4 AI Tools Rescuing Restaurants and Individuals From Inflation

Forbes

20-05-2025

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From fast-casual chains to your fridge at home, artificial intelligence is stepping in where supply chains, labor markets, and budgets are buckling.
If you've felt the pinch while ordering takeout or reading your grocery receipt, you're not alone. With inflation lingering, labor costs rising, and potential tariffs threatening imports — 15% of the U.S. food supply is imported, including 32% of fresh vegetables, 55% of fresh fruit, and 94% of seafood — the cost of putting food on the table is surging. Dining out, once a weeknight convenience, now feels like a splurge. Even meal prepping is no longer cheap
But behind the scenes, a new kind of intelligence is helping the industry—and consumers—hold the line. It's not another subscription box or budgeting hack. It's AI.
From commercial kitchens optimizing waste and labor to smart apps turning your fridge into a precision tool, artificial intelligence is quietly becoming one of the most effective tools in the fight against food inflation.
Here are four ways AI is helping restaurants stay open, households spend less, and everyone eat smarter without sacrificing quality—or sanity.
When you think about your rising food bills, the complexity behind the scenes of your favorite eateries or the cafeterias that serve thousands daily might not immediately come to mind. Yet, inefficiencies there directly contribute to the prices you pay. Enter Topanga, an advanced kitchen AI platform co-founded by Adam Bailey, an economist and former head of data at Sweetgreen. Topanga is quietly revolutionizing over 430 commercial kitchens and diverse foodservice operations—from bustling fast-casual restaurant chains and large-scale hotel dining halls to critical hospital cafeterias and university meal services. Its core mission is to leverage AI to slash operational costs, particularly food costs, enabling these businesses to thrive without inevitably passing every rising expense onto consumers.
'In this challenging era of margin risk, Topanga's AI gives kitchens within all types of foodservice environments the intelligence and tools to operate far more efficiently and sustainably,' Bailey explains. 'We believe that true sustainability in the food industry is intrinsically linked to smart cost savings. It's AI identifying and eliminating financial drains, especially around food, which is the most direct way to keep menu prices affordable and these essential food businesses alive and serving their communities.'
Here's a look at how Topanga's AI-driven approach makes a tangible difference in reducing food-related costs, directly benefiting both the foodservice operators and, ultimately, your wallet:
By embedding AI deep into the operational fabric of the foodservice industry, Topanga helps these businesses significantly reduce their primary expense drivers, especially food costs. This not only strengthens the viability of restaurants and other foodservice providers in a tough economic climate but also acts as a crucial buffer against rising prices for consumers. The intelligence Topanga provides is a key strategy in making the entire food ecosystem more resilient and affordable.
Moving into your own kitchen, AI-powered meal planning apps like Mealmind are designed to take the stress and guesswork out of grocery shopping and cooking, directly impacting your food budget. You tell Mealmind your dietary preferences, goals (like weight loss or muscle gain), and even your budget, and its AI gets to work.
The result? Less food waste, fewer last-minute expensive takeout orders because you have a plan, and a noticeable reduction in your grocery bill. It's like having a personal nutritionist and budget advisor rolled into one.
Did you know that a significant portion of food waste occurs in our own homes? Forgotten leftovers, produce wilting in the crisper drawer – it all adds up. Nosh is a food management app that uses AI to help you keep track of what you have, use it before it expires, and ultimately save money.
These apps turn your pantry and fridge into a well-organized, cost-effective system, ensuring the food you spend your hard-earned money on actually gets eaten.
While its parent company also develops sophisticated AI platforms for retailers, the Too Good To Go consumer app offers a brilliant, simple way to save money while fighting food waste on a local level. The concept is straightforward: restaurants, cafes, bakeries, and grocery stores often have perfectly good surplus food at the end of the day that would otherwise be discarded.
This model is a win-win: businesses recoup some cost on food that would be lost, and consumers get a great deal. It's a direct, tangible way AI-facilitated connections are helping people eat well for less.
As food costs continue to challenge household budgets, AI is proving to be more than just a buzzword. It's delivering practical, effective solutions that can lead to real savings. Whether by supporting restaurants like Topanga to manage their expenses or by empowering individuals with tools like Mealmind, Nosh, and Too Good To Go, artificial intelligence is reshaping our relationship with food and finance for the better. By embracing these technologies, consumers can gain more control over their spending, reduce waste, and navigate the rising tide of food prices with greater confidence.