talabat launches its revolutionary Cloud Kitchen concept in the UAE

• talabat has officially opened its first-ever Cloud Kitchen concept in Abu Dhabi, bringing F&B concepts to life through this revolutionary operating model.
• The kitchen is fully operational and leased to a number of world-famous brands, fitted with the highest standards in tech, food safety and sustainability.
• The kitchen provides a wide range of advantages to restaurant partners, helping them deliver orders quicker, lowering start-up overheads drastically, while making daily operations more agile.

talabat, the leading Middle Eastern food-delivery platform has officially opened its very-first Cloud Kitchen in Abu Dhabi. Spearheaded in conjunction with the Cloud Kitchen team at Delivery Hero, talabat’s German parent company,  the latest venture in the MENA region is set to create opportunities for upcoming F&B concepts to see further growth in talabat-operating markets, servicing both talabat and Zomato customers.

The recently launched kitchen initiated operations earlier this month and is already the home to a number of popular brands such as Dunkin’, Din Tai Fung, Wing Stop, Galito’s & Baskin Robbins as well as local favorites like Malak Al Tawook, Firefly Burgers and Freez, among others. 

Joe Frem, VP of Cloud Kitchens and Concepts at talabat, said: ‘We are thrilled to have opened our first Cloud Kitchen in the region and believe this is a great growth catalyst for our restaurant partners. At talabat, we are always looking at ways to support our restaurant partners growth and the introduction of Cloud Kitchens does just that.

The Cloud Kitchen concept is a delivery-only venture, with no dine-in facility, offering restaurants a cost and time efficient way to fulfill larger order volumes. Also known as ‘dark kitchens’, they also help restaurants reduce overall operation costs usually tied to traditional brick and mortar establishments. This tech-enabled facility reduces delivery time below, allowing customers to receive their orders in under 30 minutes.  

‘The restaurant partners collaborating with us at this specific location first receive an assessment of how their business would perform in the area, based on our deep understanding of the market. The assessment is strictly built on relevant data and insights by our Product & Tech team, indicating the preferred cuisines and showcasing the specific demands of nearby customers.’  

Each partner that currently uses the space is fully equipped with equipment and restaurant staff members, along with state of the art tech systems to fully optimise functions throughout the operation. 

Frem  also added: ‘Safety is of utmost priority at talabat. We have the strictest measures in place throughout every step of the journey: from the moment the order is placed, up until it is prepared, packaged and delivered to customers. We have implemented highly advanced technology such as facial recognition instead of finger scanners, temperature monitoring devices for operating staff, and data loggers to prevent the transmission of COVID.’

Sustainability sits in the core of Cloud Kitchen operations, too. This includes high-tech energy management systems which reduces consumption up to 30%, and digital audits that reduce paper consumption. Partnerships with waste management companies such as Tadweer are also in place to recycle certain resources such as used oil, cartons, and plastic. 

When talking about where the future is headed with Cloud Kitchens, Frem states: “Our journey with Cloud Kitchens by talabat has just begun, and I’m thrilled to see it grow and support the overall F&B ecosystem. Our plan is to significantly grow our network in the UAE and across the MENA region in the years to follow, and have already seen remarkable performance by our participating partners!”