Road trip treat: Famed travel host Samantha Brown has gone viral for making an Italian delicacy with just two ingredients from a gas station—black coffee and an ice cream sandwich. “It’s gas station affogato season,” Brown posted on social media. At a gas station off the Massachusetts turnpike, Brown instructs how to make the Italian dessert, which is a scoop of gelato with hot espresso poured over it. “To make it fancy you get a black coffee cup of coffee, just from the gas station, and an ice cream sandwich and you dip it in and you make the affogato in your mouth,” Brown said. —Diane Adam
Ready for ravioli?: There aren’t a lot of Italian foods that lend themselves to the grab-and-go ease of convenience stores, but Kwik Trip has taken one of them, ravioli, and made it a limited-time offer. The company’s new four-cheese ravioli is available now on the Hot Spot, the company said in a Facebook post. “This is a product that we get from a vendor and bake in our stores,” Kwik Trip spokesperson Ben Leibl told CSP. The cheeses are ricotta, Asiago, romano and mozzarella, Leibl said. There are eight in a box, and it sells for $3.49. It comes with a sauce cup. —Chuck Ulie
Hollywood and vend: VenHub Global Inc., a provider of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered retail concepts, opened a new contactless 24/7 Smart Store in Hollywood, California, in July near the iconic Hollywood Bowl, Walk of Fame and intersection of Hollywood and Vine. The store was fully delivered, assembled and activated in a few days, said the company. The store is fully autonomous and operates without onsite staff. Every interaction is powered by AI, robotics and mobile-first design, the company said. It offers snacks and travel essentials. The Hollywood opening follows deployments in North Hollywood, Glendale and the Metro Transit Center at LAX airport. “We are seeing demand from cities, municipalities, transportation hubs, event and sports venues, operators, location owners and global organizations and brands,” said Shahan Ohanessian, founder and CEO of Pasadena, California-based VenHub. —Greg Lindenberg
The perfect pair?: Ever wondered what a Reese’s and Oreo mashup would taste like? You won’t have to wonder much longer! The brands are pairing up for a collaboration that will include two new product launches: A Reese’s Oreo Cup and an Oreo Reese’s Cookie. They’ll both be available in retailers starting in September, and fans can also sign up for early access online. The collab begs the question: Could we be seeing more mashups from Reese’s maker Hershey and Oreo maker Mondelez? Mondelez, Deerfield, Illinois, last tried to buy Hershey, Pennsylvania-based Hershey in December. The takeover bid was rejected as being too low, Bloomberg reported at the time. Maybe the brands are testing the waters for a future merger. —Hannah Hammond
McDonald’s supersizes its AI ambitions: McDonald’s is supersizing its artificial intelligence game by 2027, with India as the tech powerhouse behind the scenes, a senior executive said on Friday, according to Reuters. These initiatives include verifying drive-thru orders at 400 locations and counting to using AI for pricing, sales forecasts and product performance. The chain aims to roll this out to 40,000 locations globally by 2027, said McDonald's head of global business services operations Deshant Kaila in an interview on the sidelines of an event in Hyderabad, India, Reuters said. A personalized global app is also in the works. While the focus in India will be on building out its AI capabilities, the investment is more about smart tech than swelling headcount, Kaila said. —Rachel Gignac
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