The Latest News
Zuul Lands $9M to Expand Ghost Kitchens Across NYC
New York-based ghost kitchen operator, Zuul Kitchens, has secured $9 million in fresh funding to expand its ghost-kitchen operation throughout New York City. Zuul opened its first multi-tenant kitchen facility in 2019 and temporarily closed it at the start of the...
Domino’s, Wingstop Show Again: ‘You Want to Be in Delivery’
As two off-premises giants have already demonstrated, whether it’s internal or third-party, delivery is the place to be during the volatile COVID-19 pandemic. The two companies showed some exceptional results in their respective second-quarter earnings. Domino’s...
FreshDirect Now Delivering Groceries in D.C.
FreshDirect, an online grocery delivery provider based in New York City, is expanding southward along the Acela corridor into the Washington, D.C. metro area through a partnership with micro-fulfillment brand Fabric. Launching in late 2020, this will enable two-hour,...
Kiwibot Expansion Marks New B2B Integrations
Kiwibot, one of the handful of companies expanding autonomous delivery options via adorable coolers on wheels, is moving into San Jose, California. Unlike prior expansions that pushed bots onto college and corporate campuses, this new operational arm extends further...
Ghost Kitchens at the Top of the World
Ghost kitchens don’t exactly conjure up the sexy, flashy image of the best restaurants in the world. These multi-tenant, delivery-focused spaces are often built in non-desirable real estate, with the priority on access for delivery drivers and affordable rent to make...
Food On Demand Topics
Finance
Grubhub Reports Shaky Growth Going into JET Transaction
Grubhub (NYSE: GRUB) reported strong second-quarter results and gave a few updates on the Just Eat Takeaway.com (JET) transaction. The company released the results without an earnings call as the company has chosen not to hold calls until the close of the JET...
Research
Target Goes National with Grocery Pickup Rollout
Target is diving deeper into online groceries with news that the Minneapolis-based retailer is bringing its fresh grocery pickup service national after successful pilots in the Twin Cities and Kansas City markets. Starting last week, Target’s expanded in-store order...
The Deliverers
Chowbus Nabs Eight-Figure Investment for Asian Food Delivery
Now that meal delivery has expanded far beyond the urban markets that fueled the industry’s growth the last decade, some delivery providers are differentiating themselves with a more selective roster of restaurants. First came Slice, which focuses exclusively on pizza...
Best Practices
What are your peers doing in delivery? Get some of the best practices out there.
Worldly Ghost Delivery Startup Launches in Boise
Boise might not have a reputation for world-class dining or cutting-edge technology, but Crave Delivery looks to change that mindset. In a confluence of fine dining, new delivery trends and new restaurant operational models, the company just launched in Boise and two...
FOD Briefs
Lyft, &pizza Pair Up on Late-Night Employee Rides
Lyft and &pizza, the tech-savvy fast-casual East Coat pizza brand, announced a new partnership to bring &pizza employees in Washington, D.C. a reliable late-night transit option. This isn’t exactly news in the off-premises world, but is another step forward in...
Grubhub, Just Salad Partner on Virtual Restaurant
Another week brings yet another example of a third-party delivery company partnering with a restaurant to launch a new virtual restaurant. This latest is New York City-based Just Salad partnering with Grubhub to launch Health Tribes, a digital-only concept that...
Delivery Bots ‘Paused’ After Accessibility Incident
Stuck because a robot won’t move out of the way might sound like a dumb episode of “Black Mirror,” but that was the reality for a doctoral student on the University of Pittsburgh campus. Emily Ackerman, a chemical engineering student who uses a wheelchair, said she...
Uber Buys Chilean Online Grocery Provider
Uber is getting into the online grocery business, which is increasingly being bundled into the same ecosystem as third-party restaurant delivery. In acquiring majority ownership of online grocer Cornershop, Uber will now have a toehold in Chile, Mexico, Peru and...
Ordermark Partners-Up for Social Media Ordering
The idea of ordering food via social media is gaining more and more traction as messaging platforms gobble up our lives. Huge numbers of consumers live their life on some messaging app or another, be it Slack, Messenger or whatever. Ordermark is sliding right in via a...
Grubhub Announces ‘Perks,’ Adding Offers, Loyalty
Grubhub this week announced new functionality dubbed “perks.” The new in-app feature means new options for diners and restaurant owners to better tailor the experience and potentially entice diners to order from them. It might not seem like a huge deal, but for a long...