For an industry being challenged to accomplish more with fewer people, cooking equipment has become an increasingly important part of the productivity conversation. The issue is no longer simply how quickly an oven reaches temperature or how many pans it can accommodate. Operators are evaluating whether equipment is simple enough for employees to use, versatile enough to handle multiple menu applications, efficient enough to control energy costs and dependable enough to support years of daily production.
Eloria Ware, Director of Marketing for UNOX, said those pressures are particularly evident among restaurant and foodservice end users trying to find ways to increase production without necessarily adding labor or expanding their kitchens.
The ability to perform multiple cooking functions within a single piece of equipment can create opportunities to rethink both kitchen layout and menu production. For operators with limited square footage, that versatility can be particularly important. It can also give chefs greater flexibility to expand menus without automatically adding another specialized appliance to the cooking line.
But Ware believes equipment selection needs to go beyond the initial purchase price. “If someone is looking at a purchase, one of the determining factors should be longevity, because if you buy an oven today, you don’t want to have to replace it in three to five years,” Ware noted. “Another is functionality. You can buy a brand-new oven with all kinds of technology, but you have to ask who is going to run it and whether you have time to train your team on it.”
That usability issue has become increasingly important as restaurant operators contend with turnover, varying employee skill levels and less time for extensive training. Ware said UNOX has focused on combining advanced cooking capabilities with controls that can help make repeatable execution easier for kitchen teams.
That combination of productivity and repeatability will be a central focus of the October 21st New York demonstration. UNOX selected Kesté in part because of its existing relationship with restaurateur Roberto Caporuscio and the restaurant’s experience with the company’s ovens. Ware said Kesté has been working with UNOX equipment since 2021, making the restaurant a practical setting in which attendees can see the technology operating in a real foodservice environment.
The NYC program is designed to bring a version of UNOX’s Individual Cooking Experience directly to the market. Typically, that process enables the company to work with an operator at the restaurant, foodservice facility or dealer location and test equipment against an actual menu and production needs. “We’re bringing that experience directly to the market,” Ware detailed. “We’re inviting restaurant operators, chefs, dealers, consultants and other foodservice professionals and influencers. The goal is really to make it hands-on. We want people who are thinking about kitchen performance, labor and consistency to come experience the equipment rather than just hear us talk about it or see us on a trade show floor. It is a more intimate experience.”
Pizza will naturally be part of the demonstration at Kesté, but the broader message will center on how oven technology can impact production speed across different applications. “Speed is one of the things that I think will surprise people,” Ware said. “If you’ve never experienced UNOX before and have only heard about it, something that might normally take 15 minutes can potentially be done in five or seven. A loaf of bread that might take considerably longer can be produced much faster. That becomes a game changer because now you start thinking about how quickly you can get food out, how many people you can serve and how many more seats you can fill.”
The demonstration is also intentionally being kept small. Ware said UNOX planned for approximately 15 attendees so that the session could remain personalized rather than become another large equipment presentation. For UNOX, the event also provides an opportunity to explain where the company believes it fits in a competitive combi-oven marketplace.
“What I think UNOX delivers in terms of value is how we combine innovation with practical kitchen performance,” Ware noted. “We are looking at what operators are actually facing — rising costs, limited space and challenges like that — and developing technology that helps solve those problems.” Ware pointed to the breadth of applications as an important part of that strategy, ranging from sophisticated chef-driven restaurants to independent neighborhood operations.
That value proposition also extends beyond the initial equipment specification and installation. UNOX has increased its U.S. manufacturing and support presence, which Ware said is intended to combine the company’s Italian engineering heritage with faster domestic service and parts support. “We always say it is Italian ingenuity with manufacturing here in the U.S.,” Ware said. “We are duplicating the processes that we have in Italy here in our manufacturing center in North Carolina. What that means for the operator is faster
service.”
For a restaurant, the importance of that infrastructure can become particularly apparent when equipment goes down. Ware said the company has continued building relationships with service organizations around the country and has made domestic technical support a significant part of its U.S. strategy. “You’re not going to want to wait five weeks for a part if you need it,” Ware detailed. “You also want someone you can actually speak with when there is an issue. Service is really a big part of our strength here, and being in the U.S. is only going to accelerate that and make it better.”
For operators, dealers and consultants, the larger takeaway may be that oven selection increasingly needs to be viewed as part of a broader business strategy. The right equipment can affect labor deployment, menu development, throughput, consistency, energy use, kitchen footprint and ultimately the number of customers an operation can serve.
The October 21st UNOX demonstration at Kesté Pizza e Vino in New York City will give industry professionals an opportunity to examine those issues in a working restaurant environment rather than simply evaluating equipment from a specification sheet. Space is intentionally limited, and interested attendees can request information and registration details directly from UNOX.
Readers can also learn more about UNOX equipment, schedule an Individual Cooking Experience or contact the company at www.unox.com/us_us/. UNOX USA can also be reached at 800-489-8669.
