Miami — ResQ, a leading modern facility management platform, is shining a spotlight on the unsung heroes behind the success of restaurants and hospitality businesses this November with ‘Tradesgiving.’ To celebrate its vendors and their tradespeople, ResQ is offering a limited-time promotion for new vendor selections on the ResQ directory. Customers can enjoy 15% off (up to $100) their next work order when they choose a new vendor from November 1 through November 30, 2024. “Rising labor, inventory and repair costs make it increasingly difficult for hospitality operators to find …
Product Spotlight
New York City — Checkmate, a leader in AI-powered ordering solutions for enterprise restaurants, has secured $10 million in Series B funding led by Tiger Global. The round will enable Checkmate to accelerate the adoption of its voice AI and kiosk technologies across the industry. Checkmate has already developed expertise in integrating digital orders into restaurant point-of-sale (POS) systems. This foundation serves as a critical advantage in entering these new business segments. Checkmate offers best-in-class phone ordering and drive-thru AI solutions to some of the country’s largest brands, all seamlessly …
Santa Clara, Calif. — Cequence, a pioneer in API security and bot management, has been selected by Hibbett, a leading athletic-inspired fashion retailer, to enhance Hibbett’s automated threat detection capabilities and enable comprehensive inventory management, compliance and API protection across all online and in-store brands. Like many retailers, Hibbett operates in a hybrid IT environment, juggling both on-premises and cloud-based systems for its retail and online operations. After critical SaaS migration to Oracle Cloud and Azure Active Directory, the company prioritized robust API security to ensure secure and efficient API …
— By Sharon Cho and Justin Shreiner — Selecting optimal water heating systems to meet the needs of full-service restaurants. Full-service restaurants are harsh environments for commercial water heaters. They operate for long hours, often from early morning to midnight, with continuous 140° hot water necessary for food prep, cooking and cleaning. This constant demand places a significant strain on water heating equipment and requires units that can withstand heavy use and provide consistent performance. For this reason, selecting the proper water heater is necessary to keep restaurants operational, remain …
Exhaustive Analysis
— By Christopher Collins, AIA, NCARB — The good, the bad & the ventless …exhaust hoods. The look of dismay on the chef’s face told me everything I needed to know: the vent hood was not cutting it and big money was going to be burned trying to remedy his woes. The issue was the ventless hood that was used for the cooking appliances. And not really the exhaust type that was being employed, but more of the expectations around that piece of equipment. That’s when I realized what ventless …
Bentonville, Ark. — Walmart has introduced Caroline’s Carts into all its stores in several states: Arizona, Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, New Mexico, Colorado, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Texas. The specially designed carts help caregivers of children and adults with disabilities navigate Walmart stores more easily. The retailer’s multimillion-dollar investment is part of a larger commitment to champion inclusivity and accessibility in all its stores. “Helping our customers save money and live better is more than our mission — it’s our driving force,” says Cedric Clark, executive vice president of store …
Dallas — Ziosk, the pioneer of pay-at-the-table and a leading restaurant ordering and payment platform, has teamed up with Chili’s Grill & Bar. Through this partnership, Chili’s has rolled out Ziosk tablets to more than 1,100 locations to simplify the payment process, right at the table. Ziosk’s innovative pay-at-the-table solution eliminates the wait time associated with paying the bill, providing a frictionless, secure process that drives loyalty and charity program participation and optimizes service. With a 90% adoption rate, pay-at-the-table is a reliable way to empower guests and offer more …
Richardson, Texas — ENTOUCH, a leader in energy management and smart building technology, has expanded its demand response program in partnership with 24 Hour Fitness, the 40-year leader in health and fitness. This milestone highlights the effectiveness of ENTOUCH’s cutting-edge solutions in reducing energy usage, driving profitability and supporting sustainability initiatives for multisite operators. In 2023, 24 Hour Fitness implemented ENTOUCH’s demand response program across an initial 100 locations in California and Texas. The initiative proved highly successful, saving 35 MW of energy and significantly contributing to the reduction of …
— By Savneet Singh — How cutting-edge tech helped Hooters of America upgrade its dining experience. Americans love experiences, with the majority (61%) of Gen Z and Millenials choosing to invest in them, according to Experian, over retirement savings. And with all the money they’re spending, they anticipate outstanding outcomes — especially when it comes to dining. Competition in this sector is fierce, with seemingly endless options for the 9 in 10 customers who enjoy going out to eat, per a February 2024 report by the National Restaurant Association. The …
Shelton, Conn. — Budderfly, a preferred sustainability partner for commercial businesses with repeatable footprints, has acquired a grid-edge distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) from Sunverge Energy. Former Sunverge employees with decades of DERMS and energy market experience will join Budderfly’s growing team of almost 400 employees. Using Sunverge’s technology, Budderfly can aggregate distributed energy resources (DERS) across its sites, positioning it to create virtual power plants (VPPs) capable of providing flexibility to the grid, increasing resiliency for customers and growing new revenue streams. With greater control over its energy …