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'Makes things interesting': Robot server on staff at Regina Chinese restaurant

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A robot is making the lives of servers at Newtown Chinese Restaurant a little bit easier.

The restaurant now has a robot on staff, helping to move food from the kitchen in the back of the building to customers in the front.

Newtown Chinese Restaurant owner Fini Ye programs the robot. (Gareth Dillistone / CTV News)

The automated server can then take dirty dishes back to the kitchen. The machine has been programmed to navigate to each table, trying to avoid humans along the way. If it does bump into anyone, it says ‘Sorry.’

A cook places food on the tray and tells the robot which table to deliver it to. (Gareth Dillistone / CTV News)

It can also sing happy birthday. The automated server will stop at the correct table and tell the customers which tray contains their food.

“It saves time for both the customer and the kitchen, time and energy to go back and forth bringing in the food and bringing back the dishes. This robot is not just for delivery of food, but it kind of has a personality. It can sing songs, it can tell jokes. It just makes things interesting,” said Fini Ye, the owner of the restaurant.

Customers seem impressed with the high-tech server, taking photos, videos, and even bringing their kids to see it. This is the first such robot in the City of Regina.

A robot delivers food from the kitchen to customers at Newtown Chinese Restaurant. (Gareth Dillistone / CTV News)

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