CLOUD KITCHENS

Ghost kitchens, also known as cloud kitchens or virtual restaurants, are eating facilities that do not provide guests with a seating area. Instead, they act as back-of-house kitchens for restaurants that specialize in preparing food and drinks for delivery. Over the last year, an increasing number of people have chosen meal delivery, frequently because they have no other option. Ghost kitchens have grown in popularity as a way for restaurateurs all around the world to save money and streamline operations.

Points to keep in mind while opening cloud kitchens:

1. Location
2. Technology to accept orders
3. Licenses
4. Cost of setting up the kitchen
5. Staffing
6. Staff Uniform
7. Select a POS software
8. Mobile Phones And Other Miscellaneous Items
9. Proper marketing and advertisement
10. Equipment

Location:

The location in the cloud kitchen concept has nothing to do with foot traffic, parking space, or a high-end site. However, with low rents, it has a lot to do with appropriate sanitation and water supply.
In addition, the site should be picked based on the demographics of your target market and the type of cuisine you’re offering. The cloud kitchen should be located somewhere where the food will be serving is in high demand.

Technology to accept orders

Swiggy, Zomato, Foodpanda, and other online ordering and delivery systems will accept online orders on your behalf and deliver the food to your clients. These businesses typically take 18-30% of your revenue per order. For some Food-Tech companies, there is also a one-time integration cost. A website with the opportunity to purchase food online is a necessary for a cloud kitchen because it relies primarily on its internet presence to attract clients.

Licenses

Setting up a restaurant necessitates the acquisition of a licence. For a hassle-free business, a few permits are required to be obtained within the first month of operations. FSSAI licences, GST registrations, municipal health trade licences, fire licences, and so on are examples. It is recommended that you engage an agency to apply for all permissions because it is the most time consuming and laborious procedure. Aside from that, the remainder of the permissions will set you back roughly Rs 10,000. (if the FSSAI licence is applied for one year)

Cost of setting up the kitchen

The cost of setting up the kitchen will vary depending upon the cuisine and food you are offering. 

If you spend wisely on equipment by procuring new electronic items and old equipment such as tables, racks, and storing shelves, you can save up a lot of money. The cost can go up because of the heavy equipment like a chimney, deep refrigerators, and burners. If you are planning to run multiple brands from the same kitchen, you can leverage the same kitchen equipment and resources for multiple brands. This would help you save up on the equipment cost.

Raw materials required to start the cloud kitchen operations depend on the type of food you’re offering It is important to choose the right vendors at this stage for the raw materials. You should allocate an extra budget for packaging as it plays a crucial role in creating a brand recall for the customers. The packaging must be sturdy to preserve the quality of the food during the delivery. Since you are no longer able to provide a physical guest experience, packaging should leave a good impression on the minds of the customer. Ensure that the packaging contains your restaurant’s logo and reflects the theme and concept of your restaurant.

Staffing:

The secret sauce behind a successful restaurant is the team that works for it, with the Chef being the most important member of the team because they not only make the food but also assist in menu planning. A minimum of five personnel is necessary in an online kitchen. At least two chefs, two helpers, and one housekeeper are required. The pay of employees is determined by their level of experience.
Chefs at Commis level 1 earn between Rs 14000 and Rs 15000 on average, while helpers and other workers earn between Rs 6000 and Rs 8000 depending on their job. Two people at the delivery counter and one at the counter for receiving online and telephonic orders are required in addition to the cooking crew. In this case, we also consider partnering with third-party delivery providers that function on a per-order basis.

Staff Uniform:

it is recommended to have a dress code for maintaining discipline, cleanliness, and hygiene. Also, provide your cloud kitchen staff with essential hygiene and safety standards equipment such as masks, hair caps, and gloves. 

Select a POS software:

The entire online food ordering and delivery system are heavily dependent on the proper acceptance of food orders. It is also essential to keep track of the number of orders incoming from the various online ordering platforms. Tracking of orders and detailed reporting is essential for the smooth functioning of restaurants. Select a POS that is customized to suit the requirements of the online ordering website. The one we recommend is our very own POSist software, which is hardware-independent and completely browser-based. You can use any web-enabled device such as a computer, laptop, tablet, or even your mobile to generate the bills. 

Mobile Phones And Other Miscellaneous Items:

An online kitchen requires a board line, mobile phones, high-speed internet, stationery, small counters, and chairs. Apart from that, you can also get a Cloud Telephony subscription that ensures that no call gets missed. You can also record the call for training purposes.

Proper marketing and advertisement:

Proper marketing and advertisement are essential to the success of a restaurant. For a cloud kitchen, marketing becomes even more necessary as it becomes the single source of getting orders. Since you are not spending on location and other maintenance costs, you can keep a sum aside for marketing. Online marketing works in favor of cloud kitchens quite well. The first thing you need to do is to get your restaurant registered on restaurant listing and review sites such as Zomato, Tripadvisor, Burrp, etc., and encourage positive reviews from your regulars. You can also try Facebook for advertising exclusive deals and discounts.

Equipment:

Cloud kitchens, also known as dark kitchens, virtual restaurants, ghost kitchens, and delivery-only restaurants, operate entirely from the backend. While this model saves substantial front-end costs but significant investment goes into equipping the right types of kitchen equipment.