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As Fast Food Workers Go On Strike In 100 Cities, Applebees Unveils The "Waiter Terminator"
Today, in the latest escalation by minimum paid restaurant workers who demand greater wages, Fast-food workers and labor organizers are set to turn out in support of higher wages in cities across the country Thursday and walkouts are planned in 100 cities, with rallies set for another 100 cities. While it's not clear what the actual turnout will be, how many of the participants are workers and what impact they'll have on restaurant operations, it is possible that your 99 cent lunch may be delayed or outright cancelled today.
The actions would mark the largest showing yet over the past year. At a time when there's growing national and international attention on economic disparities, labor unions, worker advocacy groups and Democrats are hoping to build public support to raise the federal minimum wage of $7.25, or about $15,000 a year for full-time work.
In New York City, about 100 protesters carrying signs, blowing whistles and beating drums marched into a McDonald's at around 6:30 a.m.; one startled customer grabbed his food and fled as they flooded the restaurant, while another didn't look up from eating and reading amid their chants of "We can't survive on $7.25!"
It seems trying to persuade these minimum wage workers to enjoy what they have - namley that corporations have all the leverage while unskilled, undereducated employees have none (the Service Employees International Union represents more than 2 million workers, on the other hand there are 91 million non-unionized workers out of the workforce) and that any increases in wages would simply be passed on to other consumers, and certainly result in broad terminations to keep the SG&A line flat - is probably a moot point.
So instead the strikers were met with something a bit more persuasive: brute Police force.
Community leaders took turns giving speeches for about 15 minutes until the police arrived and ordered protesters out of the store. The crowd continued to demonstrate outside for about 45 more minutes while a handful of customers remained inside. A McDonald's manager declined to be interviewed and asked that customers not be bothered.
Tyeisha Batts, a 27-year-old employee at Burger King, was among those taking part in the demonstrations planned throughout the day in New York City. She said she has been working at the location for about seven months and earns $7.25 an hour.
"My boss took me off the schedule because she knows I'm participating," Batts said.
Considering there are a few hundred thousand applicants for your position , Ms. Batts, we find that perfectly explainable. Then again, if you are unhappy with your position, you are welcome to quit and find a better paying job. Especially since in the very near future you may not even have the option of choosing, as it will be done for you. Earlier this week, restaurant chain Applebees unveiled what may soon be the "Waiter Terminator."
From the company's press release: "Applebee’s steps into the future to redefine and enhance the guest experience through the installation of 100,000 E la Carte Presto tablets, powered by Intel, on every table and multiple bar positions at more than 1,800 Applebee’s restaurants in the United States by the end of next year."

The LA Times reports:
The E La Carte Presto tablets – powered by Intel – will allow patrons to pay from their seats while also adding food and beverages to their existing orders. A pilot program helped customers save time, according to Applebee’s Glendale-based parent DineEquity.
“Let’s face it, everyone who has ever been to a restaurant has been frustrated by waiting for their check,” said Mike Archer, Applebee’s president, in a statement.
Eventually, the gadgets will also feature an expanded lineup of games, video streaming capabilities, music options, gift card sales and social media interaction. The Presto tablets, which were developed at MIT, have been “ruggedized” to deal with the spills and rowdy children common in such restaurants, according to the company.
And the punchline:
In the pilot program, the Presto tablets not only significantly reduced transaction times for guests, but also provided them a better overall experience, based on their feedback. By simplifying the transaction process and allowing guests to control the timing, Team Members were able to provide better service and more attention to guest needs throughout the dining experience, rather than focusing on delivering a check.
Also, much more time to work on their resume. In other words, Applebees is already taking steps at outsourcing its minimum wage waiters with tablets. Which incidentally is a brilliant idea, especially in a cost-cutting environment. So brilliant in fact that others are already joining in..
DineEquity said it might consider introducing the tablets at its IHOP restaurant chain as well. The company joins many others in the industry that have begun incorporating technology into the customer experience, installing ordering kiosks, equipping servers with mobile devices and more.
In other words, a funny thing happened as fast food workers were striking across the land - they were all just made obsolete courtesy of iPads.
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Crapplebees! No thanks. I'll skip most chain restaurants.
"Presto tablets ... provided them a better overall experience"
Ah, yes - we love our devices and shun interpersonal interactions. Someone post the pic of the Simpsons kids hugging the television.
