Restaurant Technology News - Restaurant technology is often discussed in terms of software, ordering platforms, POS systems, payments, loyalty programs and artificial intelligence. But many of the most important operational improvements still happen much closer to the food itself. Before a guest receives a salad, sandwich, soup, sauce, side dish, entrée, frozen meal, packaged item or prepared ingredient, someone has to cut, slice, dice, shred, mill, puree or otherwise prepare products with consistency and speed.

That work affects more than kitchen workflow. A tomato dice affects presentation and portion control. A lettuce shred affects texture, shelf life and throughput. A potato cut affects cooking consistency and waste. A cheese shred affects melt, yield and labor. A vegetable puree can support soups, sauces, fillings or plant-forward menu development. In high-volume foodservice environments, cutting is part of quality control, food safety, labor management and margin protection.

Urschel Laboratories has spent more than a century focused on that part of the food production process. The company manufactures industrial food cutting equipment used for slicing, dicing, shredding, milling, granulating, strip cutting and pureeing across a wide range of applications. Its machines support processors and foodservice operations working with fruits, vegetables, potatoes, meat, poultry, seafood, cheese, bakery products, plant-based ingredients, pet food and other products that require reliable size reduction.

At the National Restaurant Association Show, Urschel showcased equipment that speaks directly to those production needs. Featured machines included the Little Gem Aspire Dicer, Sprint 2 Dicer, KRONEN GS 10-2 Slicer, KRONEN KS-100 PLUS Centrifuge/Dryer and other manual and automatic KRONEN machines. For operators, commissaries, foodservice manufacturers and suppliers walking the show floor, the draw was practical: equipment that can help increase throughput, reduce repetitive manual prep and produce more consistent results.

That need has become more pressing as restaurants and foodservice companies try to do more with fewer labor hours. Central kitchens and commissaries are preparing more ingredients for multiple locations. Suppliers are being asked to deliver products that meet tighter specifications.

Multi-unit restaurant groups need consistency across markets and dayparts. Guests may never see the processing equipment behind a menu item, but they notice when fries cook unevenly, lettuce lacks texture, diced vegetables vary from plate to plate or prepared ingredients do not match expectations.

Urschel was founded in 1910 in Valparaiso, Indiana, by William E. Urschel, an inventor whose early food processing equipment helped set the direction for the company. Urschel began with the Gooseberry Snipper and continued expanding its engineering capabilities across generations of the Urschel family. Today, the company is headquartered in Chesterton, Indiana, and remains closely associated with industrial food cutting technology.

Its long history is tied to a remarkably consistent focus. Urschel has stayed close to food cutting and size reduction rather than moving into unrelated equipment categories. The company’s own history notes that its product line has remained focused primarily on food cutting equipment, along with the parts and knives that support those applications. In 2016, Urschel became a 100% employee-owned company, giving employees a direct stake in the business and reinforcing the company’s long-term manufacturing culture.

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