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Last week’s cover story examined the proliferation of “ghost kitchens” across Portland, many of them run by a Miami startup that pledged to find a higher use for downtown parking lots (“Ghosted,” WW, Dec. 14). Reef Technology operated its ghost kitchens out of trailers, with one or two cooks preparing food under as many as seven brand names on apps like Grubhub and Uber Eats. Reef also partnered with existing fast-food giants like Wendy’s to cook their signature combos in trailers. The model appears to be faltering—although a local competitor, Homage Industrial Kitchen, now advertises 76 distinct brands. Here’s what our readers had to say.
pi4breaky, via wweek.com: “This is a great article. I’d always wondered about these businesses. There are several of these carts in Beaverton, stuffed in a tiny area of land occupied by a 777 Station. We always wondered how sushi, burgers, wings and teriyaki were coming from a gas station’s tiny parking lot...
“I’m a little surprised the article doesn’t mention that several restaurants also do this—Thirsty Lion and Red Robin immediately come to mind. I understand the desire for restaurants to do this, especially during the pandemic, but it’s really annoying for the consumer. I don’t like TL or RR food, so I’m certainly not going to order BBQ or hum bao from them, but if you don’t check the address of the place it’s coming from on the delivery service’s website, you’re gonna get Applebee’s sushi.”
Grant Stolle, via Facebook: “It was the wing shops that got me. It seemed like I was getting a variety of wing shop options, at least three, but after digging in, they were all coming from the exact same trailer. And could not have been of lower quality. Can’t wait till they’re all gone.”
Strong_Confection628, via Reddit: “[Sophie] Peel continues to be, in my opinion, the best journalist in town. The lot I park in for work was owned by Reef for a bit, but just switched owners who immediately increased the security and staff. I thought I was crazy when I saw my first Reef kitchen in the wild. I thought why the hell is my parking garage owner expanding into the food cart game? I am not surprised at all they are bleeding money from ghost kitchens. Good riddance!”
Rachel, via wweek.com: “The real issue is that there are not enough restaurants in Portland that are open past 10 pm, which is when a majority of these places are doing business. Don’t complain that this company is taking away business from other restaurants when these restaurants aren’t providing service late at night.”
Kurt Chapman, via wweek.com: “So, apparently, Reef decided to try and prove the business model of Domino’s Pizza—'anyone ordering food delivery after midnight really is too trashed to care about taste.’ And they can’t make a go of it making the counterfeit food items.”
@pdxleif, via Twitter: “I’ve learned to steer clear of ghost kitchens/places I’ve never heard of before when ordering—food usually seems terrible if not an outright lie; e.g., was given a cup of Sprite as ‘hand-squeezed lemonade,’ some nuked fries with a drop of ez-cheese as ‘chili cheeze fries,’ etc.
“Though we have local places doing that kind of thing—e.g., the same kitchen is ‘Bread & Ink,’ ‘The Waffle Window,’ ‘Ja! Pannenkoeken!’ ‘Portland Biscuit Company,’ ‘Mary’s Fried Chicken Sandwiches,’ ‘The Cheesery,’ ‘Portland Poutine,’ and ‘Mas Arepas’—and they’re pretty great.”
Jason Twombley, via Facebook: “A co-worker ordered a burger and fries from Uber Eats from a place I’ve never heard of. With delivery, it cost $40!
“He was adamant it was worth it, and best burger he had ever had.
“Since this place was supposed to be near my home, I Googled it…it’s a ghost kitchen run by Denny’s.…Yeah, he paid $40 for a Denny’s burger and fries.”
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