Culinary and Foodservice
Technology for restaurant and foodservice operators — ordering and point of sale, kitchen automation and robotics, connected kitchen equipment, back-of-house software, guest-facing AI, and menu and nutrition tools, in restaurants and in grocery and convenience stores.
What this pillar covers
CEP backs technology companies that sell to restaurant and foodservice operators. Point of sale, digital ordering and kitchen display; back-of-house software for scheduling, inventory and labor; kitchen automation and cooking robotics; connected kitchen equipment that reports food safety and waste; guest-facing AI for ordering and personalization; and the menu and nutrition data operators use as diners move toward protein- and fiber-forward choices. The National Restaurant Association projects US restaurant and foodservice sales of $1.55 trillion in 2026, and says operators are adding ordering, AI and data tools to manage costs and improve the guest experience. Foodservice inside grocery and convenience stores belongs here too, from prepared-food counters to AI ordering at the c-store, along with the meal-planning tools shoppers use to decide what to cook.
Where we look
The kinds of companies and infrastructure CEP focuses on here include:
- Restaurant operating software: point of sale, digital ordering and kitchen display
- Back-of-house software for scheduling, inventory and labor
- Kitchen automation and cooking robotics
- Connected kitchen equipment that reports food safety and food waste
- Guest-facing AI for ordering, menu discovery and personalization
- Menu engineering and nutrition data as diners shift toward protein and fiber
- Meal planning and recipe guidance for shoppers, including meal kits
- Online and off-premise ordering software built for independent and multi-unit operators
Operators adopt technology that helps each location run on fewer labor hours and serve guests with better information. A product proves itself in one kitchen, then rolls out across a restaurant group and into the ordering and point-of-sale systems operators already use.
Our other investment areas.
Shopping Experiences
Where shoppers find and buy — AI shopping assistants and agentic checkout, social and live commerce, virtual try-on and connected stores, and the commerce platforms, payments and loyalty that tie them together.
Read moreMerchandising and Store Operations
The operating layer of the store — where merchant judgment meets shelf execution: inventory and merchandising intelligence, autonomous checkout, smart shelves, in-store robotics and staff allocation.
Read moreSupply Chain and Fulfillment
Moving goods from supplier to shopper — warehouse robotics, last-mile delivery, AI planning and replenishment, store-based fulfillment automation, cold chain, freight and cross-border trade software, and returns and circular logistics.
Read moreRetail Media and Marketing
Retail media built on retailer first-party data — AI-bought and agent-traded advertising, in-store and omni-store media, shoppable video and CTV, creator campaigns, and closed-loop measurement.
Read moreRetail Health Tech
Technology that runs health at retail: pharmacy automation and digital fulfillment, virtual care, at-home diagnostics and wearables, and the software that routes shoppers to care and back to the pharmacy.
Read more