The Next Global Culinary Phenomenon: Canada’s First Virtual Food Hall Is Changing the Delivery Game

As major transformations continue to disrupt the food industry, one emerging shift is stealing media headlines around the globe. Ghost kitchens are springing up in New York, Chicago, Miami, and Los Angeles with great momentum. Now, Toronto joins the ranks with the launch of Kitchen Hub, Canada’s first virtual food hall.

Virtual food halls are strategically located hubs consisting of multiple restaurants that offer delivery and takeout only. It offers restaurants a dedicated turnkey kitchen space with all necessary equipment and is fully optimized for takeout and delivery.

Kitchen Hub will deliver to customers through the most trusted delivery partners including SkipTheDishes – Canada’s leading and largest food delivery network.

“Like most industries, shifts in consumer preferences and behavior are driving rapid innovation in the food category,” said Kitchen Hub CEO and Co-Founder Adam Armeland. “It is abundantly clear that delivery accounts for a staggering percentage of overall food consumption and is growing faster than the in-restaurant category. The question everyone was asking themselves was: How can we address off-premises diners more effectively?”

“We started Kitchen Hub to empower restaurants in the new age of e-commerce to meet demand and reach new customers while never compromising on quality”

 

The answer is ghost kitchens.

“With my experience working in restaurants and with food delivery, I saw firsthand the opportunity that delivery created for restaurants but, there are many hurdles and challenges that come along with it,” said Kitchen Hub Co-Founder and COO Oren Borovitch. “Under the Kitchen Hub model, restaurants can do what they do best, cook great food. We take care of the logistics, operations, infrastructure, and equipment so that restaurants can expand their footprint into high-demand areas quickly and without prohibitive infrastructure costs.”

Today, customers who do not live nearby their favourite restaurant may not be able to benefit from delivery due to radius restrictions set by delivery partners. With centrally located Kitchen Hubs, this barrier is eliminated and popular items like The Carbon Bar are now within reach through SkipTheDishes and other delivery partners.

Kitchen Hub has already caught the attention of major restaurants and notable brands including Pai Northern Thai Kitchen, The Carbon Bar, Blondies Pizza, Kanga Aussie Meat Pies, and The Cheesecake Factory Bakery.

“The Carbon Bar has become a culinary destination in Toronto,” said Yannick Bigourdan, owner of The Carbon Bar. “Our strategic partnership with Kitchen Hub enables us to reach more people while never compromising on the quality that our guests expect from us. The Carbon Bar is now in a position to meet the growing demand that we previously could not meet.”

Borovitch says that the key element is expansion without sacrifice.

“We started Kitchen Hub to empower restaurants in the new age of e-commerce to meet demand and reach new customers while never compromising on quality,” said Borovitch, “With full, restaurant-caliber kitchens and equipment, customers will always receive the same quality product as if they dined at the downtown location. Quality is simply not negotiable if we are to attract more brands like The Carbon Bar who have customers that expect perfection.”

With six unique concepts under one roof, customers can choose to order from one or all of the restaurants, giving them more variety in one order. Kitchen Hub also delivers convenience items including a selection of chips, candy, pop, and other snacks.

Kitchen Hub is located in Etobicoke and is set to be the first of several planned locations across the country.

“Dedicated food delivery as a business model is only going to grow and become a more regular part of people’s lives,” said Armeland. “This is a business that is growing rapidly and exponentially every year and we are proud to be the first in Canada with Kitchen Hub.”

For the next 30 days, order Kitchen Hub on SkipTheDishes from February 7, 2020, to March 7, 2020, with promotional code ‘KitchenHub10’ and receive $10.00 off when you spend $30.00.

Kitchen Hub is available for pick up or delivery through SkipTheDishes, Uber Eats, Ritual, foodora, and DoorDash.

ABOUT KITCHEN HUB

Kitchen Hub is a shared facility which provides dedicated turnkey kitchen space optimized for takeout and delivery. Located in Toronto this virtual food hall is the first of its kind in Canada and will offer a variety of cuisines for off-premise consumption. Customers can order from each individual restaurant or a combined menu made up of some of the city’s most popular restaurants. Kitchen Hub is open daily from 10:00 am – 10:00 pm, with extended hours until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.