Chicagoans can now access vibrant, forward-thinking meals 24 hours a day, seven days a week from Sally the Robot, the world’s first fresh food robot. The robot was installed on Tuesday, June 11 outside of the Deli Time cafe in Buffalo Grove. By utilizing robotics, Deli Time is able to capitalize on the nationwide trend of providing healthier food options at fast casual restaurants. In addition to locals seeking nutritious food on demand, Sally’s unlimited accessibility will especially benefit those in the office building working outside normal business hours, such as employees at the CVS customer service call center, which is open all day and night.

Sally, created by food robotics company Chowbotics, offers thousands of custom meal and snack options from any combination of up to 22 ingredients, in addition to chef-crafted, pre-programmed bowls. At this location, Sally serves Chowbotics’ Coastal Menu of salads and grain bowls in entree and side portions. Users can fine-tune the calorie total by adding or subtracting ingredients, as well as view full nutritional details for each selection. Sally is equipped with a credit card reader to facilitate transactions when Deli Time is closed from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.

“We are excited to offer an innovative way to experience the same quality of ingredients our customers have come to expect all day and night through this groundbreaking technology,” says Megan Burns, Vice President of Sales for Deli Time.

Chowbotics has been recognized by The New York Times, Food & Wine, Bloomberg Pursuits, CNN, CNBC, WIRED, TechCrunch, and many more influential national publications for its creation of Sally and the robot’s impact on the foodservice industry. Fast Company named Sally one of The World’s Most Innovative Companies in Robotics in 2019, “10 Restaurant Innovations Changing the Way We Eat”, and a 2018 World Changing Ideas Finalist.