Lolly Robots: Restaurant & Hospitality Automation That Works

🍽️ Restaurant Automation, Done Right

By Marcus Delgado, Contributor – Robots of Earth

Automation in hospitality isn’t a future trend — it’s already reshaping the floorplans of cafés, quick-service chains, and hotel dining rooms across the UK and beyond. While flashy robots often make headlines, the real winners are the ones that quietly solve problems restaurant owners have been dealing with for years: labour shortages, rising operational costs, and inconsistent service.

That’s where Lolly Robots caught my attention.

Best known for its point-of-sale systems and kitchen management tools, Lolly has gradually expanded into robotics — not by chasing novelty, but by building tools that plug directly into how restaurants already run. The result isn’t a gimmick. It’s a lineup of robots that feel more like practical extensions of the staff than futuristic distractions.

Over the next few sections, I’ll walk through who Lolly is, how their robots are built to serve real hospitality environments, and why their approach to integration might matter more than the robots themselves.

🧑‍💻 Who Is Lolly?

If you’ve ever operated a hospitality venue in the UK, there’s a good chance you’ve already crossed paths with Lolly — maybe through their POS systems or back-office tools. They’ve been serving cafés, food halls, and restaurant chains for years with software designed to make service smoother and more accountable.

What sets them apart from the usual wave of robot vendors is this: Lolly didn’t start in robotics — they earned their place on the front line of restaurant operations first.

Their core tech stack includes:

• LollyPOS – a point-of-sale system designed for fast service and mobility 
• LollyKitchen – a kitchen display tool that replaces printed dockets and shouts from the pass 
• LollyPayments – integrated payments that remove the need for separate terminals 
• LollyHQ – a cloud dashboard tying it all together: orders, performance, reporting, and now — robots 

Robotics, for them, wasn’t a pivot. It was a natural next layer.

By embedding automation into their existing platform — instead of tacking it on as an afterthought — Lolly is giving hospitality businesses a more coherent way to introduce robots into day-to-day service without creating new workflows or standalone headaches.

🔄 Why Lolly’s Approach to Robotics Is Different

Most restaurant robots on the market today fall into one of two camps: either they’re flashy but disconnected — sitting awkwardly alongside existing systems — or they require so much configuration and IT support that they end up shelved after a few weeks.

Lolly takes a different route. Their robots don’t operate in isolation — they’re built to function as part of a broader, integrated system that already includes point-of-sale, kitchen coordination, and back-office management.

Here’s what that means in practice:

• Orders flow directly from the POS to the robots. When a meal is marked as “ready” in the kitchen, Lolly’s delivery robot can be dispatched without a manager lifting a finger. 
• Robot activity is tracked in the same dashboard as sales and staffing. You don’t need a second platform to manage your automation. 
• Updates are centralized. Whether it’s menu changes or floor layout adjustments, everything syncs across the Lolly ecosystem. 

From a restaurant operator’s point of view, this reduces friction — not just in guest service, but in training, oversight, and troubleshooting. It’s the kind of approach that respects how restaurants already work, instead of asking them to bend around the tech.

It’s not a revolutionary concept, but in an industry full of fragmented tools and one-off add-ons, it’s refreshing to see someone stitching it all together.

🤖 Meet Lolly’s 5 Robots: Built for Front & Back of House

Lolly’s robot lineup doesn’t chase headlines — it’s a targeted mix of front-of-house assistants and behind-the-scenes workhorses. From delivering meals in a café to shifting stock in a warehouse, each one serves a specific role in the broader hospitality and service ecosystem.

Here’s a breakdown of the five core models and where they might make sense for your operation:

Lolly Nova, an autonomous robot waiter designed to deliver food and drinks efficiently with an interactive touchscreen and illuminated shelves.

1. Lolly Nova – Front-of-House Food Runner

• Job: Delivering meals and collecting plates 
• Where it fits: Restaurants, food courts, assisted living, casual dining 
• Autonomy: ✅ Fully autonomous 
• Payload: Up to 40kg 
• Why it matters: Frees up servers for customer interaction during peak hours 

With multiple tray levels, a touchscreen interface, and smooth autonomous navigation, Nova is the most visibly “service-focused” of the group. It quietly runs food, clears tables, and adds some novelty without disrupting the guest experience.

Lolly Astra, a fully autonomous robot waiter designed for secure food and item delivery in hotels, hospitals, and multi-floor venues.

