Virtual Dispatch

Phasing in the Ghost Kitchen

Time for dinner! We all head to the kitchen for some grub! Along the way some get lost, a few others decide for the drive-thru, and then there are the last few who stick it out, and there’s no kitchen. It was here a moment ago and now it seems to have dematerialized.

It looks as though the ghost kitchen is in play. Though it does contradict when read, the idea is less spooky and spectacular than it may seem at first. When a courier first encounters a ghost kitchen, it’s a little disorienting. They happen most frequently in the same location as a real kitchen. But they do exist!

They can go by other names, like virtual kitchens, but it comes down to multiple entities in the same place. Many ghost kitchens are only available under certain circumstances, and often require an app to access. Which means they are not widely advertised. They typically piggyback on another brand, and this is one of the best ways to find them. However, they are findable.

Phasing in

As mentioned earlier, finding a ghost kitchen usually requires some form of app, a delivery app is a good way to begin the hunt for a ghost kitchen. It is worth wondering why a ghost kitchen is of interest anyway. Real kitchens have food things too. Ghost kitchens have brands that are unique, and they can specialize in foods that the host kitchen can’t.

A good example of this scenario, is the restaurant brand Chili’s. The restaurant – It’s Just Wings, is a ghost kitchen, operating in the same place as the Chili’s kitchen. The menu and delivery options, are available on the Doordash app, among others. Being a virtual or ghost kitchen, typically means the brand’s menu is only accessible online, with online orders.

Cracker Barrel began testing for its virtual brand Chicken ‘n Biscuits early in 2021. And if Wow Bao Now is on the menu, its ghost kitchen can be found at the local Fazolis. The concept of ghost or virtual kitchens has begun to reshape elements of the restaurant industry, particularly in the evolving, delivery-only merchant.

The Kitchen

This topic and concept should be of interest to couriers and drivers. Ghost kitchens can pop up anywhere, anytime. Most of the delivery apps have a description of the physical location of the ghost kitchen. Scroll down in the dispatch area, and search in the details of the run.

Some ghost kitchens have gained in popularity and are easier to recognize when offered as a delivery. It’s important to note that the delivery process is the same for virtual brands, as it is for physical brands. The apps operate the run as any other. This creates a seamless experience for customer and courier alike.

This will help the next time a strange offer comes through the delivery app. Recognizing that it’s a ghost kitchen, clears any concerns of unknown locations, in a known area. In other words, a building was not constructed overnight. Accepting the offer is the same as accepting any other offer in the app, and proceeds in the same way as other deliveries, excepting consideration of special instructions.

The next time an offer rolls in from a ghost kitchen, it’s a perfectly normal offer, that only appears paranormal. Nine times out of ten, it leads to a familiar location, right there in the same location. Stay safe out there.