Ghost Kitchens

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42% of overall food orders are now placed online. The annual growth rate of online ordering and food delivery from restaurants is about 15-20% [1]. We value more convenience and oftentimes do not want to waste our valuable time on picking up meals ourselves. Therefore, we see less people visiting restaurants nowadays, but the costs of rent in shopping malls and expenditures to make their brand logos noticeable are not shrinking. Ghost kitchens come to the rescue!

What are they?

Shadow kitchens, dark kitchens, whatever you want to call them, they are the new booming trend in the Food & Beverage industry. These are food preparation facilities that stay hidden from the customers’ eyes. Set up out of sight, they cater mainly to delivery and do not serve customers directly. Their goal is to focus on making quality product cheaper and in a more efficient way.

What are the benefits?

Lower operating costs are possible thanks to a couple of factors. Choosing less obvious locations makes the rent less expensive. Neither dining area nor serving staff is needed in such a place. These elements combined save a lot of money, therefore the prices of meals can become more attractive to customers.

Not operating under a given brand and staying incognito enables them to change their menu and cook totally different food. Being so flexible is a very valuable opportunity not only for start-up restaurants that are not sure what products will sell best, but also for existing ones that try to experiment with their meal choices.

Are they flawless?

I think that they are close to perfection, but there is an issue.

If these places do not have their own app for delivery, this business model is dependent on the middlemen between the consumers and the kitchens. Being under somebody’s control may lead to toxic relationships.

Overall, I see a great potential for this trend, and I think it will successfully expand in the future.

 

Bibliography:

Data from:

  1. The Lavu Team. “The Growth of Online Ordering and Food Delivery Is Transforming the Food Business Industry.” IPad Point of Sale System for Restaurants, Bars & More, 24 Feb. 2020, lavu.com/the-growth-of-online-ordering-and-food-delivery/.

 

Article I base on and present different view from them:

Hanet, Isabelle. “What Is a Dark Kitchen?” Deliverect, www.deliverect.com/blog/dark-kitchens/what-is-a-dark-kitchen.

 

External articles:

“Ghost Kitchen.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 13 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_kitchen.

Bromwich, Jonah Engel. “Farm to Table? More Like Ghost Kitchen to Sofa.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Dec. 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/12/24/style/ghost-kitchen-food-delivery.html.

2 thoughts on “Ghost Kitchens

  1. Nelson Adam says:

    Nice blog! I think it’s beneficial for small businesses to have ghost kitchens to cut down the costs of functioning.

  2. Hejduk Wiktoria says:

    Great topic! Personally I don’t often go to restaurants or order food, because of the price. I think this idea can be great especially for small companies, that just started their business and people that want to eat good but on low costs.

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