If you had a hankering for fried chicken recently and went to Sansan Chicken to get your fix, you’d be surprised to find that there is no physical cashier to take your order. In fact, the cashier at Sansan Chicken is actually all the way in the Philippines, taking your order via zoom.
Sure, we’re familiar with automats, even robot waiters, but people seem to think remote cashiers are a whole new level of madness.
Bret Goldstein posted a photo of the remote cashier system to X, explaining the company behind it is called Happy Cashier. When asked in the thread how Goldstein found the service to be, he replied “it was a better experience tbh…more friendly + had more access to info i needed.”
When performing a quick google search, you’ll find bits of information about Happy Cashier. Their website states that they’re “revolutionizing your business with 24/7 virtual cashiers.”
So why has Sansan Chicken hired remote cashiers, along with apparently four other NYC restaurants doing the same? According to the manager at Sansan Chicken, it’s a solution to cut costs. In the last year, NYC’s minimum wage was raised to $16 an hour, whereas the hourly wage in the Philippines is much less. According to Happy Cashier, the virtual cashiers are making $3 an hour.
You can find more remote cashiers at Yaso Kitchen and a few other select NYC restaurants.