Actually a study was done a long time ago when ATMs came out. It found that humans find it demoralizing to be treated like shit by other humans more so than by a machine.
So when the bank teller or food order taker has an attitude problem or attention deficit issue or has the intelligence of a male field mouse's left testicle, the human on the other side of the transaction would rather be dealing with an impersonal machine even if that machine is experiencing technical difficulties.
No attitude, no mistakes, no tip, no spit - who wouldnt prefer these?
I worry about spit
I wonder if there will be a random insult app so they can generate fake receipts and 15 minutes of fame/infamy for the server: http://www.idesigntimes.com/articles/8798/20131203/dayna-morales-gay-note-real-fake-waitress.htm After crap like this, who wouldn't want an automated checkout system?
Went to Chili's or Applebees in Chicago a couple months back... They arleady had something like this.. but a drone did have to bring me the food.
i don't eat out any more. too risky
The bastions of socialism will just pass laws outlawing those things. Oregon already outlawed self-serve gas a long time ago.
The soon-to-be BernankeYellen 'Value' Meal:
(Oh, they'll get the inflation they want, that's "good for the economy")
1) Big Mac
2) Large french fries
3) Medium soft drink
$15.99
And hundreds of thousands of franchisees (not just McDonald's) cried out as customers say either "screw it, let's eat at Texas Roadhouse - might as well," -OR- let's further deleverage down, you know, and "let's cook food on that stove 'thing' we have at home."
ate at applebees that had those tablets a little over a week ago
the games sucked, but i liked the tablet better than the 60 year old obvious chain smoker woman who brought us our food and insisted on pointing to things with her overly long pinky fingernail
Near Future of Fast Food in BernankeYellen-wasteland:
Enjoy Your EXXXTRA Big Ass FriesI don't eat out because I don't like people.
Overpriced average restaurant seeks rise of the machines to keep business afloat. Zombies welcome.
"Applebees is already taking steps at outsourcing its minimum wage waiters with tablets."
And pay tips with Bitcoin.... /sarc
self serv yogurt places
redbox $1 per DVD kiosks
you live in the richest country in the world and can't offer more than what a dumb machine can then you failed in life. BTW, social benefits from taxes are paying for your lifestyle not minimum wage.
Admittedly, my sample size is small, but I was in the States recently for the first time in just over 2 years. Everywhere I went, I was blown over by the level of customer service as compared to France. It is not that French customer service people are outright rude, but they certainly aren't worried about the level of politeness and service that I got almost everywhere in the States rather it was a gas station, a clothing store, or a restaurant. As far as restaurants were concerned, I did only go to independently owned places. No chains... I could only guess that the competition made people nicer.
After all the disparaging remarks about servers above, I couldn't help but wonder if y'all are simply a bunch of douchebags whose lives reflect the nature of your interaction with other humans.
Being a service worker has its own challenges. No... You don't have to be a rocket scientist, but it is nuanced enough that there are big differences between doing it well, well enough, or badly.
Yeah, I had friends just come back from the states, that were blown away by the levels of service there.
In fact, they were quite impressed with the yanks all round.
Might have just been holiday syndrome, but I don't think so.
They didn't go to any shitty areas though.
They didn't go through LAX, that's for sure. One of the surliest and most unfriendly places on the planet. My home town, I feel sorry for tourists everytime I fly in our out of there.
Quote: After all the disparaging remarks about servers above, I couldn't help but wonder if y'all are simply a bunch of douchebags whose lives reflect the nature of your interaction with other humans.
You are exactly right.
A corolary to your point...I could employ sarcasm here, but I will state it straight up. You folks might want to consider the cheering on of obsolescence. Most of you work in information related occupations... an easy match for a machine. The fact that people are being relagated to the dustbin accomplishes what... exactly?
I suppose it comes down to what you think of as the purpose of life. I always considered this to be the spirtual well being and improvement of myself and my fellow man.
"...offer more than what a dumb machine can then you failed in life"
Ask your wife's vibrator about that. Maybe there's a division of labor thing going on there such that you get cuddling afterward duty and spider killing duty.
Are either of you typing english?!
I have NEVER eaten at a Applesleeze and there is one fairly close to my home. That is because I did eat at O'Charley's restaurant ONCE and it was crap so I figured Applesleeze would be just about as bad. Spit would be a flavor enhancer at these eateries.
