Finding a spot offering different food takeout options under one roof has gotten easier in Richmond.
Mod Kitchen, short for modular kitchen, recently opened with seven separate food businesses operating out of an industrial building on Horseshoe Way tucked just south of Ironwood Plaza and west of the Richmond RCMP headquarters.
The co-founders of Mod Kitchen Tony Ferreira, Dennis Ng, Adrian Leung, and Tony Lau wanted to provide a streamlined way of offering food in a takeout fashion, while helping business owners who don't want to sign expensive restaurant leases.
“Restaurants are already a really thin-margin type of business, and on top of that, salaries and the minimum wage is getting higher, you're really left with pretty much nothing at the end of the day. So we thought, 'why not do an online food hub?'" explained Ferreira.
He said this model allows new entrepreneurs to try out their restaurant ideas without having to invest a lot of capital, as they share the rent with other businesses and need a much smaller team. It is also an option for experienced restaurant owners who are looking to downsize.
Initially, Ng added, they were undecided on pursuing a commissary kitchen, where vendors share the space and equipment, or to have more private spaces.
"We had the space almost three years ago, but we weren't sure how we wanted to proceed with it. We just wanted to do something different from everybody else," said Ng.
Mod Kitchen features 10 private closed-door kitchen spaces, each equipped with necessary culinary equipment tailored to different food vendors, something Ferreira and Ng described as "an upgrade from commissary kitchens."
The general space also includes an open kitchen area in the front, an industrial-sized washing area in the back as well as a large fridge and cooler for vendor use.
Seven businesses have already started working out of Mod Kitchen, with two businesses in the process of signing their lease and getting their permits, while one kitchen remains available for rent.
Both said this allows vendors not to worry about cross-contamination of food, as each food business serves a variety of dietary needs, such as their Halal vendor.
Community building among vendors
WowGrill owner Abdou Harchane, one of Mod Kitchen's first vendors, said the space was purely empty and a dirt ground when he first visited the site.
"There was just an empty warehouse, but I pictured in my mind how it's going to be," said Harchane.
He told the Richmond News he was looking for a private kitchen after moving to Richmond from Saskatchewan in 2019 and came across Mod Kitchen.
"Dennis and Tony are helpful, they're willing to improve anything for us, and they help everyone try to bring more business for us. I feel like it's kind of fun," said Harchane.
Another Mod Kitchen vendor, BBQ & Co., offers Cantonese-style barbecue like roasted duck and pork.
Managing director Delap Lui and culinary director Guan of BBQ & Co. described their space inside Mod Kitchen as a community.
"We have our own space to create dishes for people, but at the same time, every business owner here helps each other out when they can," said Lui.
Both Ferreira and Ng added that there is "a very good synergy" between all the vendors, where each business asks for feedback on new menu items.
"There's just so much collaboration going on between owners, and it's great to be able to be a part of this," said Ferreira.
Exploring the takeout industry
Mod Kitchen co-owners Ferreira and Ng met in high school while attending Burnett secondary and have since stayed in touch even after graduating.
Ferreira is an experienced chef and restaurant operator who spent the past few years in Hong Kong, while Ng has a background in real estate and finance.
The two said the concept of an "online food hub" was created some time ago, and when the pandemic hit, they saw a change in many people's dining habits — food delivery.
Ng said he and his family spent a lot ordering out and tend not to want to cook.
"Once you kind of get into that takeout game, you won't really want to go back to driving 20 minutes to pick up a bag of food," he said.
"The takeout industry was definitely taking off, and we saw an opportunity in it."
They told the News that the starting cost for each kitchen is $35,000, with $6,000 to $6,500 monthly rent and operational costs that include the required hand washing station, grease traps, utilities, a commercial-grade kitchen vent, WiFi, and the joint online ordering system.
"We fully customize the kitchens for our vendors, something I don't think is done across North America," said Ferreira, adding they help source the equipment for vendors when needed.
This option, he added, allows Mod Kitchen to have a variety of vendors under one roof, from burgers to ramen to Chinese post-partum meals and ice cream.
"Our hopes and aspirations are to keep building these Mod kitchens into different municipalities."
Ordering system
Customers can order from Mod Kitchen's website, which integrates all seven businesses' menus for a one-stop shop.
Once orders are ready, a text message is sent out, and customers enter the building and pick up their food from a staff member at the front desk window.
The pick-up area offers a wide view of an open kitchen area as well as the hallway with various red doors that lead to each food vendor.
Mod Kitchen also offers on-site ordering through a tablet at the front desk and when their food is ready, a large screen from the window shows they can enter to pick up their food so they don't have to stand around inside.
While Mod Kitchen soft-opened and held an open house in mid-March to give the community a "behind the scenes" perspective of what they do, their grand opening is scheduled for June, with Ng and Ferreira hinting at a block party for the event.
With files from Daisy Xiong
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