Ghost kitchen restaurants, also known as virtual kitchens, cloud kitchens, or dark kitchens, are food-service establishments that operate without a traditional dining space for customers. Instead, they focus solely on fulfilling delivery and pickup orders through online platforms. These kitchens often operate multiple virtual restaurant brands in the same physical location, allowing for greater efficiency and flexibility. Ghost kitchens have gained popularity due to their lower operating costs, ability to quickly test new concepts, and the increasing need for delivery services.

Unlike a traditional dine-in restaurant, a dark kitchen restaurant takes orders (usually through an app or online service), prepares them, and a delivery driver brings the finished orders to customers.

Thanks to their comparatively low operating costs, dark kitchens have the potential to generate enormous profits. The profitability of a dark kitchen depends on several factors, such as location, branding and the operating systems used.