The Weekly · October 30
DoorDash's $17B Instacart deal, the FTC's suit against Toast, Chipotle and Wingstop's AI push, plus a smarter steak probe and a reverse-sear recipe.
Read the Weekly
In the Pro Kitchen
The Boise startup runs vans on fixed routes to about 25 businesses each, using its own ordering, driver and admin apps plus machine learning to pick the best stop times. Drink customizations live in the software so baristas don't memorize recipes. It is now testing a delivery fee and eyeing franchising.
At Home
The new All-in-One Combination Coffee & Espresso Machine (COM630BK) makes drip coffee, cold brew and espresso, now with a touch display and a footprint more than 20% smaller than before. It sells for $349.95 in the US. A sensible pick if you want one machine on the counter instead of two.
In the Pro Kitchen
DoorDash will pay $65 a share, mostly in cash, for Instacart, with closing expected between late 2027 and mid-2028. Instacart keeps its brand and app until then. For restaurants, the combined company would control a much bigger courier network, which could shape delivery fees and terms down the road.
At Home
The $99 RFX Meat Mini is built for thin cuts like filet mignon and single salmon portions, keeping the full-size probe's four sensors and dishwasher-safe body. It talks to ThermoWorks' RFX Gateway by radio rather than Bluetooth, which is required, and runs up to 48 hours on a charge. It's on sale now.
Weekend Recipe · Probe thermometer
A low oven brings the steak up evenly, then a very hot cast-iron pan adds the crust. It's pink edge to edge with almost no gray band.
See the recipe
At The Spoon's Smart Kitchen Summit, Young argued that many smart-kitchen flops came too early, before the tech could deliver. He says AI now cracks hard problems like predicting cook times and carryover heat, and could help home cooks actually use features like steam on combi ovens. The open question: who owns the customer if an AI layer runs every appliance.
Regulators allege the restaurant POS maker added unrequested services, hid early-termination fees on its pay-as-you-go plan and charged diners a 99-cent online-order fee that went to Toast. Toast disputes the case and says it will fight it in court; the claims are unproven. Operators on Toast may want to re-read their contract terms now.
With same-store sales down 5.4% last quarter, Wingstop is using AI-driven personalized offers, its new loyalty program and a field-team tool that flags struggling stores. It says food-quality complaints are down almost 30% this year after rolling out its Smart Kitchen system. A test of whether restaurant AI moves sales, not just operations.
A cook-to-demand system tells crews how much to make and when, and it's heading nationwide early next year. Chipotle is also rolling out its own digital makeline screens and testing automatic rewards for Apple Pay users. Its AI recruiter cut the time from application to first shift from 12 days to 4.
The 35-unit chain moved to Qu's system, which ties together POS, self-order kiosks, kitchen screens and online orders. Early results at its kiosk-first locations show much larger checks than its older stores. About 40% of its orders are already digital, mostly through its own website.
The week in kitchen tech, for home cooks and pros, plus a recipe to try. Free; unsubscribe anytime.
