In order to “follow the technology trend in China,” a Beijing restaurant has decided to replace its waiters with a smartphone app that allows customers to seat themselves and order food without any human interaction.
Speaking with CNN, owner of Renrenxiang Restaurant, Liu Zheng, says that the venue engaged a popular Chinese messaging app named WeChat which is currently used by hundreds of millions of Chinese citizens.
By using WeChat on their personal smartphone devices, customers are able to seat themselves, view the restaurant's menu, order and pay for their menu selections.
After an order has been placed, customers are provided with a number which is called out over a speaker system once the meal has been prepared by the restaurant’s kitchen staff. The customer then personally collects their meal and returns to their table.
In time, Zheng says that he plans to cut his overheads even further.
“There will be four ‘no’s’ in the restaurant – that is, no waitress, no cashier, no merchandiser and no chef,” said Zheng. “I did this because I’m following the technology development trend in China.”