Celebrity chef Guy Fieri with the spiky-haired Food Network is rapidly delivering a new restaurant chain that adopts the “ghost kitchen” concept instead of a static brick and mortar seat.
Fieri’s Flavortown kitchens are operated from existing brick-and-mortar kitchens. The new chain has several stores in 24 states, with most locations starting in late January or early February.
Flavortown is partnering with Robert Earl, the founder of Planet Hollywood, in a company called Virtual Dining Concepts (VDC), a company that trades in virtual kitchens to help existing restaurants earn extra revenue from concepts developed by well-known brands are manufactured.
The Flavortown establishments have 18 stores in California, all of which are connected to the existing Buca di Beppo, Bertucci’s, Brio and other concepts related to Earl’s business.
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Flavortowns in California are in Brea, Campbell, Claremont, Carlsbad, Encino, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Pasadena, Rancho Cucamonga, Redondo Beach, Roseville, Universal City, Santa Clarita, Thousand Oaks, and two in San Diego.
The menu contains donkey sauce that is available, and there are only 19 items available. Fieri’s Flavortown has dishes like Bourbon Brown Sugar Barbecue Wings for $ 13.99, Jalapeno Pig Poppers for $ 12.99, the “Chicken Guy!” classic for $ 11.99, and Bacon Mac ‘n’ Cheese Burger for $ 12.99.
Fieri is best known for its Food Network performances Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives and Guy’s Grocery Games. He has built an empire that includes his name on 14 other brands around the world.
Food can be ordered through the Flavortown Kitchen website or through most delivery services, including DoorDash, UberEats, Postmates and Grubhub.
The haunted kitchens, sometimes virtual brands or delivery concepts, are fueled by the shutdown of the indoor dining room and limited outdoor options.
Market research firm Euromonitor estimates that by 2030 it could be a $ 1 billion venture.
The haunted kitchen concept has already spawned several companies, including CloudKitchens, which was started by former Uber founder and CEO Travis Kalanick.