The demand for delivery of meals continues to rise, with more consumers turning to delivery and take-out vs in-person dining. Part of this trend includes the rise in popularity of delivery-only food concepts called ghost kitchens or virtual kitchens, and they are quickly changing the way many people are dining. Some see ghost kitchens as an emerging bright spot for troubled restaurants. Is it a right for you? In this article, we’ll discuss what a ghost kitchen is and explore the pros and cons of going virtual.
Ghost Kitchens vs Virtual Kitchens
Most people use the terms ghost kitchen and virtual kitchen interchangeably. But in fact, they are two separate operating models. A ghost kitchen operates out of a space that is rented from third party whereas a virtual restaurant has an existing location and uses its own kitchen to create new delivery-only menus.
Ghost Kitchen
Ghost kitchens are typically large-scale commercial kitchens shared by independent chefs with independent menus who rent space and cook strictly for take-out. Each ghost kitchen would have their own space for cooking complete with cooktops, ovens, and ventilation hood system. A good example of a ghost kitchen is Ghostline in DC. It has a physical kitchen location that houses numerous chefs making everything from ramen to reubens. But none of the chefs actually has their own restaurant and they all pay separately for their own individual kitchen space. All food is ordered online via an app and there is no indoor dining.
Virtual Restaurant
A virtual restaurant, on the other hand, has an existing physical location and kitchen. They do not rent out space from a third party. Instead, they augment their existing restaurant menu with items that are only ordered online for delivery or take-out.
For example, a fine dining Vietnamese restaurant might create a rice bowl concept at a lower price using their own kitchen to prepare the food, which would only be available via delivery or take-out. Their restaurant would run as it normally would alongside the virtual restaurant, sharing the same space, commercial kitchen equipment, and staff. Even a food truck can be a virtual restaurant.
The Growth of Online Ordering and Food Delivery
With continued COVID-19 restrictions limiting in-person dining, interest in ghost kitchens and virtual kitchens has grown exponentially. It’s no wonder that more and more restaurants are trying to get their foot in the delivery-only door. Driven by the increasing number of people who are ordering their food online for contactless delivery, use of food delivery services like Uber Eats, Grubhub, DoorDash and Postmates is skyrocketing. Some ghost kitchens, however, are opting to use a native online ordering platform to cut down on third-party costs.
The Rise of the Ghost or Virtual Kitchen
Some restaurants that have had to sadly close their doors have now begun to reinvent themselves as a ghost kitchen. Other restaurants that are still open are finding that adding delivery-exclusive menus are a great way to boost their profits. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the ghost kitchen model has become more profitable than ever before.
Brick and mortar restaurants interested in running a virtual kitchen using their existing brick and mortar location may find that they can easily use many of their existing ingredients and menu items. And by using your own kitchen, you eliminate the cost of renting a shared remote kitchen space. With some careful planning, you can use your existing kitchen as a virtual restaurant and develop profitable delivery-only model.
If you do not already have a physical space or need to downsize from a larger facility, you can also locate a commercial kitchen space for your own use and easily outfit it with everything you need to launch. If you are choosing a new location, another benefit of a ghost kitchen is that you don’t need to be in a highly trafficked location.
If you are staying at your existing location, you may find that your current restaurant hood and fan system may not be equipped to handle the increase in demand. Adding a second cooking station in your kitchen can help. Just make sure you are getting the ventilation hood system that’s right for your new needs.
If you are adding any solid fuel cooking, for example a charbroiler, you’ll need to make sure you have the right kind of upblast exhaust fan and grease filters installed. With no dining area to worry about, you can put your focus on making sure the commercial kitchen ventilation is up to code including your vent hood, hood filters, upblast fan and grease containment.
Check out this short video to learn more about spark arrestor hood filters:
There are also mobile ghost kitchens. Food trucks hoping to expand their offerings are prime candidates for such an addition. While your main food truck continues to have a physical presence wherever you park it, a delivery-only mobile virtual restaurant can be run from a food truck permanently parked in another location.
Food trucks come in all shapes and sizes from full-sized trailers with full, multi-course menus to the more standard food truck fare offering signature menu items with a similar theme or type of cuisine. No matter what size mobile ghost kitchen you’re thinking of adding, you’ll want to make the most of your space with a commercial kitchen hood and fan system designed specifically for food trucks.
All in all, there are certainly many measurable benefits. But, there are still a few drawbacks. So if you are considering a ghost kitchen model, make sure you weigh all the pros and cons before you decide.
Benefits of a Ghost or Virtual Kitchen
• Eliminates need for customer seating and waiting areas
• No need to employ serving staff
• Caters to an increased consumer preference towards take-out and home delivery
• Reduced rent
• Lower overheads
• Quick start-up
• Streamlined workflow
• Increased speed to market
• Ability to use your existing kitchen
• Easier to Experiment with New Menu Items or Appeal to a Broader Dining Base (for example, an upscale steakhouse that adds a delivery-only menu focused on burgers or a pancake house that adds delivery-only pizza at night)
Disadvantages of Ghost Kitchens
• Limited type of customer
• Increasing competition
• Decreased visibility
• No walk-in traffic
• No in-person interaction
• Hard to build customer loyalty
• Can be difficult to promote or market
• Relies heavily on technology use
• All meals will have to be packaged to stay insulated and intact for delivery
• Constrained by location (operating with a 3-5 mile delivery radius is typical)
• Third-party integrations like Uber Eats can be very expensive
Conclusion
While the pandemic has certainly fueled their growth, delivery-only kitchens are not new and they are more than a passing trend. Even after COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, they are likely to continue growing in popularity.
Pre-pandemic, 60% of US consumers were ordering delivery or take-out at least once a week and restaurant delivery sales were projected to grow 300% faster than on-premises. Before the coronavirus outbreak, a UBS study had already forecast food delivery sales to rise more than 20% annually to $365 billion worldwide by 2030.
But as the pandemic ends and restaurants are able to open for in-person dining again, will this increasing level of food delivery be maintained? Restaurants, even fast food chains, will always be gathering places for everything from civic activities like voter registration to groups who meet up for a daily cup of coffee. Brick and mortar restaurants are certainly here to stay.
Whatever your current restaurant business model is now, there is a very good chance that at some point in the next 5 to 10 years you just might consider investing in the ghost kitchen model. And no matter what kind of kitchen you decide to run, HoodFilters.com will be here to help make sure you have everything you need to do it.
From vent hoods to baffle filters and grease containment to upblast fans, we’ve got you covered. Have questions about setting up the ventilation equipment for a ghost or virtual kitchen or need help figuring out the most cost-effective way to keep your existing ventilation system up and running safely? Our product specialists are here to help. Just call us at 877-394-9731 or email us at customerservice@hoodfilters.com.
