2nd Kitchen, the startup that enables establishments with no kitchens like pubs or bars to serve food from nearby restaurants, announced today that it has completed a $4.35 million seed round of funding. The round was led by Hyde Park Venture Partners with participation from MATH Venture Partners, Great North Labs, Bragiel Brothers, and M25.
The seed round actually kicked off in February of this year when 2nd Kitchen raised $1.35 million of the round. Here’s how we described the company back then:
It’s expensive for a bar or brewery to add its own kitchen facilities, so 2ndKitchen creates what could almost be considered a virtual food court. It connects a bar (or other business without a kitchen) with restaurants that are within walking or biking distance to curate a menu of items. Customers can order from this mini-menu via kiosks in the kitchenless establishment or a mobile phone app with the food delivered straight to their table.
Since then, 2ndKitchen has added other kitchenless locales like hotels, hospitals and co-working spaces to the place it serves. It’s free for a location to set up, and 2ndKitchen takes care of the menu, payments, and customer support. According to its website, 2ndKitchen charges participating restaurants a commission for orders it generates and restaurants can either make deliveries themselves or work with 2ndKitchen’s “delivery partner network.”
For anyone who’s ever had to cut short a good time at their favorite pub because it didn’t serve food, it’s easy to understand why this is a good idea. For location proprietors like bars, it keeps butts in seats for longer (ideally ordering more drinks) and adds food without needing to add all the expense of adding a kitchen. For restaurants, it’s easy to see some initial pushback in adding yet one more sales channel to its order tablet roster. But if the orders are placed from establishments close by, then it seems like 2ndKitchen could be a boon for restaurants looking to expand their customer base.
In its press release, 2ndKitchen said that it is rapidly expanding across the U.S. and will use the new funds to go after new business categories beyond bars, breweries, and hotels.
