LOS ANGELES — The first kitchen center opened through a partnership between Kroger Co. and Kitchen United debuted Wednesday at a Ralphs grocery store in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles.

The kitchen center will enable customers to order freshly prepared, on-demand meals from participating restaurants, and pick them up at the Ralphs store or have them delivered. The orders are placed digitally using Kitchen United’s proprietary MIX platform via web, mobile, or an in-person ordering kiosk.

A Kitchen United MIX opened in Ralphs Westwood store.

“When our customers think of food, they think of Kroger,” said Dan De La Rosa, group vice president of fresh merchandising at Kroger. “The Kitchen United collaboration provides the fresh, on-demand meals our customers crave. It is one more innovative example of how Kroger is fulfilling its commitment to anything, anywhere, anytime.”

The Los Angeles location is the first of the Kroger-Kitchen United collaboration. Additional locations in Texas are anticipated to open later in the month.

“We couldn’t be prouder that Kroger and Kitchen United chose to open the collaboration’s first location in Ralphs,” said Kendra Doyel, vice president for merchandising at Ralphs. “Our customers come to us to find the freshest food and to answer the all-important ‘what’s for dinner?’ question. This collaboration provides our customers one more simple meal solution that they can pair with Ralphs’ fresh products.”

The off-premise restaurant kitchen is the first to open after Ralphs’ parent company Kroger and Kitchen United announced its national partnership in August 2021. This innovative approach brings fresh, restaurant-quality meals directly to Ralphs shoppers.

“We proudly operate successful ghost kitchens across the country and will apply that expertise to reimagine takeout and delivery within Kroger stores,” said Michael Montagano, Chief Executive Officer of Kitchen United. “Our work together provides millions of Kroger customers access to their favorite restaurant cuisines in a convenient supermarket format, while providing Kitchen United and our restaurant partners a high-touch, interactive storefront. We are excited to bring this creative solution to the Westwood community.”

The off-premise restaurant kitchen is located in the Westwood Ralphs at 10861 Weyburn Avenue, Los Angeles, Calif. 90024. Shoppers can choose to mix and match their meals from Fresh Brothers, Bushi by Jinya, Sajj Mediterranean, Doghaus and more. Customers can place their orders from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., 7 days a week. For a complete list of restaurants, hours and ordering information, please click here.

“We first partnered with Kitchen United MIX in Pasadena,” said Geoff Goodman, CEO of Fresh Brothers. “Their operations team is wonderful to work with and their collaboration with Kroger so ground-breaking, we jumped at the opportunity to be part of this innovative offering in the heart of Bruin country. With UCLA just steps away, along with strong residential, office and healthcare audiences, we felt this would be an ideal fit for our brand. We’re very excited to be part of the Westwood Village community.”