We’re living in a dynamic world where things change in the blink of an eye. Slowly technology is becoming an integral part of major industries. Also, many technological changes are carrying forward inventions and trends that are more popular than the previous activities.
One such change that is exciting restaurateurs around the world is the emergence of cloud kitchens. It has changed the dynamics of the food industry and is coming out to be an amazing option in the food market. In this guide, we will cover details about the cloud kitchen and why running a cloud kitchen is better than running a restaurant for some.
What is a Cloud Kitchen?
Cloud kitchen is a central food outlet service that may or may not have a dining area and delivers food as per the orders placed by customers online. It is becoming trendy as people nowadays love to order food online at their doorsteps without stepping out. Here, at a cloud kitchen, tasty food is prepared in a traditional way with utmost hygiene and caution. Customers can easily browse menus from different categories and receive the delivery within the specified time. This effective and quick service pushes customers to come back to the restaurant from time to time.
The concept of a cloud kitchen is very common among people who work during busy office hours, hostel students, paying guests, and those who want to eat at the comfort of their homes without going out. Apart from these segments, it has also simplified the process of transaction that provides ample options for paying like Cash On Delivery, UPI, Bank Transaction, Debit Card, Credit Card, and many more.
Also read: Emerging cloud kitchen market in Saudi Arabia/UAE
Why Running a Cloud Kitchen is Better than Running a Restaurant
Running a cloud kitchen is better than running a full-fledged restaurant or a hotel as it’s cost-effective and easy to maintain. Read on to know a few reasons why running a cloud kitchen is better than running a restaurant.
1. Saves Costs
When it comes to cost-saving and yearly expenditure, cloud kitchen is a clear winner compared to running and maintaining a restaurant. You can reduce costs on various aspects like buying the restaurant space or investing in large premises, maintaining the ambience, power and electricity, dining table and other furniture, waiters and catering staff, expensive cutlery and many more.
Also, you’ll have limited costs of things like kitchen utensils, food preparation staff, cooking ingredients, delivery boys, and other maintenance bills like electricity, gas, and water. So, this is how a cloud kitchen saves more costs as compared to a traditional dine-in restaurant and makes a better option among the two.
2. Eases Expansion
Starting a full-fledged cloud kitchen is not a difficult task as compared to a restaurant. Once you have set up your cloud kitchen, it is very easy to expand your market. You can have a tie-up with different hostels and deliver your food there.
Apart from these expansion opportunities, one can also start delivering at new locations as well as at other cities by opening multiple branches. These opportunities give the cloud kitchen an extra advantage over a restaurant because expanding the brand of your restaurant will cost you a lot.
3. Lowers Overhead Expenditure
A typical diner looks out for many aspects before selecting a restaurant like the food quality, ambience of the restaurant, type of service, and much more. So, dine-in restaurants and hotels spend a large amount of money on overhead costs such as power and lighting, restaurant decoration, theme management, keeping extra staff for emergency conditions, getting additional space for parking of vehicles, and many more. A cloud kitchen on the other hand saves all these overhead costs and keeps them at a minimum that helps you to maximize your profits.
4. Boosts Efficiency
The efficiency of cloud kitchens is more compared to the dine-in restaurants due to various reasons. In traditional dine-in restaurants, eating can become very tedious during busy hours especially on weekends. They may even lose customers due to the rush at the peak hours as they need to wait for a longer time. In a cloud kitchen, the efficiency is much higher as the only focus is on preparing the food and delivering it in time making it more quick, effective, and a better option for the customers to choose during peak hours and on weekends.
5. Competitive Menu Pricing
Cloud kitchens can save a lot of costs and expenditure as compared to restaurants. They can use these savings to invest in their pricing of different cuisines and food items to reduce the competition and earn more by serving food at a comparatively lower price than the price prevailing in the market. Many cloud kitchens at present have started to reduce their prices and offer festive and weekend discounts due to which they are the ultimate winners in the market that catches the eyes of many customers.
Also Read- Virtual Kitchens: the best fit for your restaurant business in 2021.
Conclusion
Cloud kitchen is a technological invention that has truly revolutionized the food industry. Currently, it’s the new normal and has a broad reach due to any future threat of a pandemic.
Since a cloud kitchen is super easy to maintain, it operates at reduced costs and is easy to scale, and is an ultimate choice for the owners. At the same time, the food is delivered on time at comparatively lower prices making it a convenient option for customers & restaurants. Hence, running a cloud kitchen is much better and easier when compared to a restaurant.
To maintain and run your cloud kitchen properly, you absolutely need efficient restaurant management systems like inresto to put you ahead of the curve. inresto also offers products like ‘inresto Online Order’ to boost the reach of your online presence. The SCM feature that simplifies the inventory process or POS, which boosts the food selection and dining experience, are other exciting products. So, invest in inresto and ensure your cloud kitchen runs smoothly today!
