COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Some Central Ohio restaurants struggling with pandemic restrictions and dwindling sales are adding new businesses within their current businesses.
Often called “ghost,” “cloud” or “virtual” kitchens, the concept of professional kitchens set-up for delivery or pickup only options has taken off during the COVID-19 health crisis. When Ohio required traditional restaurants to temporarily suspend indoor dining, some business owners saw an opportunity to adapt the ghost kitchen concept within their existing spaces.
“We created a brand within a brand. It’s mostly virtual and online,” said Tom Dailey, the owner of Zoup! in the Arena District.
The restaurant, typically reliant on tourism and large events, has experienced a steep decline in business during the pandemic.
“The office towers are empty, there’s nothing going on in the sports venues, there are no conventions, the hotels are empty,” he explained.
Despite a bleak economic outlook at the time, Dailey and his partner launched a new venture called Tasty Dawgs. They created the online delivery and pickup-only business, selling gourmet specialty hot dogs using the kitchen space at Zoup!.
“We have employees, we have capacity in our kitchen. So the idea is to leverage what you have,” he said.
Dailey explained adding an additional brand within the existing brand has boosted sales more than 25 percent and allowed him to give his employees more hours. Eventually, he plans to move Tasty Dawgs into its own brick and mortar space. It’s a process he said has been made smoother with the ghost kitchen concept.
“This gives us a chance for the public to get familiar with our brand, to sort of get the menu right, to get our employees trained, to get our equipment in place,” Dailey said. “So when we get our brick and mortar place, we’ll be able to easily transition into that space.”
Dailey, who sits on the Governor’s Restaurant Advisory Board, said recent announcements, like lifting a statewide curfew if hospitalizations trend downward, are an encouraging sign of things getting better. In the meantime, he’s seen many other business owners, including neighboring Arena District restaurants, adopting the ghost kitchen method.
Even after the pandemic subsides, he expects public demand for online ordering, as well as curbside and delivery options, to continue climbing and said the ghost kitchen concept could be here to stay.