2. Lolly Astra – Closed-Compartment Delivery Bot

• Job: Secure delivery across floors or zones 
• Where it fits: Hotels, hospitals, large venues 
• Autonomy: ✅ Fully autonomous 
• Special feature: Lockable compartments for hygiene and security 

Astra is a more contained bot, with sealed storage compartments ideal for environments where food or items need to travel longer distances — like hotel room service or internal campus delivery. It’s the most suited for multi-floor or mixed-use buildings.

Lolly Orbit, a fully autonomous robot designed for light-duty item transport and supply movement in hospitality and event venues.

3. Lolly Orbit – Light-Duty Item Transport Bot

• Job: Moving light inventory or supplies 
• Where it fits: Contract catering, event venues, institutional back-of-house 
• Autonomy: ✅ Fully autonomous 
• Top speed: 1.2 m/s 
• Max weight: 150kg 

Orbit is designed to help with logistics — not service. It’s useful in support roles like transferring utensils, restocking supplies, or moving boxes across departments. Compact and agile, it navigates busy service corridors or storage areas without much setup.

Lolly Pulsar, a fully autonomous industrial robot designed to lift and transport shelves and materials in warehouses and back-of-house environments.

4. Lolly Pulsar – Industrial Lifting Bot

• Job: Unmanned shelf and material handling 
• Where it fits: Warehouses, dark kitchens, storage rooms 
• Autonomy: ✅ Fully autonomous 
• Lifting height: 5cm (platform lift) 
• Integration: Compatible with elevators and automated lines 

This is Lolly’s most logistics-focused robot, built to carry heavier loads and support lifting and shelf-line matching. Not something you’d use in a restaurant dining room — but valuable in supporting backend automation, especially in multi-unit operations with central prep.

Lolly Galaxy, a fully autonomous and modular delivery platform robot ideal for logistics zones, warehouses, and industrial kitchens.

5. Lolly Galaxy – Customisable Delivery Platform

• Job: Smart delivery base with flexible shelving 
• Where it fits: Fulfilment zones, warehouses, industrial kitchens 
• Autonomy: ✅ Fully autonomous 
• Customisation: Modular frame for containers, bins, or trays 
• Battery life: 10+ hours continuous 

Galaxy is similar to Pulsar in role but offers a more open platform for custom load-outs. It’s essentially a programmable delivery system that can carry up to 150kg across mapped spaces. Great for businesses needing internal delivery consistency without the bulk of forklifts or carts.

🧩 How These Robots Work Together

What’s interesting about Lolly’s approach to robotics isn’t just the variety of bots — it’s the coherence behind them. These aren’t standalone gadgets dropped into service randomly. They’re part of a broader system designed to interconnect through LollyHQ, the company’s cloud-based management platform.

Here’s how that plays out in a real-world operation:

• Front-of-house: A restaurant might deploy Nova to deliver meals and clear plates. Because it’s connected to LollyPOS and LollyKitchen, the robot knows when an order is ready and where to take it. 
• Mid-venue or back-of-house: Orbit can handle internal item movement — like restocking a prep station or running supplies between service zones. 
• Hotels or large venues: Pair Astra with Nova and you get a hybrid setup — Astra delivers room service through secure compartments, while Nova supports café-style service in the lobby or dining areas. 
• Logistics support: Pulsar and Galaxy aren’t customer-facing, but they add significant value behind the scenes. Pulsar lifts and moves shelving units in warehouses or storage rooms, while Galaxy can ferry bins of inventory or ingredients where they’re needed — automatically and repeatedly. 

Crucially, all five robots report activity and status back to LollyHQ. That means operators can track usage, assign tasks, schedule downtime, and spot bottlenecks without toggling between apps or systems.

From the outside, it may look like five separate machines doing five different jobs. From the operator’s seat, it’s one connected system helping to make service flow smoother — front to back.

🧑‍🍳 Who Should Consider Lolly Robots?

Robots aren’t a silver bullet — but when they’re deployed with purpose, they can significantly reduce operational drag. What impressed me about Lolly’s lineup is that it doesn’t try to be everything to everyone. Instead, it offers clear, modular tools for specific needs.

Here’s who I think should take a closer look:

1. Busy Restaurants with Lean Front-of-House Teams

If you’re running a café, bistro, or fast casual venue and struggling to maintain consistent table service during peak times, Lolly Nova can help offload food running and basic clear-down tasks — without disrupting the customer experience.