Well .. couldn't you just get a salad or something?
Yes, the BernankeYellen McValue salad, with hedonistic adjustment ensuring it's 100% non-nutricous iceberg lettuce (a 2.5 ounce lump wedge with 1000 Island dressing on top) will be $6.99.
WTF are you talking about? I went to a steak house in Chicago a decade ago, and, intrigued, ordered a 'wedge salad'. Couldn't believe I was charged $10 for 1/3 of a head of iceberg, a sliced tomato, all drizzled in dressing. Yours sounds like a freakin' bargain in comparison
when you go out to eat, you are paying for service and the ambiance, tips + taxes
That little bit extra you paid was for the Obama ambiance.
Not that I will EVER go to a f’n Applebee’s – but the thought of sitting in a room full of anti-social lard-asses all transfixed by glowing brain-suck machines is perhaps even more unappetizing than the shit food they serve.
That’s actually one of the things I like about the local eateries I do frequent – a warm cozy room full of people enjoying each other’s company along with good, locally sourced food.
If I wanted to bask among anti-social iPhone addicts – I’d eat Taco Bell on the bus.
Re: "the thought of sitting in a room full of anti-social lard-asses all transfixed by glowing brain-suck machines is perhaps even more unappetizing than the shit food they serve."
HA! hahaha
I have a friend -- lady, senior citizen -- who recently arranged to spend the day with her six grandchildren. They went out to lunch. When they were seated, the children pulled out their trinkets and immediately began texturbating. THE ENTIRE LUNCH UNFOLDED IN SILENCE. She was flabbergasted and felt quite alienated and hurt -- another victim of the zombification of America.
My only requirement for accepting these new E-La-Cartes is that they accept cash. No cash, no business. Oh, and I expect reduction in prices.
COOK AT HOME
solves a lot of problems....health, expenses, parenting, etc.
I'm actually a pretty good cook, but it's also good to get out once in a while for a treat and change of scene. Living like a hermit has its own cost. If you can splurge and know a good place locally, support it.
Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got.
Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot.
Wouldn't you like to get away?
Sometimes you want to go
Where everybody knows your name,
and they're always glad you came.
You wanna be where you can see,
our troubles are all the same
You wanna be where everybody knows
Your name.
You wanna go where people know,
people are all the same,
You wanna go where everybody knows
your name.
NORM!!!
Excellent Lore. The key is never patronizing chain restaurants. They make their money through volume so they hastily throw the food at you hoping you will wolf it down and leave fast. A cursory view of the other wide girthed patrons will convince you their customer base is fulfilling their expectations. We often go to a small French restaurant in Kensington. The food is wonderful but we have noticed people have complained that the service is not good. We found that ridiculous but realized Americans are used to being rushed through meals and have forgotten how to savor food, wine and the company whom your are sharing the experience. We can't afford to go out often but when we do it must be a sensory event to be remembered.
Miffed;-)
@ Lore:
'texturbating...'
GOOD ONE!
>> because I don't like people.
I don't eat out for several reasons, none of which is I don't like people. I insist on controlling the contents of my meals, especially the fat, salt and sugar. Doing that with restaurant meals is darned near impossible. I don't like paying $1 for $.25 of food, then tipping someone for bringing it ( I don't mind tipping, I just avoid paying someone to do what I can do better myself). I'm a chronic hand washer and clean freak with my cooking. I've worked in restaurants and know the average kitchen monkey doesn't share my zeal. I don't go anywhere, anywhere, without my dog. I like my dog better than any person.
There are plenty of other good reasons not to eat in restaurants. Fighting the corporate take over of everything in our lives is a good one. Not liking people is an obvious good one.
Hear hear Greatbeard!
My 5 dogs and I eat better then the Hedgless Horseman.
I've work every type of line in my life (ship. diner, 4 star Michelin)
I've eaten out once in 5 years.
That was on a 4 day trip to the US to p/u a horse.
I ate home grown apples and home made beef jerky the rest of the 3.5 days.
My wife made us stop.
The steers name was Stu and they were russet apples.
>> The steers name was Stu
We would travel well together. That's my kind of road food. The worst thing about traveling is road food, that's why I bring my own. If you are what you eat, most people are garbage.
