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6 marketing and equipment innovations that caused a buzz at the restaurant show

From free tattoos to robotic arms, the NRA Show was filled with new and exciting ideas

Holly Petre, Assistant Digital Editor

May 26, 2022

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As everyone filters back into their respective hometowns after the National Restaurant Association Show, it’s time to look back at some of the most innovative trends we saw at the show — from marketing to equipment.

There are the classic booths that always have lines around them — thinking about Broaster and Vienna Beef — but there were new innovative marketing solutions at the show this year that drew crowds unlike years past.

Nextbite, the virtual dining concept, had TikTok star Dylan Lemay at its booth slinging ice cream at people from long distances, while anti-third-party delivery platform Lunchbox was offering free tattoos and Red Bull was offering guests a chance to compete against friends in changing a racecar tire.

There was also innovative equipment, like Nala Robotics’ newest robotic arm, a robot that can deliver food to each individual at a table, and cups that heat seal and don’t leak.

Check out the following gallery to learn more about these marketing and equipment innovations from the NRA show.

About the Author

Holly Petre

Assistant Digital Editor

Holly Petre is a digital editor for Nation’s Restaurant News as well as the host of NRN’s podcast, Extra Serving, and producer for Informa Restaurant and Food Group’s other three podcasts, One On One by Food Management, Off the Shelf with SN and In the Kitchen with Bret Thorn. Holly holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in Sculpture, fibers and Material Studies and Ceramics from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. A native New Yorker, Holly enjoys her place on staff as the resident pop-culture expert and millennial with a sassy attitude and great sense of style.

Holly Petre’s work on Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality often covers marketing and trends, either aimed-at or examined-through the millennial mindset. Holly is responsible for introducing TikTok and Twitch to NRN and RH readers as well as explaining terms like “Karen” to staff and readers alike. She also spends her time on staff trying not to make every headline a pun.

Holly Petre hasn’t spoken at any events or on panels, but she is readily available with a killer shoe wardrobe and several witty quips.

 

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