This summer Taco Mac will be the first restaurant in Chattanooga to trade its tradition soda fountain for something a little more flavorful. A new high-tech soda dispenser called Coca-Cola Freestyle allows the restaurant to offer 100 different sodas to its customers.
“When you look at the glasses on the tables now, you’ll see a rainbow of colors,” says Bruce Skala, vice-president of marketing for the restaurant chain that owns Taco Mac. “This has opened up a whole new world for us.”
Taco Mac is one of 800 locations nationwide testing out the new technology. And so far, consumers have been enthusiastic – Skala reports that Taco Mac has seen an increase in sales. He also says the Freestyle machine is a kid-friendly way to complement Taco Mac’s 260 beer options.
This “fountain of the future” is simple – a touchscreen allows the server to choose a base soda (Coke, Dr. Pepper...) followed by a flavor (Vanilla, Lime, Orange...). But a closer look reveals its complexity. With the help of “Purepour” technology, actually developed in the medical field, the machine dispenses a precise recipe of water, sweetener, and concentrated ingredients for each soda.
“It pours the perfect drink,” says Coca Cola representative Dan Redler.
The 46-ounce cartridges used to store ingredients are also enabled to send supply and demand data to Coca Cola’s headquarters in Atlanta. Redler says the Freestyle was a “research vehicle in itself,” as it allows the company to track peak times and popular locations in addition to consumption.
Like some current soda fountains, the Freestyle machine at Taco Mac is crew-serve only. But Chattanooga can expect to see self-serve versions of the machine appear in local franchises very soon.
And with so many perks—higher quality drinks, automated inventory management, greater variety – the only problem may be consumer anxiety about which drink is best.
“This is a change of strategy. It’s all about choice,” Redler says, as the machine dispenses a pristine Orange Coke.
I want one of these in my town!
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