"I'm a chronic hand washer and clean freak with my cooking. I don't go anywhere, anywhere, without my dog."
You go to restaurants with an animal that eats its own feces and cleans its anus with its own tongue, yet you are a clean freak.
Yeah, you are full of shit.
>> You go to restaurants with an animal
And you are a stupid fuck that is clearly a product of lower end public education. I stated right off the bat that I "DON'T" eat in restaurants. What the fuck is so difficult to understand about the word DON'T, you ignorant fucking cretin.
People...what a bunch of bastards!
I like girls.
I DO 'eat out', if they're clean, pretty, and willing.
I feel sorry for you, 'flacon'.
Says a lot about ZH readers that flacon's comment has the most like votes of all. Yeah, I liked it, too.
greenturtle in towson md....250,000 tax payer forgivable loan for improvements...fuck these chain cocksuckers and these fucking cunt connected politicians...roll the motherfucking guiloitines...shop local...eat local....
Re: "shop local...eat local...."
That slogan gets regurgitated a lot, but it's too simplistic and fits too neatly into "green" communitarian ideology. A lot of local places in my area actively gouge on that basis, jacking prices for some things as much as 500%. To hell with that! A better slogan might be "SHOP AROUND AND BUY LOCAL WHEN IT'S COMPETITIVE."
That thinking is why Walmart rules the world and why there are no US manufactuing jobs. Thanks for doing your part, glad you saved money. The business I own is in local food. Ya, it costs more. I don't hire mexicans. MY LOCAL FOOD MIGHT BE MORE COMPETITIVE IF I USED NON-LOCAL LABOR.
I respect your position, but doubt its validity in this changing market. Please hear me out.
Grocery prices -- in my area, at least -- have begun fluctuating wildly, within stores from day to day, between stores, and between competitors. Something is happening that has caused prices for things we need -- like perishables (produce, etc.) -- to rise about 25% across the board since Q1 2013. Some things are up about 300% no matter where you shop or what sale is on. (And of course, things get jacked about 20% with Christmas approaching, but that usually fades around the end of January.)
Wal-Mart may have been competitive at one time due simply to economies of scale, aggressive procurement and cheap labour, but THAT ISN'T ENOUGH NOW. WAL-MART PRICES ARE NO LONGER COMPETITIVE. I CAN GET BETTER DEALS LOCALLY BY SHOPPING AROUND -- watching the flyers, clipping the coupons, buying specials. It requires organizational skill and foresight re: things you are low on, but can be done with little effort. IT IS NOW POSSIBLE TO BUY LOCALLY AND SAVE MORE MONEY.
Wal-Mart may be handicapped by cash flow, procurement, distribution and other internal issues, but that doesn't explain why prices in general are up so much. I would appreciate opinions in that regard, as you see nothing about it in local papers or journals. I suspect it is the first rumbling of serious inflation "in things we need." Rgds
Our local farmers market is either on par with grocery store or beats them. Besides, I like to meet my farmer. A commercial farmer is not paid to produce healthful produce. He is paid a rate per pound to produce " pretty" fruits and vegetables because the ignorant shoppers of today will only by unblemished produce. So you have beautiful uniform oranges that stack well in a pile but taste like the cardboard box in which they were shipped.
My other strategy is to shop the farmers market at closing and haggle a bit when there is some motivation on the seller's side.
Miffed;-)
to fine tune my point for some...buy local...eat local...doesnt mean getting the cheapest price...the cost you pay for the cheapest price has a tremendous cost...locals of all kinds pay better wages, have more integrity for the most part....so like always ..you eventually get what you pay for...so as walfucks kill all family and small biz, you and ur community than reap what they have sown...and its not a fair trade by any means....
I own WMT stock and like to visit local store to see how they are doing. Prices definitely jumped noticeably a year or so ago. I believe mgmt must have concluded drop in volume caused by price increase not sharp, producing increase in net. Is that called price inelasticity? Also, i am quite sure that presence of Walmart groceries in small towns has hurt margins of competitors such as Hy-Vee, which used to ream small town folks. The beautiful Walmart store in my hometown is a big plus for the community
Give em all one bitcion and they will shut up.
New BitCoin Wallet
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5_hFHHJhd4
Even Ron Paul can put it in his pocket
If you like usury, you'll love Wonga!
