The Value of Ghost Kitchens
Ghost kitchens was a concept you started hearing about before the pandemic but now, the restaurant industry understands, firsthand, the value of a kitchen dedicated to carrying out or delivering orders.
Consumer behavior has drastically altered since the pandemic, as cleanliness and social distancing in daily life have become top priorities. With many restaurants operating at limited dine-in capacity and others closing dining areas altogether, delivery’s popularity skyrockets. Delivery services such as UberEats, GrubHub, DoorDash, and Waitr are seeing continued increases in their user bases and activity.
By pivoting to a ghost kitchen model, restaurants can reduce costs and improve production efficiency simultaneously.
Even with changes in operational practices, handling the volume for carryout or delivery can be overwhelming. The central issue is that restaurant kitchens were not designed with the mindset of producing delivery orders in large quantities.
As a result, ghost kitchens – those that operate for the sole purpose of creating orders for to-go customers and for delivery – have become a staple for restaurants looking forward and finding ways to thrive in the midst of this uncertain period.
What is a Ghost Kitchen?
A ghost kitchen is a professional kitchen facility specifically designed to meet the needs of delivery and carry-out orders. Also referred to as virtual, cloud, or dark kitchens, they are optimized kitchen layouts that streamline the production of to-go orders at a level of efficiency that traditional kitchen facilities cannot match.
These kitchens also offer an economic approach for new restaurants to enter the market without committing to the additional expense of dine-in areas. Euromonitor estimates they could become a $1 trillion global market by 2030. However, these solutions also come with challenges.
KPS Global Ghost Kitchen Solutions
Ghost kitchens change the demands placed on restaurant operations. They require a different, yet more efficient use of space, including cold storage. Sometimes dark kitchens come with a dedicated walk-in cooler and walk-in freezer storage for a specific restaurant’s usage. Other times, the cold storage is shared. Or another alternative is to use reach-ins for dedicated use.
Every kitchen space is unique. KPS Global specializes in meeting custom cold storage demands regardless if it is for a ghost kitchen or a scientific chamber. Providing the highest quality walk-in coolers and walk-in freezers to meet the needs of any project is what we do.
By partnering with the experts at KPS Global, restaurants can utilize kitchen space to optimize workflows best suited to meet the catering and food delivery needs.
To learn more, contact KPS Global today.
