Dark Kitchen: Advantages and How to Set Up Yours

Dark Kitchen is a food business model that became a trend after the COVID-19 pandemic. This type of restaurant caught the attention of entrepreneurs for its low investment, lean operation and excellent financial returns.

If you want to understand what a dark kitchen is, learn what the advantages are and find out how to set up a business under this model, keep reading this article!

What is a dark kitchen?

A dark kitchen is a restaurant that operates exclusively through delivery or take away. In other words: it has no physical space to serve customers and only takes orders online.

The model is also known as a ghost kitchen, and also as a ghost restaurant.

In general, orders are produced in kitchens located in warehouses shared among several restaurants. This is the most common way to operate, and there are companies that specialize in renting out these spaces.

But there are also other innovative models, in which restaurants use kitchen coworking spaces, cloud kitchens, kitchen as a service or even their own dark kitchen. All of them aim to cut costs and increase operational efficiency.

What are the advantages of this business model?

It's no accident that dark kitchen restaurants are on the rise. With the shift in consumer behavior and new technologies, this business model stands out for offering convenience to customers and plenty of advantages to entrepreneurs.

The main one is the reduction in costs compared with traditional restaurants. Since there's no need for a physical space for dining or a team to serve customers, the operation is much leaner. 

There's no need, for example, to pay expensive rent to be well located and get good foot traffic.

Since they're hidden away and restricted to restaurant staff, ghost kitchens can be located in less sought-after neighborhoods – and therefore with more affordable rent. É preciso apenas estar em um local estratégico para atender com agilidade uma grande área. 

In fact, that's another advantage: since the operation runs on delivery only, it's possible to serve a very broad audience and grow the business more easily, whether by serving other areas or by offering more options on the menu.

A flexibility to change the menu is also greater. Restaurants can add or remove items according to demand or run tests with different combos and promotions. That way, it's possible to identify what delivers the best results and increase profitability.

Finally, delivery is growing fast. According to the CREST study, conducted by the Instituto Foodservice Brasil (IFB) in partnership with Mosaiclab, the share of delivery in the food service sector went from 9% in 2019 to 16% in 2022. 

How to set up a dark kitchen restaurant?

Setting up a dark kitchen restaurant takes planning and attention to the specifics of this business model. Check out our tips below.

1 – Choose the ideal location

Even though the restaurant doesn't receive customers, the location of a dark kitchen is also crucial to the success of the business. That's because the spot has to be strategic, balancing proximity to customers with accessibility for deliveries.

Some points to consider are:

Proximity to customers

Choosing a central location or one close to high-demand areas can save time on deliveries and make sure your orders reach customers faster and in better condition. It's worth studying your customer profile, analyzing order data and identifying the key areas.

Cost of rent

As we saw, rent costs for dark kitchens can be much lower. Weigh different options carefully to secure a lower operating cost and optimize your profitability.

Accessibility

Make sure the location is accessible for delivery drivers. Take into account traffic, ease of getting around and access to the area's main roads. This can affect delivery time and, consequently, the customer experience.

2 – Create a menu

The success of your dark kitchen depends, in large part, on the menu you offer. That's why it's important to do your research and create a menu that stands out.

Start by studying the local market and consumer preferences. Analyze the competition and find out which types of cuisine are most successful in the area where you want to operate or with the audience you intend to serve.

You can start out focused on just a few products, to keep the operation simpler, or build a full menu.

Remember to factor in production costs too, checking ingredient prices with suppliers and also taking operating expenses into account. Calculate your profit margins and make sure prices stay competitive.

Leia também: Restaurant pricing: 5 mistakes you need to avoid

3 – Set up your dark kitchen

A well-planned, well-equipped dark kitchen can make all the difference in your operation. Purchase Equipment of good quality – industrial stoves, ovens, refrigerators, freezers, among others – and utensils suited to your menu.

Also plan the kitchen layout with a focus on efficiency, in order to optimize your team's workflow. The arrangement of the production stations and the equipment should be designed to cut down on the need to move around and make preparing orders as easy as possible.

4 – Hire a qualified team

Hire qualified professionals to ensure not only efficiency in production, but also food quality and safety.

In this line of business, you have to focus on outstanding dishes to stand apart from the competition – and it's your kitchen team that will deliver that.

The number of employees varies according to how complex your business model is. If you have a menu with different options, for example, you may need to build dedicated teams for each one. If not, the team can be smaller, with one cook and assistants.

Beyond the kitchen professionals, a dark kitchen team can also include someone dedicated to online customer service and staff to pack orders and hand them over to the delivery riders.

Learn more: Hiring a restaurant team: how to get the selection right

5 – Choose your management system

The efficiency of a dark kitchen operation depends on the technologies you adopt. They're essential for automating processes and keeping production flowing without holdups.

You'll need a system to:

• Manage orders
• Organize production
• Control inventory
• Analyze sales results
• Manage deliveries

O EPOC is a solution for restaurants that brings together several features and makes management easier. With it you not only make the operation more efficient, you also find it easier to analyze results and think up strategies to optimize your business.

6 – Plan your marketing

Building a strong brand and an effective marketing strategy is essential for any business, and even more so for dark kitchen restaurants. Some key points are:

• Develop a brand that conveys quality and trust
• Use digital marketing strategies, such as paid ads, social media posts, digital menus and optimizing your profiles on delivery apps.
• Promotions and Loyalty program to encourage customers

7 – Pay attention to delivery and logistics management

A business model built on delivery has to make sure it offers the best delivery service possible. That's essential to keeping customers satisfied.

To do that, choose your delivery partners carefully, looking for reliable service providers that cover your area well. You also have the option of relying on couriers from the delivery apps.

Other important aspects of delivery are order tracking and route optimization, to make sure orders reach customers on time and, if something unexpected happens, you can respond appropriately.

Finally, don't forget to invest in quality packaging that preserves how the food looks, doesn't leak and is sustainable.

Learn more: Free delivery: how to offer it at your restaurant?

Count on EPOC to grow your business

Dark kitchen restaurants have great growth potential, but to get there you need to keep costs low, run at maximum operational efficiency and spot opportunities for improvement.

O EPOC is a solution for restaurants that helps you with all of these processes. With it you can manage your business end to end and analyze data in a simple way to improve sales performance and increase profitability.

To find out how we can help your restaurant, Schedule a free demonstration now.