It's interesting to contrast to food trucks that are another method for more profitable places by reducing costs.

Food trucks seem to be pretty popular and work well.

Perhaps the difference is that food trucks are all about establishing a reputation for good cheap food that you can verify where as ghost kitchens wind up being the opposite.

Food trucks are also usually founded by a person with a vision and passion. Someone who wants to do something completely different with their life, a cook who thinks they have what it takes to go out on their own, etc, and that can be something that goes beyond even the reputational incentives.

Certainly not always, but I'd wager far more commonly than a generic ghost kitchen out of a shared kitchen with an Applebee's or out of the back of a cheap warehouse district.

In a food truck I can usually see the person cooking the food as well as the person giving it to me.

I will also eat the food close to the truck, meaning it's very little effort for me to go back and say "oi, this is shit, mate".

In a ghost kitchen you have zero way to actually give feedback to the kitchen itself.

Food trucks seem like they would involve more cost than a "ghost kitchen" and the branding on the truck especially will follow you around. If a ghost kitchen sucks, there is no cost in changing their name and maybe even their menu and continuing their bullshit. But there are real costs in re-branding and vinyling your food truck and food trucks deal with face to face business.