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Who you gonna call for restaurant foods? Ghost Kitchens

Amid restaurant closures and scary times due to COVID-19, anyone can order restaurant foods without fear in midtown, thanks to Ghost Kitchens.

The food service, which also has locations in Mississauga and downtown Toronto, opened in the strip plaza at the southwest corner of Eglinton Avenue West and Oriole Parkway on Oct. 1.

Partners Dhirwesh Kaushik and George Kottas realized the need for their services in midtown Toronto during the coronavirus this past spring, Kaushik said in a phone interview.

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“People [are] not wanting to dine out, but they still want good food,” he said.

They chose their new midtown location because, although there is a lot of foot traffic, it is not quite as busy or chaotic as Yonge and Eglinton. The Oriole Parkway shop has adequate parking for drivers too.

Also there were no other restaurants open in the area in the middle of the night, especially not offering such a variety of menu items.

Ghost Kitchens outside
NO FEAR: Ghost Kitchens at Eglinton Avenue West and Oriole Parkway opened Oct. 1 in the midst of the pandemic.

Ghost Kitchens is a strictly pickup-only food service which carries several popular restaurant brands. Food prices at Ghost Kitchens are the same as you would see if you bought each brand individually from its own restaurant or store.

The place is currently open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with plans to open 24/7 in the near future.

Each brand provides Ghost Kitchens with all of their ingredients and recipes, so the food can be prepared on site and served fresh.

 

Order and take a walk

Each staff member is able to prepare food from each restaurant menu item because they all “go through rigorous training through all these brands,” Kaushik said in a phone interview.

Ghost Kitchens ordering
ORDERING: A customer selects the desired food from a kiosk by the door.

Some of the brands carried by Ghost Kitchens include Quiznos, Cheesecake Factory, Taco Delmar, Cinnabon, Slush Puppy, Venezuelan company Lolas, Canadian Jerk, Crepe Delicious, Monster Cupcake, Rockys Italian, and Ben & Jerry’s, along with a few more “in the pipeline,” such as Jumba Juice and Salad Works.

“We have Bento Sushi coming up and Beyond Meat for people who are vegan,” Kaushik said. “We are covering every kind of taste.”

Once new menu items are in, “we’re going to be preparing a lot of things overnight.”

You can also order foods from Ghost Kitchens through delivery services.

Uber Eats, which first launched in Toronto, approached Kaushik and his partner about delivering for them. This also led to an affiliation with Skip the Dishes and Door Dash, with more delivery companies planned for the future.

Individuals can also order directly at the touch system kiosk located on site, thereby minimizing the need for human contact with staff.

In the kitchen
NO GHOSTS HERE: Behind the scenes at Ghost Kitchens.

“When [customers] order they can put in their phone number, they could take a walk, and we text them when the food is ready to pick up,” Kaushik said.

Ghost Kitchens is taking COVID-19 very seriously.

The store is “cleaned every four hours” and several precautions have been put in place to ensure “minimal involvement of human beings” and maintain physical distancing.

More information is available at www.ghostkitchenbrands.com or by calling 416-440-0001.

One thought on “Who you gonna call for restaurant foods? Ghost Kitchens

  • Gloria and Phil Freedman

    That is a great article and it certainly gives seniors and whoever doesn’t want to go to a grocery store with all the people not taking notice of the government’s warnings about staying 6′ apart and wearing masks. It’s like taking your life into your hands. It’s a very scary time for everyone now, and we have to do things we never did before, so thanks for the invaluable information.

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