Diners say this restaurant in a Fort Worth ghost kitchen is a ‘hidden gem’
The 10,000-square-foot, orange brick building on Cullen Street near North University Drive close to the Trinity River might not look like a restaurant, but it’s actually made up of more than a dozen of them.
Fort Worth Food Works is made up of 13 individual ghost kitchens fit for food takeout and delivery.
Uber founder Travis Kalanick created CloudKitchens with a goal to create a space that helps businesses evolve and cater to the ever-growing food-delivery landscape. CloudKitchens operates more than 90 commercial ghost kitchens across the U.S. and Canada. One of them is Fort Worth Food Works.
“Ghost kitchens are designed to provide a more accessible and flexible path into the restaurant industry,” a CloudKitchens spokesperson told the Star-Telegram. “For emerging brands, they offer a lower-cost way to launch and test concepts without the significant overhead associated with a traditional brick-and-mortar restaurant.”
For already existing restaurants, this space can also serve as a separate kitchen to operate delivery and catering orders. The spokesperson said the ghost kitchen model allows businesses to focus on food production and delivery efficiency while reducing the front-of-house staffing demands that a typical restaurant would need.
Why operate out of a ghost kitchen instead of a brick-and-mortar restaurant?
The 23- and 24-year-old Thapa sisters operate Rolling Gyro out of the Fort Worth Food Works ghost kitchen. They both worked as servers throughout college and wanted to start their own restaurant.
But, starting a full-scale restaurant takes a lot of money.
So they started by taking a small bite with a ghost kitchen, with hopes to open a restaurant in the future.
“Our food is inspired by Mediterranean [food],” Nisha Thapa told the Star-Telegram. “We have rice bowls and salads, with chicken and gyro meat.”
They spent five months testing out their recipes and sauces before the two opened out of Fort Worth Food Works in February. It is only the two of them on the Rolling Gyro team.
Nisha is still trying to spread the word that they are now open daily out of the ghost kitchen. The restaurant has been mentioned on the Fort Worth Foodie Facebook group as a “hidden gem that deserves more love and attention.”
Fort Worth Food Works ghost kitchen
When you roll up to 3004 Cullen St., look for an orange brick building with a black and white sign labeled “Fort Worth Food Works.”
There are 13 restaurants to choose from:
- Rolling Gyro: Mediterranean-inspired rice bowls, salads and pita wrapped gyros
- Bowls of Rice: healthy, Asian rice bowls
- Lagos Kitchen: Nigerian and African cuisine
- Empanadas-Arepas 3F: gluten-free empanadas and arepas made from scratch
- Snappy Salads: healthy salads and wraps
- Bunch of Dumplings: Asian fusion rice bowl and dumplings
- Dos Hermanos: classic Mexican
- International Mandal Kitchen: mix of international cuisines – Indian, Mexican and Chinese options
- The BurgerDudes: gourmet burgers and loaded fries
- RocknRollingTaquitos: taquitos, chips, queso or salsa
- Los Grifos: Mexican cuisine with tacos, flautas and burritos
- 55 Below Rice Bowls, Noodles and More: cajun, Mexican and Asian inspired bowls and salads
- The Jamaican Mobile Kitchen: Jerk chicken and wings and Jamaican sides
There are two ways to order. You can order through Fort Worth Food Works’ website for pickup or delivery. Or, when you arrive at their building, you can order at one of the kiosks in the lobby.
When the food is ready, you simply scan your order receipt to open a locker which will have your designated order. There is typically a desk clerk at the front if you have any questions.