uWink Inc. (UWKI)

[Netman]

A different way of doing the same thing...

That, essentially, is the thought behind uWink, a soon-to-be three-unit casual-dining chain in Los Angeles. The brains behind uWink is Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese.

The innovation at the 150-seat restaurant is the technology platform driving the entire operation. Customers order food and pay for it via tabletop computers. Servers act as “entertainment concierges,” key because as they dine, customers are likely using tabletop computers to play games with dinner companions, customers at a table across the room or, as more uWinks open, customers in other cities.

The technology allows the manager to change uWink's environment as the demographic changes: softer music and more light for family time, louder music and racier games for later in the evening.

“We spent years building the platform,” says Chief Technology Officer Brent Bushnell, who is Nolan Bushnell's son. He is so confident that uWink occupies a unique niche that he plans to sell the technology to other restaurant concepts.

As for the name? “We wanted a word that was short and fun and flirty,” Brent Bushnell says. “The 'u' stands for putting you in control, and the wink is a fun social gesture.”

http://www.chainleader.com/article/CA6552742.html