Do Ghost Kitchens Make the Grade for Food Safety?

The growth of ghost kitchens has New York City and other cities looking into their practices. That includes the New York City Council’s Committee on Small Business, which has floated three bills related to regulating ghost kitchens, says Reginald Johnson, chief of staff for Bronx councilmember Mark Gjonaj, who heads the committee. One would require the city’s letter grades to be posted where customers interact with the ghost kitchen, whether online or at a pickup location, Johnson adds. The council also wants clarification from city administrators about how the kitchens are inspected, so health issues can be traced. “If they have several different restaurants operating in the same space, is there one grade for the entire operation or does each individual kitchen get a separate grade?” Johnson says.

Hossein Kasmai, CEO of Combo Kitchen, says that his business model helps solve this issue. The company operates 50 locations in 20 states, partnering with brand-name restaurant chains to license their food and menu in a ghost kitchen operation that runs within various brick-and-mortar restaurants. The physical restaurant can leverage its staff and equipment with the new business from the ghost kitchen, while the virtual kitchen has a low-overhead operation within an existing restaurant, he says. That also unites the inspection and food safety activities because both operations use the same staff, premises, and equipment.

He adds that Combo Kitchen also inspects each location to protect the quality and reputation of the brand-name restaurant chains. “We use recognized brands with an established reputation so we can ensure the quality,” Kasmai says. “And there are regular inspections.”

Many of the independent or shared ghost kitchens are smaller than typical restaurant kitchens, however, and thus require special planning for workflow to avoid contamination, such as keeping raw and cooked food separate, says Paula Herald, PhD, technical consultant for Steritech Group Inc., a food safety assessment company based in Charlotte, N.C. She says that some states allow shared kitchens among several ghost kitchens in the same building, while others don’t, and it’s important for those setting up a kitchen to verify regulations with local inspectors. “Some states require a shared kitchen to have a totally independent water heater, their own walk-in cooler, and their own three-compartment sink to prevent an outbreak of foodborne illness,” she adds.

Dr. Herald says it’s important to guard against cross contamination, especially when it comes to food allergens. She advises ghost kitchens to work with local health inspectors to learn what they can and cannot share, avoid short cuts, and incorporate food safety practices into the work environment. She also recommends that those starting ghost kitchens have contracts with delivery services that assure the cleanliness of vehicles, employ low-touch food transfers, and keep records of when the food leaves a restaurant and when it’s delivered.

While Shaw says she doesn’t expect restaurants as we traditionally know them to go away any time soon, one thing is for certain: Ghost kitchens offer convenience to the consumer, and they’re likely here to stay.