SAPPORO -- A soba noodle restaurant in this north Japan city introduced a cat robot that served food on Nov. 28th, a Hokkaido first.
The robot named Bella Bot, named after it's Hitsujigaoka-dori branch of Shingozen-soba Hamikawa restaurant in Sapporo's Kiyota Ward, speaks in a cute voice.
Bella Bot is 129 centimeters tall and about 55 centimeters in diameter. It has four layers of trays and is programmed to carry dishes automatically to customers' tables. Its face is a touch screen and shows various expressions when its ears are touched.
The robot was introduced to the eatery to avoid in-person contact as a measure to prevent coronaviruses and to help with labor shortages. It can promote items and sing, and the restaurant plans to use such functions in the future.
Yukie Komi, 30, said he was glad that customers from children to the elderly enjoyed it. We want it to perform well during the busy time at the end of the year for serving traditional noodles to mark the changing of the year. We want to offer services that can entertain customers, not just serve food.