Whether it’s ordering in sign language with hearing-impaired waiters in Bologna, chatting to a hospitalized patient via a robot, or sipping tea served by acid attack survivors in India, these pioneering cafés are employing people who aren’t always provided with the right opportunities, and changing lives in the process.
Blue lights beam from our server’s eyes as she takes my order of a matcha latte. She moves with human-like gestures, waving at me and nodding her head as we chat about her university studies. This may sound like a relatively normal café interaction, but Senchan, my waitress, is actually serving me from over 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) away through a remotely controlled robot.
This is the Dawn Avatar Robot Café in Tokyo, a futuristic concept where bedridden, hospitalized people, and others who have difficulty leaving the house, work as ‘pilots’ as they operate ‘OriHime robots’ that serve customers. Beyond the novel experience of ordering your coffee through a robot, Orylab—the company behind the idea—are giving people a chance to work and socialize beyond the confines of their disabilities.
Ory Yoshifuji, the CEO and founder of Orylab developed the concept after his own illness prevented him from attending university. In order to get his attendance up, he discussed the idea of using an avatar with his professors. His first robot unit, complete with wig and sunglasses, was brought to university by his friends—allowing him to be present and pass his classes despite his physical limitations.
Orihime robots have since developed to be sleek and white, equipped with arms, eyes and a camera on their forehead. It means customers can have genuine interactions as the pilots at home can see and ‘look at’ customers while using their own voice to chat through a microphone. With a picture and introduction to Senchan on a screen beside the robot, plus an efficient translation system to overcome language barriers, I don’t feel like I’m talking to a robot, but a real person.
Senchan has been in a wheelchair her whole life. “Since I started this work, I have found a place where I belong,” she tells me, through the avatar. “Being disabled meant that I couldn’t do a lot, but this job has allowed me to have more self-worth.”
With the majority of staff having never worked before, Dawn Café helps them develop valuable transferable skills that many have taken to other companies. “For many of our pilots, when they start, they are very shy and think they can’t do anything, but they still have this want and need to be a part of something,” Maria Juul, global assistant at Orylab, tells me. “Over time, many of our pilots really blossom and become more expressive, and from that they create access to other jobs.”
As I sip my latte, I see families young and old speaking, laughing and even taking selfies with their robots. Behind the bar, one of the on-site (human) staff chats casually to an OriHime pilot as if they were really standing next to each other. “Communicating with people you normally don’t communicate with benefits the customer,” says Juul. “They see that a person with special needs isn’t someone they should be afraid of talking to and that you can talk about physical handicaps.”
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Since 2018, more than 100 people have worked at the café, but that’s not the only place you’d find OriHime robots. They have assisted paralyzed patients to communicate with loved ones using eye-tracking cameras, and allowed parents of hospitalized children to go home and rest without feeling apart from their child. Orylab also created the ‘telebarista’, a remotely controlled robot that makes coffee, specifically for a barista who became paralyzed and wanted to continue her craft, and you can even take a Tokyo city tour with an Orihime robot tour guide perched on your shoulder.
Dawn Avatar Robot Café is pioneering technology for good, creating a space where people are valued no matter their condition. With 1.3 billion people worldwide experiencing significant disability, according to the World Health Organization, creating an inclusive and equal society has never been more important.
Thankfully, these establishments are popping up all over the world. Here are a few more counters where you can sip a slightly more meaningful cup of coffee.
A bar where silence speaks louder than words, Senza Nome (translation: ‘Without a name’) is a traditional Italian bar run entirely by deaf bartenders and chefs.
Serving up Italian wines, local craft beers, pizzas and focaccia in the heart of Bologna’s old town, this historic building adorned with fairy lights offers a cozy atmosphere to interact with the deaf community. From practicing sign language, using order cards and swinging the lights that hang over the bar to get the bartender’s attention, you’ll quickly realize there are many ways to communicate beyond your voice.
Find out more: Senza Nome
Acid attacks, also known as vitrolage, are a threat to women in India with approximately 200 cases reported annually, and many more unreported. With permanent skin damage and scarring affecting these women’s lives and employment opportunities, Sheroes Hangout Café creates a safe space where acid attack survivors can work and thrive; the Agra café is the first and opened in 2014.
