LBX Food Robotics, a leader in hot food vending, and Buddy Valastro, celebrity chef and owner of Buddy Valastro Restaurants, have partnered to customize Bake Xpress hot food kiosks to serve foods from The Boss Cafe by Buddy Valastro restaurant, which opened in Las Vegas in April.
The first two machines are co-located at the LINQ Hotel + Experience with The Boss Cafe, which offers casual dining inspired by East Coast neighborhood delis. The custom-branded Bake Xpress machines currently bake a variety of bakery-style pizzas and are open 24 hours per day. Valastro debuted the Bake Xpress machines in August and highlighted their popularity among hotel and casino guests during a formal launch event for The Boss Cafe last week.
“Our customers crave our food outside of normal operating hours, so we had to get creative on how we could meet those demands in a 24/7 place like Vegas. Bake Xpress is the only solution that delivers the quality I require. The fact that we are selling out multiple times a day and setting sales records proves that our vision was spot on,” says Valastro, whose Las Vegas restaurants include Carlo’s Bake Shop, PizzaCake, Jersey Eats and Buddy V’s Ristorante in addition to The Boss Cafe. “We are the first restaurant to have this 24/7 robotic option, and it is another example of how we are leading the charge with the latest innovations in the food industry. We’re looking forward to continuing to expand to bring our amazing food to more people.”
The Boss Cafe serves fresh baked breads, Italian sandwiches, bakery-style pizza, a hand-crafted on-site fresh mozzarella bar and pastries. While The Boss Cafe Bake Xpress machines currently offer a selection of pizzas from the traditional restaurant’s menu, Valastro intends to expand the machines’ menus. Bake Xpress custom bakes each item within 60-190 seconds at the time of order in a smart oven that uses a precisely-tuned combination of microwave, convection and infrared baking technologies to properly heat, brown and crisp each item and can also serve chilled foods like salads.
“We are thrilled to partner with one of the most prominent and innovative restauranteurs in the food industry today,” says Benoit Herve, founder and chief executive officer of LBX Food Robotics. “Buddy has very high and specific requirements for his foods and was not going to compromise quality for convenience. Bake Xpress’ unique baking capabilities were able to replicate the in-restaurant experience to Buddy’s exacting standards.”