JERSEY CITY, NJ — We may not have flying cars, but the future has arrived in one Jersey City mall, where a burger-cooking robot has come online to serve patrons. The first RoboBurger automated chef machine opened at Jersey City's Newport Centre Mall Friday, ready to cook "restaurant-quality freshly grilled burgers from scratch."
The minority-owned business launched in 2019 in Newark, but only set up its first machine this month.
"I started RoboBurger in my garage 17 years ago, and now there couldn't be a better time to bring it to life and have everyone experience it," said Audley Wilson, RoboBurger co-founder and CEO. "RoboBurger gives everyone freshly grilled burgers — while ensuring a safe, contactless experience. RoboBurger always comes out piping hot and is never pre-cooked and kept warm."
While people try out the machine at the mall, it will soon land at airports, malls, colleges, offices, factories, and military bases across the country, said Wilson, with malls first.
The machine was launched Friday with a ribbon cutting at its perch near the northern exit of the mall, not far from the light rail and PATH train stations.
One of the founders, Andy Siegel, was on site at the mall on Saturday, making sure everything ran smoothly.
The company said in a release that the 12-square-foot machine "plugs into a traditional wall socket, has a refrigerator, an automated griddle and cleaning system."
The machine uses a five-step cooking process "similar to what chefs use in quick service restaurants." The machine grills the patty, toasts the bun, dispenses condiments, assembles the burger, and delivers it hot within six minutes. The cost is $6.99.
RoboBurger is the first hot food vending machine approved at the gold food standard for safety by the National Sanitary Foundation at the standard NSF/ANSI 25, said the company.
Besides CEO Wilson, the company is led by CTO and Partner Dan Braido and CMO and Partner Siegel.
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