2. Hotels Looking to Modernize Room or Event Service

Lolly Astra and Nova together cover secure room delivery, conference catering, and lobby café support. With Astra’s compartmentalized storage and floor navigation, you get hands-free service that doesn’t require full-time staffing.

3. Multi-Unit Operators or Chains with Central Kitchens

If your business has a dark kitchen, central commissary, or warehouse-style supply hub, then Orbit, Pulsar, or Galaxy can automate internal transport. It’s not glamorous, but these robots move goods reliably — and without pulling staff off other duties.

4. Contract Caterers & Institutional Food Providers

For those managing multiple service points — like in education, healthcare, or events — Lolly’s robots offer a way to standardize repetitive tasks while keeping everything tied to a single backend system (LollyHQ).

5. Businesses Interested in Scalable, Managed Automation

Because Lolly’s robots are part of a broader platform (POS, KDS, analytics), they’re ideal for operators who want to start small and scale smart. You don’t need to deploy five robots to see value — even one can make a difference if plugged into the right workflow.

Bottom line: If you’re short on staff, heavy on routine tasks, or looking to sharpen your operational edge without turning your venue into a tech showroom — Lolly’s modular, managed robots might be a fit.

🛒 Buying & Deployment

One of the stronger points in Lolly’s offering — especially compared to newer overseas robotics brands — is how straightforward it is to get started.

You can purchase any of Lolly’s robots directly through their team at itslolly.com, and unlike many hardware vendors, they don’t just drop off the machine and wish you luck.

Here’s what’s included in the typical rollout:

• Site Mapping & Setup
  Lolly provides professional installation, including layout mapping, system integration, and staff onboarding. Robots can be configured to match floor plans, service zones, and delivery flows right out of the box. 
• Ongoing Software Updates
  Once installed, the robots receive remote software updates and performance enhancements. No need to fiddle with firmware or coordinate third-party patches.
  
• Support & Troubleshooting
  Lolly offers structured support hours for both standard and emergency situations — including weekends and bank holidays.
• Integrated Fleet Management
  All robot activity can be monitored and managed through LollyHQ, alongside POS and kitchen data — reducing admin load and keeping your team focused on service.
  
• Scalable Deployment Options
  If you’re not ready to automate everything at once, that’s fine. Lolly’s system is modular — meaning you can start with a single robot, observe how it impacts service, and scale up gradually. 

In short, this isn’t a “set it and forget it” purchase. It’s a supported deployment — with tools that grow alongside your venue.

🧾 Final Word: Practical Robots for Real Restaurants

Plenty of robots promise to change the way restaurants operate. Fewer actually deliver.

What stood out to me about Lolly’s lineup isn’t just the hardware — though the bots themselves are solid. It’s the ecosystem they’re part of. When you combine front-of-house tools like Nova and Astra with logistics support from Orbit, Pulsar, and Galaxy — all tied into a shared POS and reporting backend — you get something that feels less like a gadget and more like an operations layer.

For hospitality businesses looking to modernize without overhauling their identity, this is the kind of setup that makes sense. It doesn’t replace people. It reroutes repetitive tasks and frees up staff to focus on what matters most: guest experience.

Whether you’re running a single café or managing logistics for a multi-site kitchen operation, there’s likely a starting point in Lolly’s range that fits your current model — and room to grow from there.

If you’re curious where these robots sit in the broader market, check out our comparison guides and best-of lists. A good next step might be:

• Best Robot Waiters for 2025 
• Robot Runners vs. Human Staff: Where’s the Break-Even Point? 
• Top Robots for Back-of-House Logistics

❓ FAQ 

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Frequently Asked Questions

What types of robots does Lolly offer?
Lolly offers five main robots: Nova (front-of-house food runner), Astra (secure delivery), Orbit (item transport), Pulsar (industrial lifting), and Galaxy (modular delivery platform).

Are Lolly robots fully autonomous?
Yes, all five Lolly robots operate autonomously and include navigation, obstacle detection, and smart routing features.

Can I use a Lolly robot without switching POS systems?
Lolly robots are designed to integrate with the LollyPOS ecosystem. If you’re not using LollyPOS, you may need to discuss compatibility or partial integration with the company directly.

Is it expensive to get started with restaurant robots?
Lolly allows for modular deployment, so you can start with a single robot. Installation, support, and integration are included in the package.

Where can I buy Lolly robots?
Lolly robots are available for purchase directly from itslolly.com, with setup support and optional fleet management via LollyHQ.