"but i liked the tablet better than the 60 year old obvious chain smoker woman who brought us our food and insisted on pointing to things with her overly long pinky fingernail"
can appreciate this, but damn are we losing touch with the human element in almost everything. afraid its not the path we really want.
"ate at applebees that had those tablets a little over a week ago
the games sucked, but i liked the tablet better than the 60 year old obvious chain smoker woman who brought us our food and insisted on pointing to things with her overly long pinky fingernail"
Dude! That's so disgusting! You ate at Applebees?
When the "value" meal costs $15.99, potatoes will be selling for $5/lb and a fresh chicken $50/bird.
You can find good local places to eat plsu places lie Chick Filet which is about the same as what they charge at McDonald's pus land.
The people who created Outback have a Chick Filet competitor called PDQ which is pretty good. The food is above average and maybe .50 cents more or even equal to something at McDonalds.
Eating a lot at chicfila will kill you. Seriously. Their stuff is *loaded* with bad fats.
Had to stop for fuel in a small town in Eastern Oregon. It was cold as hell and snowing sideways. A little old lady about 75 years old had to come out and fuel my pickup because the Socialist State of Oregon thinks I'm too stupid to pump my own fuel. The speed limit is 55MPH in country that is flatter than a plate of piss and void of any traffic. Fuck a whole bunch of Oregon.
Let me help you out...
Fuck everything west of the Cascades, i.e. Eugene, Portland and the state "government" in Salem.
East of the Cascades is part of the American Redoubt. Totally different crowd. Open carry handguns, rifles in the rack in the truck, gardens, livestock, etc.
Pretty much the same story once past the Snoqualmie pass in WA near Seattle. It's like dropping down into a different world, althought at least there I can still carry with my UT non resident permit. Going back east, folks much nicer to deal with and hard working rural types.(There are still pockets of good folks around Monroe, Lynden, Skagit vally etc farm/dairy regions)
The "greens" are likewise doing a fine job of ramming Agenda 21 down Western Canadian throats. Most of the larger municipal governments are essentially hijacked according to plan. In some respects, the province of British Columbia is turning communitarian to the point of neurosis. Basic infrastructure is apparently being weaponized:
Vancouver's Food Scraps Program (CBC, 4-Dec)
You are certainly spot on there. Once we visited my brother in the Green lake area of Seattle and drove over to Wenatchee to see my husbands relatives. I thought we were in a different country. The same can be said of areas of Cali though people probably wouldn't believe it.
Miffed;-)
What are you complaining about? The fuel prices in Oregon aren't any more than they are in Washington or California, I suppose you could make the case that the state is infringing on your right to smell like gasoline and freeze your ass off pumping it, but I rather like not having to get out of my vehicle or having to pay an extra dollar a gallon and drive 10 miles out of my way for full service. I agree with you about that 55mph limit though.
Well, then, by all means - make it a fucking law and enforce your personal preferences on everyone else.
The government isn't the problem in this country.
It's people like YOU who insist on forcing their shit down everyone else's throats via the police power of government that's the problem.
Say what you want about monoloco, but at least they have an ethos.
It's the fucking fucks who don't even understand they been put in the slaughter yard and couldn’t form an opinion on it even if they knew.
"I suppose you could make the case that the state is infringing on your right to smell like gasoline and freeze your ass off pumping it, but I rather like not having to get out of my vehicle"
To be honest, I like pumping my own gas. Now, wiping my own ass, that's a hole 'nuther thing.
You reckon they might address that in Oregon? That would truly be a "full service station" then!
Hey Mono , how about I want to decided for myself !! Oh and by the way
you come off as a lazy sissy boy too.
Sometimes... "How you see the problem IS the problem". In this case, you don't have to get out to...
> Get smelly, cold, wet or dirty.
> Get your mug on the Camera, uplinked to NSA Utah
Imagine getting real service, like in the goold old days, while you stay in the car. Boo-hoo kitty.
So where does this lead to? In the future will I have to take my own order, go to the kitchen and cook it, serve myself and when I'm done stiff myself on the tip? Hell, I can do that at home now!
Might want to check out the "Melting Pot" restaurant. They bring raw food to your table and you cook it. Voila!!!!
I do enjoy Chinese hot pot, even with real fake crab and "beef" balls...
