• A robot is running food to tables at Seattle’s Pizzeria Credo, and “people are loving it,” the owner says.
• The bot, manufactured by Bear Robotics, is reportedly the first of its kind in West Seattle.

Pizzeria Credo in Seattle has a helpful new robot worker: Linguini’s the name, and running food to tables is its game.

According to Westside Seattle, Linguini, a robot from Bear Robotics, is the first food bot in West Seattle, although the manufacturer’s technology is already in use at several other pizzerias and restaurants around the country.

John Senega of Bear Robotics told Westside Seattle that Linguini isn’t meant to replace human employees. It’s just there to ease the waitstaff’s workload. “All it does is deliver food, using a predetermined map, to the location specified,” he said.

Equipped with three cameras and LIDAR technology to prevent collisions and navigate the restaurant floor, the 72-pound Linguini can even speak. When it arrives at the guest’s table, it says, “Please take your food.” Then, as it’s turning away, it adds, “Enjoy.” But the bot can be programmed with different announcements as well as branding messages.

Related: Why pizza robots look to be crucial tools for the future

In mid-2021, Angelo’s Palace Pizza, located in Cumberland, Rhode Island, introduced a Bear Robotics robot to its customers. Ledo Bot 9000, from the same manufacturer, debuted at a Ledo Pizza store in West Springfield, Maryland, earlier this year.

Bear Robotics’ tech, nicknamed Servi by the company itself, has also been used at senior living centers, such as La Costa Glen (pictured above) in Carlsbad, California.

“It’s innovation, and people are loving it,” Pizzeria Credo owner Jacques Nawar told Westside Seattle. “It’s going to help the waitstaff. If something is wrong, I don’t think people will get upset with it. Overall, we see the future in it and try to imagine [how] the next generation is going to be doing business. It’s not taking the place of human beings—it’s just helping them.”

Pizzeria Credo, which was featured on “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” in 2018, offers Neapolitan-style pies and classic pasta dishes like Linguini Alfredo, Penne Carbonara and Pasta del Bolognese. On the pizza side of the menu, customers can try the Parma con Uovo, featuring mozzarella, arugula and prosciutto di Parma with an organic egg cooked sous vide, or the Del Golfo, topped with shrimp, mozz, ricotta, red chili flakes and pesto.