Inside Operators’ Tech Agendas at NRA 2025
At the National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago, restaurant operators were on the hunt for tech that can streamline operations and elevate guest experience. Many also used the show as a chance to strengthen ties with existing vendor partners.
Capriotti's Sandwich Shop CMO Kim Lewis started with the franchised sandwich brand last year after working in multiple executive roles, including VP of Brand Experience and VP of Digital Strategies for SONIC Drive-In.
“We have a huge system-wide menu standardization and refresh project that's launching in July. It is one of the most significant initiatives in the history of the company. It is going to reset the base to where we have similarity across the system, so that then we can scale and grow with that standardized base. So I am here looking at food trends, thinking about some of the things that we might want to do heading into 2026. Also, I was really interested to see a lot of innovative digital signage. As we've gotten into this menu standardization, we're rebranding food and pulling in bold, fresh, new branding. … I saw some really cool things with digital signage that gave me kind of a lot of thoughts.”
Tradeshows are the perfect place to not only see new products and trends but also get face time with existing vendors.
Julie Wade, Head of Marketing at Taziki’s Mediterranean Café, was at the show to primarily touch base with existing vendors. “We've got so many current vendors that are here that I can speak with. I've got a couple of meetings tomorrow with them, and that was the main reason that I did come to NRA,” she said.
The Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers team was on hand to meet with existing tech vendors as well. “We're not really looking for much this year. Our innovation pipeline is pretty full,” said Erick von Merveldt, the VP of Franchise Training & Innovation. “This show is more about continuing to connect with our vendor partners and manufacturing partners, and just continue to make sure that everything's moving at a quick pace, and we're doing everything we can as a partnership to continue just to innovate within the system.”
Original ChopShop CEO Jason Morgan and COO Kyle Frederick were on hand to connect with an existing tech partner as well. “We have a couple of pieces of technology that we are looking at today. We are in the process of putting in Curbit, which sits on top of OLO helps to manage the promise time. It’s more real-time than what we use now. Our no. 1 complaint is that our wait times are not accurate.” The better-for-you fast casual brand just completed a successful pilot and plans to go live system-wide May 21.
Morgan and Frederick were also looking at PreciTaste, which uses AI, computer vision and machine learning to predict customer demand, guide kitchen staff on what, when, and how much food to prepare, and streamline repetitive kitchen tasks.
Kiplan Welsh, president of Via 313, a rapidly expanding Detroit-style pizza chain with 24 locations, was at NRA 2025 to connect with existing vendors and to explore new solutions. With takeout accounting for 42% of its business, the full-service restaurant brand is actively exploring AI-driven solutions for ordering, loyalty programs, and menu innovation to further enhance customer experience and operational efficiency.
Welsh is also considering automation to streamline operations, particularly as off-premises sales make up more than 40% of their business. He is evaluating voice AI ordering technologies and seeking ways to improve order speed. “But we have also continuously tried to figure out ways to get our speed up, because those pizzas take a long time to make because of the density of the dough and the ingredients. Right now, we still use a hearth stone oven; if we could find the right partner in a conveyor oven set up, we know that we could speed up the dining experience for the guests. So far, we have not been successful. We've gotten pretty close, but the flavor profile, the tooth feel, everything is a little bit different than just the good old fashioned hearth bake ovens. Speed is something that we're working on heavily,” Welch said.