The hype surrounding "ghost kitchens" has faded, leaving a struggling business model.

Ghost kitchens are the one food delivery trend that hasn't gained popularity in 2024.

The ghost kitchen industry, which was once a pandemic darling and raised more than $3 billion in venture funding, is falling short of lofty expectations. Euromonitor International estimated that the ghost kitchen industry could reach a market size of $1 trillion by 2030. However, the impact of ghost kitchens was overestimated, and we see that today with the decline in ghost kitchens. Consumers complained about the clandestine nature of ghost kitchens, and food delivery apps shuttered thousands of the virtual kitchens. Then consumers shifted back to brick-and-mortar restaurants in droves, forcing investor pullback and mass closures of ghost kitchens. Now, the smaller businesses left in the industry are pivoting to a new business model to survive. Some hope to diversify the food business to expand to events and catering, not just delivery. One such business is New York City-based Nimbus Kitchen, a co-cooking space hoping to shed the negative connotation of ghost kitchens. Shared kitchens and co-cooking infrastructure like Nimbus are here to stay, and the future of the industry is catering towards not only delivery concepts but also all kinds of

The video discusses the rise, fall, and future of ghost kitchens and whether the business can adapt to regain its pandemic peak.