As more people order food to eat at home, and as delivery becomes faster and more convenient, the apps are changing the very essence of what it means to operate a restaurant.
No longer must restaurateurs rent space for a dining room. All they need is a kitchen — or even just part of one.
— The New York Times
Food delivery apps like Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub are reshaping the $863 billion restaurant industry in the United States, according to The New York Times, as delivery-only "virtual restaurants" take off.
The New York Times reports that over 4,000 virtual restaurants and "ghost kitchens" have sprung up across the country since 2017.
4 Comments
Not just the restaurant industry, but also the urban experience. F&B was the last bastion of retail districts as traditional retail is slowly dying out. With the ghost kitchens, lots of restaurants are also closing down rapidly.
I don't buy it, not for a minute.
Delivery is gross. Messy, rarely hot (or cold, if that was the point), expensive (just wait til the incentives wear off and you're stuck with a delivery fee and tip), with packaging waste that is excessive. Take-out is only marginally better.
NYT today: No Longer Savoring The Grubhub Effect
yesterday: Restaurant owners say Grubhub’s business model has cut into their profit margins. A New York City Council committee is investigating.
July 21: My Frantic Life as a Cab-Dodging, Tip-Chasing Food App Deliveryman
Our reporter spent 27 hours as a rider for food-delivery apps. Two-thirds of his customers did not tip.
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