Portillo’s pilots ordering kiosks
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Dive Brief:
Portillo’s has installed digital ordering kiosks made by Bite at two of its Illinois locations, according to a press release emailed to Restaurant Dive.
The brand plans to expand this trial of kiosk technology to two more restaurants in California, CEO Michael Osanloo said on Portillo’s Q2 2024 earnings call.
Osanloo said the company was excited about the possibilities video screen kiosks offer for upsell and customized offerings when customers are visually exploring the brand’s menu.
Dive Insight:
Kiosk maker Bite has argued that the choices kiosks give to consumers can increase check. Kiosks boost average check for in-store channels by as much as 15%, CEO Brandon Barton told Restaurant Dive in a past interview. Osanloo said Portillo’s was looking for kiosks to enhance its appeal to customers.
“[We] love the idea of using images to suggest entrées and add-ons that appeal to various consumer types,” Osanloo said.
The possibility that consumers could upsell themselves through kiosks, or that kiosks give restaurants a consistent way to present offers to consumers, could be appealing to Portillo’s, which saw its same-store sales drop 0.6% last quarter, according to its earnings release.
On the call, Osanloo attributed that decrease to increased promotional activity by Portillo’s competitors, which specifically impacted its drive-thru business, where the chain’s service speed has eroded compared to pre-COVID times.
“Drive-thru traffic is a little bit challenged because of the promotional intensity. The big QSRs are largely drive-thru businesses. And while they’re engaging in some very aggressive promoting and discounting, we will probably have a little bit of pressure on our drive-thrus,” Osanloo said. Improving drive-thru times is part of the company’s four-pronged strategy to improve operations.
The kiosks, according to Osanloo, could help improve overall throughput, though they are deployed in-store rather than at the drive-thru.
“We definitely can do better in terms of throughput inside the restaurant, and it’s actually one of the reasons why we’re testing kiosks,” Osanloo said.
According to the press release, the kiosk test is intended to work alongside, rather than replace, Portillo’s in-store experience. It is simply another ordering channel, the company said. Portillo’s said the kiosks will let it redistribute labor across the restaurant and create opportunities for guest interaction.
Other chains have looked to increased kiosk deployment in recent months. Notably, Dave’s Hot Chicken began testing self-ordering kiosks in California ahead of the state’s April implementation of a $20 fast food wage. Dave’s deployment of GRUBBR kiosks produced a moderate sales bump, offering some evidence to support Bite’s contention that consumers using video kiosks tend to order more. During the first quarter, Shake Shack’s kiosks became its largest ordering channel.