tables faster than the more traditional leg-equipped variety.

The so-called iTray (check it out in the video below), which is apparently capable of reaching speeds of up to 25mph, took off from the kitchen of the restaurant’s flagship store in London over the weekend.

Related Videos

Essentially a modified quad-copter , the flying machine is controlled by an iPad, with a member of staff tilting the tablet to control its movement. It features two built-in cameras so the ‘pilot’ can accurately guide the food-laden tray to diners’ tables before flying it back to the kitchen.

itray

One customer who received his food on the iTray was evidently impressed. “When I ordered the burger, I didn’t imagine it was going to come flying across, into my face, on a tray,” he said, adding, “It was amazing, it was the weirdest thing.”

Speaking of food flying into faces – with customers constantly coming and going, not to mention those making their way to and from the bathroom, you might think the iTray is an accident waiting to happen, but thus far we’re happy to report that no iTray-diner entanglements have been reported. Presumably the tray flies well above the heads of diners, though if it hits a wall on its way to a customer, it could result in a bowl of miso soup landing on your head.

YO! Sushi boss Robin Rowland said the iTray was unveiled as part of the launch of a new rice burger.

“YO! Sushi is about delivering a new concept in an unusual and exciting way,” Rowland said. “The iTray concept came from our thinking of how are we going to show people how light and exciting and fun this food type is.”

If the flying tray proves popular with diners and doesn’t lead to any unfortunate accidents, it could be rolled out to its other stores next year.

YO! Sushi, which currently has more than 70 restaurants worldwide, was the first in the UK to introduce the conveyer-belt sushi system popular in Japan and also uses robotic trolleys to serve up drinks to diners.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Emerging Tech

Finger lickin’ fake chicken: KFC’s Beyond Chicken is as tasty as the real thing

review beyond fried chicken kfc taste test nuggets feature

When I arrived at the KFC at 11:15 a.m., I expected maybe a little more the usual lunch rush -- not the line that wound around the building or the backup of traffic that stretched a mile up the highway. I also didn't expect the green-and-white stripes that replaced the traditional red-and-white color scheme of America's favorite fried chicken restaurant.

Everyone there had turned out to try the new Beyond Fried Chicken from KFC, a plant-based alternative to real chicken. The product was created through a partnership with Beyond Meat. KFC used the Smyrna, Georgia location as a test to gauge customer interest in the product and determine whether Beyond Fried Chicken might be a candidate for expanded distribution. After all, no one likes fried chicken like southerners.

Emerging Tech

Forget burgers. Beyond Meat and KFC will test plant-based fried chicken

kfc ai robot restaurant

Kentucky Fried Chicken is moving beyond chicken.
Beyond Meat and KFC announced Monday that they’re working together on “Beyond Fried Chicken” -- meat-free "chicken" nuggets and boneless wings meant to mimic the taste and texture of the real thing.
KFC will be testing the plant-based chicken products for one day only on Tuesday at the chain's Smyrna, Georgia location -- just outside of Atlanta. Customers that purchase any item that day will be given a free sample of Beyond Fried Chicken and asked for their thoughts.
“Customer feedback from the Atlanta test will be considered as KFC evaluates a broader test or potential national rollout,” the chain said in a statement.

The move comes as a number of different fast-food chains have started offering plant-based burgers in stores.
Beyond Meat is currently available in the form of the Beyond Meat Marinara "meatball" sub at 685 Subway locations in North America, and Carl’s Jr. sells a Beyond Meat burger.
Beyond Meat’s competition, Impossible Foods, has a large footprint in the fast-food world as well. Recently Burger King made the move to roll out the Impossible Whopper to all of its stores in the United States and White Castle is offering an Impossible Slider.
Plant-based "meat" is the next big thing for food technology. Digital Trends named Impossible Burger as our Top Tech of CES 2019. We were impressed not only with the flavor of the burger but also that it "bleeds" when you bite into it.
Products like Impossible Burger and Beyond Meat are designed to be environmental wins rather than health ones. While the veggie burgers are in most cases just as bad for you as their regular meat counterparts, the plant-based meat alternatives are significantly better for the environment.
The idea behind both companies is to encourage eaters to swap a meat product occasionally (or more) for a plant-based one. Since plant-based burgers require fewer resources such as water and oxygen to produce, if a number of people made the occasional swap it could make a dramatic difference in the world's environment.
While Impossible Foods has largely targeted restaurants with its plant-based meat products, Beyond Meat sells a number of its products, such as ground "beef," in grocery stores.

Emerging Tech

Impossible Foods looks to make another splash with fishless fish

nine foods you should never cook in a microwave oven fish gettyimages 952995494 fjjimenez

Impossible Foods, the company behind the Impossible Burger, is working on another meatless product: Fishless fish.

The fishless fish is in development to respond to the growing demand for plant-based food and to help fight against the depletion of ocean populations, according to The New York Times.