Ghost In The Kitchen
It was a trend that was born before COVID, but it took a pandemic to send it into orbit. After all, restaurants were off-limits for in-store dining in many cities and states, and delivery was the only option. It gave restaurants time to experiment with other menu items and even completely different restaurant concepts.
All without doing a thing, other than listing them on delivery apps. I’m talking about the virtual brands that many large chains own, but you don’t know about. You probably won’t find them in the phone book (although they may have a website), and you certainly won’t see any signs on poles or buildings. They exist only in the digital realm.
Certain types of foods—pizza, burgers, and wings—work well in the virtual world, because they travel well. Thus, they are the most common items you will find available on delivery apps. If you have a craving for meat loaf and mashed potatoes, you might just be out of luck.
Here’s how it works. Virtual brands rely on ghost kitchens, which really aren’t ghostly at all, but are located inside the same space as the kitchen in a brick-and-mortar restaurant. Think of it as double- or triple-dipping if you will, but it gives a lot of freedom to chains not only to test new items, but also reach out to different target markets.
Case in point: Would you ever go to Chuck E. Cheese for dinner without little kids? Of course not. That’s almost like punishment for being parents. But their ghost kitchen also does business as Pasqually’s Pizza and Wings. That sounds a lot more appealing, doesn’t it?
Denny's is the latest to double down on virtual brands. While they already have The Burger Den and The Meltdown, they are adding Banda Burrito and Franklin Junction. Who wants to go to Denny’s? Anybody? OK, let’s order out from Banda and watch clips of the Rangers putting it to the D-backs last night. Burritos can travel well, too.
See what I mean? At a time when some restaurants are struggling, and especially during certain dayparts, virtual brands open up a lot of new opportunities. Factor in rising labor costs, like in California, and this begins to make a lot of sense.
In some regards this is not much different from major consumer packaged goods manufacturers selling off unutilized capacity to make private label goods for others. In this case, though, the private label is their own, and they are making good use of their kitchen facilities.
I know what you’re thinking. Is it possible that the food available in a virtual brand might be the same thing served in the OG chain? You bet. It could very well be the same burgers, wings, and pizza. But it may also be variants or completely new twists on products, yet are still compatible with the workflow of the kitchen. And, if one of those works well in the virtual world, it could easily be added to the other menu.
None of this would be possible were it not for mobile apps and third-party delivery. While it may hypothetically have been possible for a pizza joint to create a virtual brand and do their own delivery, I can only imagine the hassle of having to change the magnetic signs atop the delivery vehicles, depending on what you were delivering.Partnering with DoorDash and Uber Eats maintains the anonymity.
Which brings up another issue. Is it disingenuous for a chain to masquerade as another brand? Chains are not being fully transparent about this, but then again, these virtual brands may also be the worst-kept secrets in town. They don’t seem to mind talking about it, and haven’t tried to stop news articles from explaining the practice.
An online review for Pasqually’s made me laugh out loud: “Upon further research, I apparently ordered pizza from Chuck E Cheese.” Ha ha ha!
I’m good with all this, though. It’s a win-win for everyone, and, if you really like what you got from Pasqually’s Pizza and Wings, it demonstrates the perceptual power of a brand. Chuck E. Cheese may have been repulsive, but a rose by any other name is…well, Pasqually, I suppose, in this case. And suddenly it’s OK. Then again, maybe not.
Suddenly a burrito sounds pretty good. Make that a breakfast burrito, but by my own hand. Sorry, Denny’s. I can’t wait. I’m hungry now.
Dr “Load It Up” Gerlich
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