Ever been served by a robot? New Hattiesburg restaurant has unique staff member
IKKO, a new Japanese fusion restaurant in Hattiesburg, has a unique staff member — a robot with a digital cat face that delivers food to tables.
"(Customers) find it so fascinating," said manager Mandi Li. "They love it, especially when the robot talks … and sings the birthday songs. It's just like a human. The kids love it. … It was amazing to me when I first got introduced to the robot, too."
The robot delivers appetizers and sushi rolls to customers while talking and singing, and it knows what table to deliver the food to every time. The idea came from similar restaurants in Japan with robot servers.
Selfie museum opens: Hattiesburg business invites customers to strike a pose
"I loved it. It was so cute," customer Patara Martin said. "I think I would just come for the robot actually, but everything I've had so far has been good."
The Hattiesburg location, which opened days after Valentine's Day, is IKKO's second restaurant. The original is in Birmingham, Alabama.
Li said she has family in Hattiesburg, and they suggested the city needed a little something different. And the new Hattiesburg restaurant, located at 6133 U.S. 98, is a hit in its first week.
"They always told us Hattiesburg would be a good location because people here love good food," Li said.
The restaurant employs five people, but it is looking to double its staff. Li said they are still working out the kinks.
IKKO serves ramen, teppanyaki or hibachi, fried rice, rice-bowl dishes, sushi, desserts and fruit and milk teas. The restaurant makes its own "Yum Yum Sauce" from scratch and brews its own tea.
Li recommends the ramen dishes, and her favorite sushi rolls are the Volcano roll and the UAB roll, which pays homage to the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
The restaurant is open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday through Saturday. For more information, call 601-296-6868.
Local coffee shop opens second location: Gives USM students new coffee option
Contact reporter Laurel Thrailkill at lthrailkill@gannett.com or on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Cat robot waiter serves food at IKKO in Hattiesburg
