What is it?
A ghost kitchen is a commercial kitchen space that is used solely for the preparation of food for delivery or pick-up. It allows restaurants to operate without a dining area, front of house staff, or traditional restaurant space. Virtual kitchen utilize streamlined kitchen infrastructure and food delivery logistics to function as delivery and take-out only businesses.
Advantages for Restaurants
One major advantage of virtual kitchen is significantly lower overhead costs compared to traditional brick-and-mortar restaurants. By eliminating dining areas and front of house staff, virtual kitchen can save on real estate, utilities, maintenance, and payroll costs. This allows restaurants to focus solely on food preparation at a much lower monthly cost. Virtual kitchen are also highly scalable—additional brands or menus can be added easily without expanding physical space. This flexible model lets restaurants experiment with new concepts and menus at low risk.
Growth in the Food Delivery Industry
The growth of the food delivery industry has driven demand for virtual kitchen. As more consumers opt to order in instead of dining out, restaurants are shifting strategies to cater directly to off-premises demand. Companies like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub have made online food delivery mainstream and convenient. This transformed consumer behavior has supported the rise of virtual kitchen, which are optimized for the delivery and pickup model. According to reports, the US virtual kitchen industry is projected to grow from $1 billion in 2020 to over $1.2 trillion by 2030.
How Ghost Kitchens Operate
Commissary kitchen spaces are rented by the hour, day, or month to host multiple virtual restaurant brands under one roof. These centralized facilities allow restaurants and food entrepreneurs to share professional kitchen infrastructure, storage, and delivery logistics. Operators can focus on food preparation and sales while outsourcing other operational tasks. Menu items are prepared to order and then picked up or delivered by drivers from third-party services. Orders are received through websites and mobile apps connected to delivery platforms without a traditional storefront.
Examples of Successful Virtual Kitchen Brands
One of the most prominent virtual kitchen concepts is Virtual Dining Concepts, which manages over 100 virtual kitchen locations nationwide for brands like MrBeast Burger and Mariah's Cookies. Celebrities like Jason Derulo and Drake also operate virtual kitchen brands via Virtual Dining Concepts. Kitopi is another major player, operating over 100 virtual kitchen across the US and UK. Individual cities also host thriving virtual kitchen hubs, like CloudKitchens in Los Angeles which hosts hundreds of brands under one commercial facility. Popular delivery-only restaurant brands that started as virtual kitchen include
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