Real fake crab is good, but I particularly like the Fukushima sashimi with a side of plutonium. Makes me feel all tingly inside.
I like to baste mine with a sweet and sour Fuki MOX sauce.
With lots of butter! Yum!
Cafeteria or buffet style setting is my guess. Or automat, if we're going waaaay back.
My personal fave is the Costco roast chicken ($5.00) or the 18" pizza ($9.95).
The bottom line (literally) is that you will end up spending quite a bit more for a server who, even if they were raised from $7.25 to $10/hr, will still bitch about their poor finances. If you're over 21 and $15K is maxing out your career potential, you have a lot more problems than your wage. They should take some pointers from newly arrived immigrants on how to stretch a buck and how to hustle for income.
sir, you nailed it. They all want the Homer Simpson job of doing nothing, have the house and all the crap with it. Free shit army is what they are...
"So where does this lead to? In the future will I have to take my own order, go to the kitchen and cook it, serve myself and when I'm done stiff myself on the tip? Hell, I can do that at home now!"
Oh please. "at home" you have the choice of buying decent ingredients to make your own meals instead of the fucking cheap industrial garbage/slop "served" up at Applebee's etc. by underpaid employees while such dumps pretend to be offering you a "dining" experience. USA restaurants aren't even deserving of the name restaurant. They are slop barns for slop animals who never learned how to dine.
u
...."in the future"....
The future doesn't need us, so "they" say....
I know shit about the future. Never been there.
In the now, I am becoming a dedicated student of Murphy and his Mighty Laws. It's a solitary path but it's a more worth while endeavor than jerking off.
Help the system on its merry way down the least resistant path to entropy. Be the best bad citizen/serf you can be. Despoil. Fuck stuff up. With every tick of the corp company clock, think of ways to absolute shit on the bottom line. Get caught? Play dumb; they will treat you as an equal. You may even be promoted, opening new doors to...more effective mayhem.
It really is rewarding. I have never, ever felt more free. I know this, because Tyler knows this.
Slide
Bet you're glad I'm not a pilot.
Despoil, effective mayhem,
bingo !! From one student of Murphy to another , cheers. Keep up the good work.
Come to think of it were likely doing Blankenfeld type work.
I was in Australia 20 years ago. Went to a place where you pick your steak/chop/whatever from a refrigerator case, they hand it to you with a large fork, and you walk over to the communal grill, where you are supposed to sip your beer, cook your dinner, and make conversation with the total stranger next to you. Didn't have to tip anyone, though.
So did NJ. That was done because capitalist small station owners figured large automated chains would put them out of business and remains that way because said capitalists pay the legislature to keep it that way.
Well, t keeps a few people working and cuts down on explosions at gas stations to zero. No gas on the ground, no nozzles and hoses sticking out of cars as they go down the street. Really low sales of replacement gas caps and you don't stink like the gulf of mexico after you fill up. Them bastages.
Perhaps they can passa law to have somebody wipe your ass for you. Professional ass wipers. That way you can take a big shit and not even have to wash your hands afterward.
Yes Oregon did that on the pretext of public safety because pumping a flammable liquid is so very dangerous to public safety and the fumes are bad for humans etc, meanwhile the gas pumpers ( teens and probationers) are given no education on how to pump gas, avoid the toxic fumes, or required to wear any safety equipment. Which begs the question why then since there is no special gas pumper trainning, or safety equipment why cant I pump my own? Because there arent enough fast food jobs for probationers.
If you think about it, isn't it healthier for people to pump their own gas, spreading the fume exposure around to many minimally vs having a few people get massive exposure all day due to their jobs? Besides, even in idiot land Cali, I haven't seen any gas station blow up due to people pumping their own gas. They even do it on their cell phones and not one Darwin Award to be had! ;-)
Miffed;-)
Hey, can we get a terminal like that on our airplanes and get rid of a few flight waiters? I know, I know...I've heard it all before "they aren't there to serve you, they are there for your safety...blah blah blah"
It wasn't so bad until the airlines were forces to keep ugly flight attendants.
Obamameal
Law requires yoj to huy a debit card that provides 365 meals per year....@ fast food only
i don't eat out any more. too risky
ditto...too risky (who knows from where the food is sourced) and too expensive (why pay hard earned money for questionable food). i eat at home.
Make your own choice, to be sure, but I took the GF out to a place in Toronto last week.
