Food delivery apps ?and how they fare in our city

Food delivery apps have made it easy to order food from home or office. Bengaluru has a number of options to choose from: Swiggy, Food Panda, Zomato, and the latest, Uber Eats. Many restaurants have tied up with one or more of these services.

Swiggy

The most popular among the apps, it collaborates with both high-end and pocket-friendly eateries in the city. It delivers to places within 5 km. When you log in, it presents a choice of eateries in your vicinity, with approximate delivery time.

Swiggy collects between 24 and 28 per cent from the restaurant on the total billing, and Rs 30 from customers (plus tax) on orders of less than Rs 250. Delivery is free for orders above Rs 250.

Rahul Korgaokar, CEO of Shilton Hospitality, says, "We get visibility on the app's database and can deliver to people who can't make it. Swiggy helps us realise this revenue."

Restaurateurs have the option of turning off Swiggy when they have too many orders. "But due to their market leader status, things become overbearing when they insist we remain open during our busy periods or risk de-listing," he says.

Though the number of delivery executives is high, during peak hours and holidays, they can become scarce.

Uber Eats

The new service collects a delivery fee of just a rupee, but that's a promotional offer. It is also offering breakfast and lunch combos for less than Rs 100.

One drawback is that it only accepts PayTM. It has no cash on delivery or net banking options. It does have an 'enter your card details' option, but as soon as you do that, it saves the details and removes them simultaneously. In short, card payment is not an option yet. The customer care service also takes a while to respond.

Rahul Khanna of Azure Hospitality says, "Uber Eats is one of the most used apps today. They sit on an active database of millennials and centennials hooked to the Internet, and they are the easiest to convert. Naturally, a sensible market wouldn't refuse that."

Food Panda

Food Panda has a modest delivery force, which means you may have to wait longer for your order to arrive when you choose this app. Delivery charges depend on the location.

Zomato

This is largely a restaurant information app, so you find almost all restaurants, big or small, listed here. You also have pictures of the menu, food and restaurant decor.

The app offers delivery as an add-on service. Charges vary from restaurant to restaurant. While some eateries have no minimum order, others require a minimum order of Rs 99.

Customer service for Zomato delivery isn't great; it mostly directs you to the restaurant. It does not show any delivery charges.

What restaurants pay

The restaurants are charged 24 to 28 per cent on the overall bill by Swiggy, while Uber Eats charges them 30 to 33 percent. The delivery rates for Swiggy depend on the area and the type of restaurant. Customers pay a delivery charge of Rs 40 on orders of less than Rs 250.

Diner's view

Shyam Rao, a regular user of delivery apps, says, "Not all delivery services are well-organised. They start off okay but then have problems. I feel there isn't enough commitment from the restaurants to fulfil all online orders."