Restaurants often focus the bulk of their culinary efforts on creating distinctive food selections. Yet while many operators know beverages offer better margins than food products, unique house-made beverages can also provide an easy way to increase menu diversity and guest satisfaction, as well as to drive sales.
“Craft beverages allow operators to provide elevated offerings to their guests to improve the experience, as well as charge a premium,” says Sean Hsu, CEO of Botrista. “And with decreasing soda sales, brands can provide additional options to guests. Drinks can also be an asset for off-premise occasions, as operators can increase check size by offering guests something they can’t find at home.”
Additionally, because fountain drink sales have slowed in recent years, specialty beverages that feature functional or healthy ingredients can offer restaurants a chance to recapture those add-on sales.
Ike Shehadeh, owner of Ike’s Love and Sandwiches, is a Botrista customer. “The drinks we created specifically for Ike’s are such a great fit for us and it adds to the overall experience of Ike’s,” Shehadeh says. “We’ve seen that people are coming in just to get the beverages—we’re adding extra visits.”
Despite these benefits, some operators have been reluctant to roll out specialty programs, because they have traditionally been difficult to manage in-house. Not only do they require prep, a bar, and labor to execute, but keeping staff up-to-date on LTOs and ensuring each beverage is consistent from shift to shift can be challenging. However, now, with Botrista’s automated drink dispenser technology, any restaurant can offer premium beverage upgrades without increasing operational complexity.
“Botrista is your beverage partner—we go beyond offering brands the equipment,” Hsu says. “We’re here to support restaurants. With the high quality of our craft beverages, operators can charge more for these premium options versus sodas and other beverage options, leading to larger check size and larger penny profit for each transaction.”
Though Hsu notes that “robotics” and “automation” can sound intimidating, Botrista’s DrinkBot makes crafting specialty beverages—and earning those add-on sales—easier than ever.
“Our mission is to make craft beverages more accessible and affordable by reducing or removing all of those obstacles,” Hsu says. “The Botrista DrinkBot’s patented technology allows operators to offer a mini-cafe in just 5 square feet. Ingredients are pre-packaged in a bag-in-box (bib) format and connect to the DrinkBot, which automates the measuring, dispensing, and mixing of ingredients to deliver freshly crafted beverages.”
Botrista’s flexible BiB format allows restaurants to easily offer choices for their beverage menus, including beverages such as infused iced teas, flavored lemonades, iced coffees, sparkling beverages, and more.
“I love that our staff doesn’t need to remember how to make the drinks—all they have to do is push a button,” says Shehadeh. “So simple.”
To learn how you can simplify your specialty beverage program and boost sales, visit botrista.io.