Lobster risotto for the amuse-bouche,
Escargot provencal, seafood in puff pastry for appetizers
Lamb shank and grilled salmon for mains
Chocolate mousse and grand marnier crepes for dessert
No booze (no license yet).
Paid $30 each. With tax and tip, came to $80 (I gave a generous tip, as we were served by the chef/owner, and the place was nearly empty.)
Sure there are local marvels like this in your neighbourhood, if you just look.
Very good and important point. People aren't going to good local establishments. They'd rather congregate at greasy chains and fill their bodies with shit. It's the same nowadays with everything. It's getting harder and harder to find value and quality. Retailers wonder why their sales are in the tank, when the answer stares them in the face!
I can make that menu at home for half price and get pissin drunk with no fear of a DWI. ;)
Try the Black Hoof on Dundas W.
Marrowwwwww,..yum
Been to Black Hoof, and enjoyed it, but this place (Bistrot 192 on Eglinton W) offers a 4 course prix-fixe for $30 from a chef who's worked at Michelin-rated restaurants like the Tour D'Argent. Absolute steal, and I'm sure as word gets out, the price is going to go up, so hurry!
Yes, Chili's has had these in Wisconsin for a few years now. Sister-in-law worked there while in college so we'd stop in from time to time. The beer tasted like they clean their lines as often as a Tijuana strip joint. I recommend sticking with bottled beer.....or just not going there might be a better choice.
MOAR ROBOTS! MOAR MACHINES! MOAR UNEMPLOYEMENT FOR HUMANS!
you mean no more waiter snobbery at Ruth Criss and Morton's! let's play with the ipad!!! LOL.
do you want red or a white? yeah, there's an app for that!!!
I would LOVE to have my food served by a drone.
It would be cool as,...
Especially if it didn't spill the gravy on my poutine.
They don't serve real food, so why not simulated waiters too?
Forward into the 21st Century!
A little help Hedgeless Horseman?
Planted a lot of stuff in my mini greenhouse, tomatoes coming up!
I was at Chilis in Champain, IL back in the Spring and they already had one of these.
I like the opportunity to reward good service, i like people that are willing to work.
I am in the business. Was at restaurant industry conference in Nov where min wage, Obamacare, etc. were discussed re: increasing labor costs. One panelist said response will be the same as it ever was--for all industries for all time: automation.
Admit it though, fingering a waitress is way more fun than fingering a tablet.
PS, I'm in the business also ;D
The selfies of the Chivettes bored at work will never be the same.
KCCO!!
Most all of them are nurses...
Naughty?
Do you wash your hands afterword?
Where do you work?
Yep. Coming soon, order your drive-thru via your phone app, pay via paypal, and simply drive thru to pick it up. The food will be prepared and delivered to your conveyance by machine, likely from vat-grown generically engineered "sh(eet)meat" at the low end, all overseen by a single live human employee (in case something goes wrong).
Delivered by Amazon.com perfected food delivery drones in 15 minutes or it's free.
Can't wait for the stories of rednecks shooting these down. Hunting for dinner has come full circle.
Brilliant +1
Perhaps you can tell me, what happened to the robo setup McD's was working on for fries about 10-15 years ago? Was it cost prohibitive or just not reliable enough?
See below.
DTx2
The experiment went horribly awry when, after they began to rapidly gain some higher than anticipated adaptive learning, the robots began to masturbate each other.
Big mistake! They should have given the robots ketchup for lube and customers would have paid extra.
DANGER CHEF ROBINSON!
Mmmm, Secret Sauce.
Went through a McD's drive through the other day and the drinks were comming out of some kind of machine. Only touched when they were ready to hand them to you through the window.
A lot of people tried to make french fry vending machines. One Canadian guy figured each of the 20,000 hockey rinks in Canada would want one. Too many technical difficulties, and the machine needed cleaning too often to be practical.
Some chinese company has recently released a machine (last couple of months), but even its maker says it needs to be cleaned every 150 orders. Busy Saturday night at the local arena, that's a cleaning every day. Won't appeal to your typical vending machine owner, who wants something he fills/empties once or twice a week.
The food isn't real, why should the waitress be?
Automating the CEO position would save millions.
"for all industries for all time: automation"
Except in the Ag and Tech industries where the cry for ever more cheap labor will be fulfilled by supine retards in Congress.
