Yummy Future, a  downtown cafe that opened in late October, sets itself apart from competitors by using a robotic arm to assist baristas

The Palo Alto store marks the brand’s third location, after being founded in Illinois in 2018 by Jack Cui and Garret Yan. The robotic hands aim to “address labor shortages and rising operational costs in the restaurant sector by automating routine, labor-intensive tasks,” according to Founders, Inc.

The cafe uses an all-digital ordering system to send orders to an in-house robot, allowing Yummy Future to serve some drinks to customers without a human — until it comes to stirring drinks and adding toppings. 

Palo Alto resident Avery Chen said he decided to go to Yummy Future with his friends who saw videos of the cafe on social media.

“We came for the robotic aspect of it, and it’s pretty interesting to watch,” Chen said. “It’s a satisfying process that is different from other places.”

Barista Sofia Marquez said the store’s robotic arm is what initially drew her to apply for the job.

“I thought it was really interesting knowing that there was going to be a robot in a coffee shop,” Marquez said. “That was something I had only seen in a couple of videos from different countries, so it was a really interesting concept.”

Yummy Future’s mission is to amplify hospitality. With the robot designed to take much of the repetitive work off of baristas’ hands and make way for baristas to welcome customers, learn names and host moments. Marquez said this mission carries into their work culture.

“Coffee shops are well-known for having really chill people,” Marquez said. “People just want to come in and make coffee and have a good day. This place really embodies that.”

Junior Elsa Packard first visited Yummy Future after a friend recommended it as a calm study spot.

“(The robot) makes the store feel more calm and put together since there are less people running around making drinks,” Packard said.

Packard said apart from the environment, the quality of drinks is also an important element of the cafe. 

“I don’t think the quality is affected as a result of the drinks being made by a robot, but it does make me wonder if the drinks will taste pretty consistent since they are programmed in the robot,” Packard said.

In fact, according to the Yummy Future website, the robotic arm can make up to 120 drinks per hour at a 99.7% recipe accuracy rate, deploy self-cleaning features and optimize steps to reduce wait time. This efficiency, the company says, allows double the daily traffic rate compared to other cafes. 

To expand its enterprise, Yummy Future is selling its coffee-making robots online. The products — “Coffee-in-a-Box” and “Counter-Bar-in-a-Box” — can be installed anywhere, includingoffices, homes or airports. The goal of this is to be meaningful somewhere in every neighborhood they serve. 

Ultimately, Packard said despite being crowded, she would add Yummy Future to her rotation of study places.

“The one downside is it gets pretty busy sometimes so it’s hard to find seating,” Packard said. “But, I would recommend it to my friends because they have a decent menu. It’s very quick and has an overall nice ambiance.”

Cui and Yan did not respond to interview requests.