Gallery and Partners Combine Technology, Sustainability and Flexibility to Win HX Foodservice Pioneer of the Year
Executive Summary
The challenge – take a nontraditional, high traffic space and create a new food service concept unlike anything else that had been seen before. The result was a creative, award-winning concept by Gallery and partners that delivers a healthy and fresh alternative to fast food.
The pioneering design, “ReFresh-Eatery and Market,” was recognized for its unique technology integration, sustainable materials and versatile configurations. “The vision for our design was to create a food service kiosk that was sustainable, adaptable and used technology in a way that it can be used in any establishment,” said Erik Haviland, Vice President and Group Creative Director at FUZE.
The award was given as part of the HX: The Hotel Experience tradeshow, North America’s largest hospitality trade show for hotel and restaurant owners, executives, directors, chefs, and GMs from across the hospitality spectrum. The contest was conceived to bring new designs to life that would appeal to hotels, colleges and universities.
Partners
- Foodesign – The Foodservice Design Agency
- Fuze – Unified Communications
- Hobart – Foodservice Equipment
- Traulsen – Refrigeration Solutions
- ITW – Manufacturer
Challenges
Contest participants were asked to address the food service needs of frequent travelers, students and business people. The entries also had to fit into uncommon spaces and use innovative equipment and technology.
The ReFresh Eatery design featured a grab-and-go concept where visitors could purchase food to be prepared quickly at home; as well as chef-prepared meals for those who wanted to eat on premise. A customer starts at the kiosk, picks out the desired ingredients and either takes it home or hands it to the chef. As the fabrication partner, Gallery’s challenge was to bring the envisioned experience to life.
How Gallery Delivered
Hotel executives tend to be visionaries in the food service industry and open to new concepts. With this in mind, Gallery’s team unleashed its creativity to fabricate a kiosk with a younger feel that was sustainability, flexible and featured the latest technology. However, the kiosk also had to built in accordance with the company’s unwavering quality standards.
For sustainability, the team chose Energy Star equipment where possible. Energy Star is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency voluntary program that helps businesses and individuals save money and protect the climate through superior energy efficiency. The Energy Star label designates energy-efficient products known to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
To fit into nontraditional, high traffic spaces, the ReFresh eatery kiosk was built in multiple units, which could be configured to create three options and different sizes. From a technology perspective, the ReFresh Eatery featured the latest in digital menu board design and kiosk ordering. The team also developed an innovative mobile application to allow visitors to bypass lines and engage customers in new ways.
“The innovative concept design had to be matched with innovation on the fabrication side in order to make this project possible,” said Dan Gallery, President of Gallery. “Winning this award is further proof of Gallery’s creative approach to meeting the unique needs of the food service industry. I am honored Gallery was selected for this project and continue to be inspired by the outstanding work our team does every day.”
Results, Return on Investment and Future Plans
Upon experiencing the Refresh Eatery concept, comments from the judging committee included:
- “Cool, flexible, innovative.”
- “Appealing for the masses.”
- “I would enjoy being a customer in the concept.”
After being named the 2016 Foodservice Pioneering Concept winner at HX, orders began coming in for the new kiosk design. For example, the concept currently in being implemented in Yavapai college in Arizona.