Vent: Found a food delivery hack that saved me $35 last week and nobody warns you about this

I live in Austin and order delivery maybe twice a week. Got tired of the markups and service fees always adding up. So I started using the restaurant's own ordering site instead of DoorDash or UberEats. Picked up my usual order from a Thai place on Manor Road and it came out to $22 versus $57 on the apps. Same food, same driver service, no hidden fees. Has anyone else tried going direct and actually seen it work?

4 comments

4 Comments

eva_thompson23d ago

@the_linda really nails it with those South Lamar pizza savings.

alicehernandez23d ago

Calling the restaurant direct really does save money sometimes but is it really that deep? I mean $57 is pretty steep for Thai food from a place on Manor Road unless you're ordering for like four people. I just wonder if the apps are really "scamming" us or if we're all just willingly paying for convenience and forgetting what we clicked. Plus half the time those direct ordering sites crash or take forever unless it's a polished chain. I tried it with my local taco spot and the direct site was so buggy I ended up back on UberEats anyway. The price difference is real but let's not act like the apps don't provide a service that's worth something to some people.

taylorc4023d ago

Did you try calling instead of using their site? That worked way better for me.

the_linda23d ago

ugh girl i feel you on that. that $22 vs $57 is nuts right?? like i been doing the same thing with my go to pizza spot in Austin on South Lamar and it's literally half the price when i call them direct. the apps are just straight up scamming us with those "service fees" and random surcharges.