TikTok is entering the restaurant business—sort of. The video-sharing platform has announced its intention to launch delivery-only TikTok Kitchen locations across the US.
As Bloomberg reports, partner Virtual Dining Concepts (VDC) will create a menu “inspired by the [social network’s] hottest food trends,” which can be reproduced in a range of kitchens with minimal training.
It’s unclear exactly what that menu will include, but you can expect recent favorites like baked feta pasta—one of Google’s most-search foods in 2021—and quarterly changes. Bloomberg also tipped pasta chips (cooked pasta shapes covered in cheese and air fried), a smash burger, and corn ribs (sections of corn coated in spices and Parmesan). The first 300 restaurants will open in March, with a total of 1,000 locations expected to be delivering food by the end of 2022.
Among the eateries set to operate a TikTok Kitchen are national chains owned by VDC co-founder Robert Earl, including Buca di Beppo and Bertucci’s. Delivery is handled by Grubhub, and prices, according to Earl, will be “comparable” to other Virtual Dining Concept brands. A burger from YouTube star Jimmy Donaldson’s MrBeast delivery-only restaurant starts at $6.99.
In a statement published by TechCrunch, TikTok promised to return profits to dish creators (who will receive credit on the menu) and support culinary talents on the platform “in keeping with TikTok’s mission to inspire creativity and bring joy to users.”
TikTok Kitchen aims to bring popular food to fans, but the company did not reveal how long its “campaign” will run, how viral meal authorship will be determined, or even what revenue it expects to collect.
Neither TikTok nor Virtual Dining Concepts immediately responded to PCMag’s request for comment.
