At the San Antonio International Airport, where there's a shortage of qualified workers to staff food concessions, a new pizza vending machine that cooks 10" brick-oven-style pies in just a few minutes was installed recently.
Basil Street's Automated Pizza Kitchen (APK) is now serving up thin-crust pizzas to hungry passengers at the busy airport. Pizzas are made with the fresh ingredients and flash-frozen before they’re delivered to and stocked in the machine. An APK can finish a pizza in three minutes after its ordered.
SAIA's chief commercial officer, Jennifer Mills Pysher, said the airport is thrilled that it can now provide hot food to its passengers and employees 24 hours a day.
"Changing how we're doing vending at the airport is really important to my team," she said. "This is our first step. We're looking at other options. We'd like to put in a ramen machine, fresh salad and sandwich machines, and other hot-type foods. We're open to trying anything."
The Automated Pizza Kitchen takes three minutes to cook a pie after its ordered.
Basil Street is hoping to install its machines at other airports around the country. The company is working with Prepango LLC, an automated retail company specializing in food and drink vending contracts at airports.