Yup, KrispK, maybe she's a long lost relative of Tawana Brawley.
delete
Waiting for the "Banker Terminator".
I worry about spit
Robots don't pick the food they dropped on the floor and put it back on your plate.
Not unless they're designed and programmed to pick stuff up off the floor.
I think I'll just continue to make my own meals at home.
Robots can learn the 3 second rule
I wonder if they can spit.
A little hydraulic fluid should spice things up nicely.
I have heard stories, and the movies make to look common, but in my twenty five years of experience in food service and hospitality I have never once witnessed food sabotage.
I worked in several restaurants while I was going to school and I will warn you that if you are not liked at a restaurant, you definitely should not eat there.
Cops should NEVER eat out. All I'm gonna say.
Did you even watch Fight Club? :-P
Automation notwithstanding, the disgruntled "sentients" will always ensure that there are clams in the chowder.
i went to a chilis last night that already has these. loved it.
Where's the robomanager, we most certainly did not order a shit sandwich! (after AI develops a sense of humor)
You did order the shit sandwich. You vill eat, you vill like, da?
Robomanager: Waiter Terminator, did you serve the meat-puppets a shit sandwich?
Waiter Terminator: (sheepishly) Yes.
Robomanager: You're fired!
(both machines laugh so hard they blow a gasket)
cheeseburger cheeseburger cheeseburger no pepsi coke
Obama serves them daily!
Wawa's had something like this for ages, you order via touchpad and I believe you can pay there as well.
Frankly, if all fast food joints went the way of the fully-automated places in _The Stainless Steel Rat_, it wouldn't bother me a whole lot. Just have a techie to tend the machines and perhaps one or two people at $15/hr to buss tables and mop/sweep/clean.
Who needs the fucking expensive tablets on every table? A local place I go to -- you walk over to the bar and order your food/drinks, then a drone brings it to your table. The whole place is easily served by a bartender and a drone or two.
No waiting. No being pestered every 10 minutes. Small or no tip expected.
I NEVER GO TO CHAINS. You get a shitty overpriced meal, optimized for profit by some MBA somewhere. The cheapest ingredients. The perfect example is Olive Garden. Cheap pasta dishes and bread. The whole meal is wheat flour in some form, and all the lettuce you can eat. At the same price as a good quality family restaurant.
Wawas and the mom and pop Italian restaurants are the only things I miss from my 18 months in NJ. For what it's worth, Wawa's isn't exactly a sit down and converse "restaurant". Unless you're keeping it real eating a sammich and drinking some old e' on the curb outside, watching the fuel attendants run around like guinea pigs. My buddy who grew up there did not know what the fuck to do when his fuel ran low in Virginia. He had never pumped his own gas until he was 19!
side note: 2008. headed across delaware river into The People's Republic of NJ for a job interview prior to moving there. Fuel light came on. Pulled into gas station and jumped out. Swiped card and turned around to see a hindu man with a huge fucking turbin running towards me, shouting I have no fucking idea, hands in air. I was kinda freaking out. All because I didn't know I wasn't supposed to pump my own fucking gas. I hate NJ.
Unless you're at Hooters. I assume the machine lacks hooters. Though maybe it could show porn videos instead.
These things would also be popular with families with one child once they have games and such, though problematic if you have two children or more.
I'll take my food by drone, please.
But how about these pretty big breasted waitress that serve the food, they are certainly more appealing than this thing to me
The spitters make the food, bud. Still an issue...
I would rather have Obama shit down my throat than eat at Applebees.
Oh.
Wait.
He'es doing that already for the POTB.
Henry Ford knew if he paid a good wage, his workers could buy his product, everyone would do good work, and he would get wealthier.
Now, greed and corruption are destroying the model of success in America.
Too fucking bad for everyone except the fuckers at the very tip top of the pyramid in the All Seeing Eye section.
No attitude, no mistakes, no tip, no spit - who wouldnt prefer these?
Would you prefer a country of even more unemployed? I'm telling you the demonization of the working class on this site is beyond full retard... Guess what! When people could work in food service and other low end jobs and still afford to live a modest life without gubment assistance they took pride in their work and society was better. The bullshit of the last 30 years has crused the working class and dumb fucks on this site criticize the proles instead of UNDERSTANDING WHY they do what they do.