Following the end of Expo 2020 Dubai, talabat, the region’s leading local tech platform, recaps its presence at the world’s greatest show and most significant milestones and trends when looking back at an incredible 6-months. During the event, talabat welcomed hundreds of thousands of visitors to its innovative, sustainable two-storey cloud kitchen, which not only showcased the future of food delivery experiences, but also prepared thousands of meals on site every day.
Across the Expo 2020 Dubai site, talabat riders, ‘talabot’ robots and walkers went the extra mile, by covering over 42,500 km on their mission to deliver a wide selection of delicious food to hungry visitors on the site – the equivalent of traveling the Earth’s circumference!
Commenting on the announcement, Tomaso Rodriguez, CEO of talabat said: “Expo 2020 Dubai has been a fantastic platform for us. We were proud to be part of the greatest show on Earth, to contribute to this experience and have had the opportunity to showcase a truly tech-oriented experience. With a selection of over 40 restaurant brands to choose from and 15 different cuisines from around the globe – all under one roof. It’s been fascinating to learn what our visitors ordered the most!”
“The last 6 months also enabled us to forge new partnerships, trial new technologies, innovations, and additions that we hope to roll out after Expo 2020 Dubai, and so we are incredibly excited about the future ahead. We hope everyone has enjoyed experiencing the future of food delivery and we encourage them to stay tuned to see what we do next. Above all, it was great to be able to be part of the excitement and ambition portrayed at Expo 2020 Dubai.”
A tech-oriented experience
With Expo 2020 Dubai being a destination to showcase and trial the latest technology and innovations, talabat was at the forefront with a first ever dine-in experience in a two-story cloud kitchen – allowing visitors to order from various restaurants all in one place, and be able to enjoy it there or throughout Expo 2020 Dubai with a delivery to pre-allocated touch points. Visitors were also given a glimpse of the future of food deliveries and technology with a robotic ice-cream confectioner and barista.
Additionally, through the introduction of 3D Smart Lockers Systems, which allowed a contactless pick up option for customers for the first time in the GCC and autonomous delivery robots for point-to-point food delivery at Expo 2020 Dubai, talabat brought an innovative way of managing food delivery throughout the mega-event.
Top food trends at Expo 2020 Dubai
With all food prepared fresh at the talabat Kitchen – interesting trends have emerged when it comes to top food preferences. In fact, the largest order placed at the talabat Kitchen was for 290 pizzas, totalling AED 8,000! Additionally, Expo 2020 Dubai also revealed a nation of coffee lovers. Created by our famous robotic coffee barista, over 8,000 coffees were ordered, with each cup including an individually designed piece of coffee art on the foamy top.
Proving hearty meals won big, Chicken Biryani has been revealed as the most popular food order at Expo 2020 Dubai, followed by the humble chicken shawarma – a cultural delicacy in the region. American food remained the most popular food preference, followed by Arabic cuisine to play testament to our love for the region with healthier options such as salads and sandwich wraps coming in third place.
Reducing food waste and championing sustainability
During Expo 2020 Dubai, talabat hosted key events to highlight important initiatives around curbing food wastage and sustainable practices in the food sector, such as the #StoptheWaste initiative with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) where practical methods to shop, store and consume sustainably to reduce food waste was shared. In addition, talabat also provided 450 kilograms of surplus food from its Kitchen to Expo 2020 Dubai’s ‘Food Rescue Programme’ in partnership with Cisco, to be distributed to local charities with the logistical support of the UAE Food Bank.
From a sustainability perspective, talabat piloted its sustainable packaging products, switched to biodegradable plastic bags at talabat mart stores and used autonomous delivery robots and e-scooters designed to be efficient during delivery.
Celebrating key moments and food!
Throughout the 6-month event, talabat also celebrated local, regional and global occasions at the world’s greatest show by creating memorable moments that last for its visitors. These included commemorating the United Arab Emirates’ remarkable journey and year of the 50th, honoring traditions during the Chinese New Year, and celebrating the love people have for food during Valentine’s Day.
Additionally, curated experiences around food creation and creativity took on a whole new level for visitors at Expo 2020 Dubai – from interactive Masterclass sessions with chefs at the talabat Kitchen, to attending an art exhibition by local artists that adorned talabat riders’ helmets with artistic interpretations of culinary arts and innovation, there was something for every visitor to have the best food and cultural experience at 2020 Dubai.
