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APR. MAY. 2019 VIII FIRST STEP: SCAN If robots are useful to carry out the most repetitive and tiring tasks, the real value of the IA is, in short, its ability to help catering operators make better decisions in management and customer service. Key elements in an established industry in a constant struggle with profitability. The tastes and preferences of consumers change rapidly and artificial intelligence may help to anticipate the changes as the industry evolves. But how is it used? “First of all, it is necessary to digitize data, supplies and orders, which must be taken from the handheld device,” says Samuele Fraternali, Senior Researcher of the B2c eCommerce Observatory of the Politecnico di Milano. Then you can think of solutions for management of Big Data that allow supply improvement by reducing costs and waste.” Data analysis provides statistics on the best-selling products at different times of the day and allows you to offer a more consistent menu that is tailored to your needs. “Crossing them with data from external sources you can also compare them with the market offer for similar restaurants or the area, identifying trends.” The next step is the knowledge of the registered user (via social or loyalty program) you can create a profile to offer personalized promotions by focusing on the past choices. Then there is the world of chatbots for one to one automated communication with the customer, useful for receiving reservations, giving assistance or for delivery, tasks that require extensive use of internal resources. “Given the costs, all of these solutions are currently only available to large chains,” warns Fraternali. But it is already possible to rely on online platforms such as aggregators for the delivery. Management software also offers solutions for multi-channel reasoning. Finally, technologies can be used to enhance the customer experience in the restaurant, with tablets or digital boards to play or show product information. Solutions that are less talked about lately than in the past. “But perhaps,” concludes Fraternali, the proposed model wasn’t the right one, or was premature.” ______________________________ BOX CARCANGIU: MACHINES ARE THE FUTURE OF THE KITCHEN (BUT THERE’S STILL A WAY OUT, FOR NOW) “I am firmly convinced that machines, and not mankind, is the future in the kitchen.” Always with the aim of stimulating the category, Roberto Carcangiu, president of Apci, reveals the paradox of a world where more and more people out, but spend as little as possible because their budget is limited. “You can’t spend less on the materials, but the workforce accounts for 45-55% of the costs of a restaurant. The restaurants are full, but do not make money, and conformity reigns supreme.” The robot, therefore, is the only solution? “As long as the cost of the machine is higher than that of the workforce - including cash workers and trainees - you can do without it. But the direction is that.” It’s the end of the chef, who’s going to stay? “Not the best, but a luxury rear-guard, like the craftsman who makes shoes by hand today.” What is the solution? “There’s no point in denying the process, but to delay it you need to be recognizable. You can’t copy the high-class restaurant, with a Michelin star. So we are speeding up our end. You have to express your true personality, and maybe even remember that cooking has always been creativity and anarchy also.” ______________________________ AT PAGE 20 IN THE RESTAURANT The basics of cooking Recipes, tips and errors to avoid being perceived as a “nightmare kitchen” By Mauro Garofalo The kitchen of the future. Technology. What is changing and how it will change our way of eating tomorrow. But in the meantime, what are the most common mistakes to avoid if we talk about catering? We asked three experts their recipe for successful cooking basics . Today. CARLO MEO, OF M&T SRL AND TEACHER AT POLIDESIGN “The basics that today would determine the success or failure of a restaurant - says Carlo Meo, managing director of Marketing and Trade ( www.marketingtrade.it ) - vary depending on whether you see the glass as half-full or half-empty, and is at least double. On the one hand there is the creativity, concepting , or anything that creates the ‘food experience’ for the customer, the way in the establishment is perceived.” Then: “There is the question of the rules that need to be followed if you want to stay in this industry, specific rules that cannot be ignored: the cost of rent, total turnover, personnel costs, the food cost , the appropriate size and the right location for the product you want to propose, and finally the training of staff, and what use you want to make of the media and social media. In short, for Meo, teacher of New Entertainment design and Food Experience design at the Polidesign Politecnico di Milano: “Today, to develop the concept of food - Michelin-starred or not - you need a lot of creativity, but you also need to be an entrepreneur - after all - a businessman, the restaurateur has always been one, even if you must now avoid improvisation, the histrionic ability of the host that until recently could have gone well. Today, savoir-faire has to be translated into all-round catering skill.” The most common errors: “There are three” for the CEO of M&T: “The first is to think that, since food is fashionable, and pleasurable, then everyone can improvise. Everyone ‘jumps’ into this industry: someone who was a successful lawyer, who put money aside, who knows a case history , who thinks that opening a street food outlet is easy, but it is not! In addition,” considers the MAGAZINE