Hope and opportunity exude from the café’s brightly painted walls, where murals of women blend into colorful flowers and shapes, and the menu includes guava smoothies and virgin mojitos to pakoras and paneer curries. Other cafés can be found in Lucknow, Noida, New Delhi and soon, Pune.
You can also support their work via their online shop sells bookmarks, bags and baked goods made by survivors, with profits to the Chhanv Foundation, the organization behind the cafés which campaigns for and rehabilitates acid attack survivors. The website which features stories of survivors also helps spread awareness of this serious threat to women. As Sheroes says, “When you shop here, you don’t just buy a product; you become a part of a powerful movement for change.”
Find out more at chhanv.org
This sunshine-yellow brunch spot, just a few minutes from St Kilda beach in Melbourne, is bridging the gap between people with disabilities and the wider community. All Things Equal trains individuals who have Downs Syndrome, high-level autism and other significant disabilities, in customer service, teamwork and food preparation, before employing them to work in the café.
Their menu offers a variety of vegetarian and pescatarian dishes, from quinoa brekkie bowls and waffles to edamame-topped smashed avocado and smoked salmon bagels, while an extensive drinks menu includes herbal teas, hot and iced chai, smoothies, milkshakes and, of course, coffee. With previous employees going on to work at respected roles in hotels, events and catering companies, All Things Equal is much more than just a café; it’s also a driving force for a more inclusive world.
Find out more at allthingsequal.com.au
Amid the energetic buzz of Hoi An’s yellow-walled streets, this teahouse is quietly brewing up a space that embraces diversity. Reaching Out Teahouse is a Vietnamese-style teahouse serving tea tasting sets and coffee from the coffee-growing capital of Vietnam, Da Lat, and is run entirely by speech and hearing-impaired individuals. Based in a historic townhouse, the laidback atmosphere and tranquil garden invites quiet contemplation over a warming cup of tea.
Known as Hòa Nhập in Vietnamese (translation: ‘integration’), this social enterprise was established in 2000 with the vision of providing opportunities for people with disabilities. Alongside the café, their shop sells teacups, jewelry, bedspreads and other artisanal products made by people with disabilities. They also run workshops on tea meditation, baking Vietnamese sweet treats and crafting paper-folding lanterns.
Find out more at reachingoutvietnam.com
What began as an initiative to provide cooking classes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), this non-profit social enterprise has blossomed into a permanent café that offers hope and opportunity to the IDD community. Hugs Café offers culinary and hospitality training programs to individuals for future employment at the café and other establishments, along with monthly cooking classes to gain more independence at home.
On the menu are an array of breakfast and lunch dishes including their peach gobbler, egg sammie and strawberry pecan salad, all made with ingredients sourced from the East McKinney Learning Garden. Hugs Café Inc. have also set up Hugs Greenhouse, a plant nursery that educates individuals with special needs on gardening and retail sales, and they have a second store in Dallas.
Find out more at hugscafe.org
Located in The Yard in London’s Covent Garden neighborhood, Fair Shot café is training and employing young adults with learning disabilities and autism, helping them realize their value in the working world. This sleek cafe features floor-to-ceiling windows creating an open airy space, where the aroma of their ‘Inclusive Coffee’ and freshly baked cakes and pastries entices passersby in.
As a registered charity, Fair Shot places 100 percent of their sales back into their training programs. Alongside training, they run Diversity, Equality and Inclusion workshops for organizations, teaching employers how to create and manage an inclusive workforce. Since opening in 2021, Fair Shot has supported 45 young adults into employment, with graduates going on to work as baristas, sales executives, theatre staff and other roles.
Find out more at fairshot.co.uk
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Eva Adorisio is a travel and culture writer who specializes in people-focused stories that aim to subvert preconceptions. An avid explorer and adventurer, she loves the outdoors including hiking, snowboarding and diving. She hopes to write a book in the future, but for now, you'll find her writing in BBC Travel, Time Out, BBC Sky At Night and other publications.
