At this year's National Restaurant Association (NRA) Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show at McCormick Place in Chicago, there was no shortage of new innovations and trends in products designed to provide customers with new options.

It's a fact of life that companies have to stay innovative and trendy to keep themselves on the minds of their customers. At this year's National Restaurant Association (NRA) Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show at McCormick Place in Chicago, there was no shortage of new innovations and trends in products designed to provide customers with new options.

One area of focus at the show in May was packaging, as companies presented new containers designed for takeout meals. According to the NRA, the company Fabri-Kai reported that it received much notice at the show for its new line of Decoware takeout containers. The Decoware containers feature a microwave-able base and vented lid, preventing it from popping off when the food is reheated.

Another company, Dopaco, provides takeout containers to such restaurant chains as Burger King, Wendy's and Hardee's. The company displayed its pocket tray-serving dish at the show.

Mark Collins, regional manager, said Baja Fresh is the first restaurant to test the product, which features a separate pocket on the tray for condiments. With this product, Dopaco is targeting both large and small quick-service restaurants.

Another trend featured at the show was point-of-sale (POS) technology in the form of handheld PCs. Christopher Wright, marketing director for ASI/Restaurant Manager, said technology benefits include improved sales, reduced likelihood of errors and faster turnaround time.

“The faster you get the first drink in their hand, the more quickly you can get them a second drink,” Wright said. At the show, he demonstrated the Restaurant Manager write-on wireless handheld, which uses handwriting recognition to create a POS system. Wright said he expected more businesses to upgrade from paper systems as the cost of hardware decreases and the technology improves.

Paul Williamson, a sales director for WaiterPad, said handheld wireless systems now have better reliability, functionality and battery life.

According to the NRA, the WaiterPad is an integrated, handheld POS and back-office system using a proprietary radio frequency technology to transmit wireless orders. The system was developed by the Australian-based company PalmTeq, and is used by more than 1,000 restaurants internationally.

The NRA also recognized companies in its first-ever Kitchen Innovation Awards. The awards featured ovens that offered combinations of heat sources, including steam, microwave and air impingement.

One company recognized was MerryChef, a unit of Endois. At the show, MerryChef was honored for its EC502 oven. The EC502 oven is a convection oven that uses microwaves.

Alison Cullin, business development manager for Merry Chef, said the EC502 oven is capable of cooking a 3-pound roast chicken in only 12 minutes. Markets MerryChef directs the oven toward include convenience stores and quick-service restaurants, as well as the hotel industry.

Another unit of Endois, Lincoln Foodservice, was awarded for its Dual Technology Finisher (DTF). The DTF combines infrared technology with air impingement to quickly toast sandwiches. NRA reports that currently McDonald's is testing the DTF, and it is also used by Fazoli's and White Hen Pantry.

Self-service was another area of focus at the NRA show, with the use of such devices as stand-alone kiosks, tabletop computers and electronic touch-screen cash registers. The NRA reported that this topic was covered in a panel discussion titled “The Evolution of Self-Service.”

Bud Shaw, a franchisee of the Whataburger chain based out of Texas, said that when one of his stores installed express-pay cash registers, his customers were a little hesitant to use them—at first.

Eventually, the customers' attitudes changed and they seemed to warm up to the registers. “As time went on, it's been adopted very well,” he commented.

NRA also reported that Sheetz, a company based out of Altoona, Pa., installed more than 300 self-service stations at its convenience stores in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina.

Bill Reilly, vice president of marketing for Sheetz, said the largest benefit for the customers was the faster service. Additional benefits have included greater order accuracy and control.

The kiosks installed at Sheetz locations were made by Radiant Systems Inc. According to Scott Kingsfield of Radiant, a benefit of this technology is that customers are more likely to respond positively when a computer tries to up-sell than a real person.

“The customer accepts up-sells less often with a cashier than a computer,” Kingsfield stated at the panel.

He said that through analysis, he has learned that items located in the upper right-hand corner of a screen are selected more often. In addition, Kingsfield said he believed that this sort of information could help companies determine the placement of products they want to sell.