Greensboro has a new resource for food-truck owners, caterers and other small-business owners in the food industry. The City Kitch, a commercial, inspected shared-use kitchen is now open at 601 Milner Drive.
It is the third City Kitch, a concept founded by Carrie Hegnauer and owned by Red Hill Ventures. Hegnauer, a former senior culinary instructor at Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte, was looking for a suitable kitchen space for catering and other uses back in 2013 — and not having much luck. That led her to establish the first City Kitch in Charlotte in 2013. A second location, also in Charlotte, opened in 2020.
The Greensboro location held its grand opening March 8. City Kitch offers small food businesses a variety of options to meet their needs. The key being that City Kitch offers a kitchen that meets the government criteria for a safe, inspected production facility.
The 12,000-square-foot space is managed by Victor Palacio, a restaurant veteran who most recently was a manager at Scrambled Southern Diner.
People are also reading…
- These are the least popular dog breeds in America
- Mother and daughter die in early morning mobile home fire in Madison
- Study: Rare, possibly deadly virus found in tick common in North Carolina, Southeast
- Ask a Reporter: If Mark Meadows did something illegal regarding his voting registration, who would be responsible for charging him?
- Looking for a bargain on furniture? This Greensboro nonprofit might have what you’re looking for at its auction.
- 2 adults, 1 juvenile detained in Greensboro bank robbery Wednesday
- A 13-year-old was driving the pickup truck that struck a van in Texas, killing nine people, says NTSB
- Man killed in shooting Saturday marks 10th homicide in Greensboro this year, police say
- Person shot Friday night has died, Greensboro police say
- ‘Still devastated’: Greensboro pastor faces accusers — and judge — over decade-old debt
- Greensboro man identified as victim found dead after car was pushed into river by train
- Greensboro pastor, restaurant owner held without bail over missed court dates connected to unpaid loans
- UPDATE: Police arrest man, 33, after shooting Monday afternoon in Greensboro
- Ask a Reporter: Why can’t I laminate my Social Security card?
- ‘Matter of safety’: Long a problem, Greensboro officials move to raze abandoned homes
A commercial kitchen is a large expense that generally is untenable for a new or very small business, such as a food truck or caterer. Other potential clients are ghost or virtual kitchens — brands that do delivery only and do not have a retail store. Often such food-truck owners and others find a restaurant that is willing to let them rent space for a few hours a week when the restaurant is closed, but those spaces can be hard to find. That has become especially true in recent years with the increased popularity of food trucks, which are typically required to use a commercially inspected kitchen for doing much of their prep work.
Shared-use kitchens such as The City Kitch are designed to fit that niche. The City Kitch in Greensboro has a variety of rental options starting at 30 hours a month of use, said Jen Classic, the company’s director of business development and technology.
It offers shared kitchen space for smaller businesses that have less of a need, as well as 15 private prep suites for more established businesses. The latter are spaces exclusive to one business, so, for example, a chef could leave his knives there and store some food. Private prep suites also can be customized with specific equipment and other items best suited to a particular business. If a particular business needs an overhead hood installed, City Kitch will do that. If someone needs a flattop grill or a deep fryer — or both — City Kitch will provide them. The prep suites range in size from 245 to 525 square feet, Palacio said, and rental prices vary depending on size and equipment.
Business owners have 24/7 access to the private prep suites, which can be rented for six- or 12-month terms.
The City Kitch also offers business consulting and other services. “We provide not only space but also tools and resources so they can grow,” Classic said. “We’re not only eliminating the brick-and-mortar costs of starting a business, but also the ongoing overhead — everything from utilities to pest control. We’re enabling entrepreneurs to start up quickly.”
City Kitch also offers marketing help, advice on permits, and Raise the Grade conducts ServSafe food-safety courses there.
Through the company’s website, members of the public also can request help finding a food truck or personal chef. The website also serves as a group ordering site for takeout, allowing people to place joint orders from multiple clients of City Kitch — what Classic called “a virtual food hall.”
“We have an online ordering platform that enables customers to browse different menus from restaurants that are operating in the facility,” Classic said. “You can select different items from several businesses. Then there is one checkout.”
City Kitch already has about a dozen clients in Greensboro, including Empanada Grill, Flossie Anne’s, Chef Soup, Dessert du Jour, Taco Bros and Steven’s Banh Mi.
Rosa Melendez just started her food truck and to-go business, Empanada Grill, making homemade empanadas, street tacos and other foods. She researched kitchen space for a year before deciding on City Kitch.
“There just wasn’t a lot out there that could accommodate me — that had everything I needed,” she said.
Wendy Dobson owns Dessert du Jour, which makes cakes to order and sells a variety of baked goods at the Corner Farmers Market. Dobson was ready to start her business last spring but waited till City Kitch opened.
“I couldn’t bake in my home because I have pets. I looked at churches and other places, but I couldn’t really find a good place, especially a place where I wouldn’t have to schlep all my stuff back and forth,” she said.
“I like that everything’s included. They have paper towels and cleaning supplies. I also love that I can come in anytime I want,” she said. “Sometimes I’m here baking till 11 at night.”
Nakia Harris, the owner of Flossie Anne’s, said that City Kitch has allowed her to pivot from being just a caterer to allow having a ghost kitchen for takeout, something she wasn’t able to do before. The church kitchen she used to use “had basic equipment but nothing like this,” she said. “I can do so much more.”
John Drees, the former owner of the now-closed Southern Lights Bistro, runs his new business, Chef Soup, out of City Kitch, making soups and stews to sell at the Corner Farmers Market.
“I like that everything’s included; it’s all one payment,” he said. “This is a chance for me to start something new and not have to be responsible for all of the facilities. They have state-of-the-art equipment in a wonderful facility. I can focus on doing what I really love, which is making great soup.”
Contact Michael Hastings at 336-727-7394 or [email protected].
Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!